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Linda Collins was believed to have been shot to death before investigators found that she had been fatally stabbed multiple times. She was found wrapped in a comforter and concealed with a tarp in her house in June 2019. The American businesswoman and politician was a former Republican member of the Arkansas Senate from 2015 to 2019.
A Dateline episode titled The Hands of a Killer will focus on Linda Collins' murder and the investigation into it after she was found in the driveway of her Arkansas home. The episode, which was originally released in 2022, will re-air on NBC on Friday, July 12, 2024, at 9 pm EST. The official synopsis of the episode reads:
"When former Arkansas State Senator Linda Collins is found fatally stabbed outside her home, detectives investigate if her murder is connected to her political career or her personal life; the victim's children speak out about the case."
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Who was Linda Collins?
Linda F. Collins was born on April 17, 1962, in Pocahontas, Arkansas, to parents Benny Collins and Carolyn Vernice Hunnicutt Collins. She grew up in Williford, Sharp County, and had a difficult childhood.
Her house was ten miles down an unpaved rural road with severe constraints, including access to clean and running water. Linda completed her education in Williford before she began working as a real estate agent.
In 1995, she married Philip Smith, a circuit court judge, and the couple had two children — Butch Smith and Heather Tate Williams. However, they ended things in 2018 and had their financial assets divided after the separation. Linda owned and managed the Days Inn in Pocahontas before selling it off in 2016.
Linda Collins was a member of the Arkansas House of Representatives for one term, from 2011 to 2013. She was appointed as a Democrat but changed parties after eight months as a Republican. She then worked as a Republican member of the Arkansas Senate from 2015 to 2019.
Her upbringing influenced her career, as her obituary read:
"Her background taught her the value of hard work, and the blessing of living in a land where everyone, from the poor country girl to the inner city street kid, had the opportunity to achieve their dreams through industry and determination."
Linda Collins had been a part of multiple committees over the course of her life and also founded the Randolph County Tourism Association. The committees she was a part of included the Arkansas Hospitality Association, the National Rifle Association, the Arkansas Chamber of Commerce, and the Arkansas Federation of Republican Women. She was also the Arkansas House Chair for the American Legislative Exchange Council.
What happened to Linda Collins?
Dateline season 30 episode 21 is set to focus on the murder of Linda Collins on June 4, 2019. Her father, Benny Collins, and son, Butch, decided to conduct a welfare check on Linda after she hadn't been in touch with them for a few days.
They didn't find her inside her house and noted that the door was locked, with no one answering the door after they knocked. However, Butch spotted a tarp in her driveway, and he went on to look underneath it, where he found his mother's body.
According to the Arkansas Times, Linda was found face-down, covered in an old comforter, and concealed in a tarp. Her body had reportedly been left outside for around a week in the hot Arkansas summer, leading to decomposition.
While multiple media outlets, reported that she was killed due to gunshot wounds, the investigation revealed that she had been stabbed to death. However, they didn't have a suspect in mind at the time.
The date of Linda's death was initially difficult to determine due to the degree of decomposition. However, the officials ascertained that she had been killed inside and dragged out to the driveway, per ABC7 San Francisco.
Investigations soon revealed that Rebecca Lynn O'Donnell, Linda's friend and former campaign worker was the one who had killed her. According to People, the prosecutors alleged that Linda was killed to cover up a financial crime that Rebecca had committed against her friend.
The episode The Hands of a Killer was originally aired on April 8, 2022. Catch all the details about Linda Collins' murder as the Dateline episode airs on NBC on Friday.
