Was Sherri Ponsati's murder a result of domestic violence? Details explored

The murder of Sherri Ponsati, a mother of two, revealed the ugly truth of abuse and domestic violence as the investigations brought out the cracks in the Ponsati pair's marriage. Sherri was reportedly killed in her bathroom and the scene was staged to be an accident by her husband, Marc Eric Ponsati.

As the investigations into the case began, the authorities found Sherri's close ones talking about the abuse Mark subjected her to. Additionally, Mark Eric Ponsati had also threatened Sherri with murder if she were to leave him.

The American Monster episode We Were Fooled chronicles the grisly details of Sherri Ponsati's murder. The episode aired on June 23, 2024, at 9 pm EST on Investigation Discovery and is available for streaming on Discovery Plus and Prime Video. The official synopsis reads:

"Mark-Eric and Sherri Ponsati have a picture-perfect life, and the arrival of two children completes their family. When Mark-Eric reports that Sherri has had a tragic accident, their world falls apart."

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How was Mark Ponsati considered a suspect in Sherri Ponsati's murder?

On September 7, 2017, Sherri Ponsati was found without a pulse or a heartbeat on the bathroom floor of her Val Vistas Lakes home in Gilbert. Mark Eric Ponsati dialed 911 and alerted the authorities of the alleged slip and fall. While the dispatcher instructed Mark, a United States Air Force veteran, to perform CPR on Sherri, he refused saying:

“She’s purple. I know what death looks like. I’m an Afghanistan veteran. She’s gone.”

As Sheri was declared dead at the hospital, Mark mentioned having no trouble in their married life. However, the investigations found the statement to be contradictory to Sherri's family's statements. Close ones mentioned how their marriage was riddled with issues from the outset.

Moreover, the crime scene looked like it was staged as Detective Michael Bishop noticed blood stains on tile outcropping in the bathroom. He testified at Mark's hearing saying:

“If someone slips and falls and hits their head on an object as they fall, you wouldn’t expect to see blood on an object because something, some force has to be used to break the skin to cause the bleeding."

Furthermore, the amount of the blue bubble bath left in the gallon bottle and the shape of the bottle indicated that it could not have been toppled over. Mark had also washed their clothes trying to get rid of any evidence, per KTAR.

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How was Sherri Ponsati and Mark Eric Ponsati's married life?

According to the Gilbert Sun News, Sherri's family mentioned in their statement that the couple shared a tumultuous marriage. Sherri and Mark had had lengthy separations along with a reported discussion of divorce with an attorney as well. Prosecutor Joshua Clark revealed that Sherri wanted to leave the marriage but waited around for Maddie and Max to be of age.

However, Mark Eric Ponsati threatened to kill Sherri and her children if they were to leave him, per The Arizona Republic. Sherri's close friend, Stacy Wolf, shared:

“Sherri shared with me often of Mark’s sexual deviations and the pain that it caused her in their marriage. He hired prostitutes and made her engage in sexual behavior with which she did not feel comfortable and (he) was obsessed with pornography.”

Stacy blamed Sherri Ponsati's murder on domestic violence and mentioned that she had several miscarriages, per the Gilbert Sun News.

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Watch all the details on American Monster's second episode as streams on Discovery Plus and Prime Video.