A blog post titled “How to Kill Your Husband” by a romance writer accused of shooting and killing her husband cannot be used as evidence against her, a US judge has ruled.
Nancy Crampton-Bruffy, 71, appeared in court in Portland this week over the death of her husband of 21 years, Daniel Bruffy. He is not guilty.
The body of 63-year-old Mr. Bruffy was found in June 2018 at the Oregon Culinary Institute where he taught, according to authorities.
Before the judges entered court on Monday, the judge ruled that the blog post was outdated and that it was made for a writing seminar.
At the time of the trial, the cost of its inclusion was higher than the prejudice that could have caused it to the jury, Portland’s NBC-authorized KGW reported.
In a statement issued in 2018, police said that “based on information learned during the investigation, detectives” believe the author is a suspect in the murder of Mr. Bruffy.
Court documents said there was no sign of force or struggle and that Mr Bruffy still had his phone, wallet and keys.
Shawn Overstreet, a senior deputy district attorney in Multnomah County, told the judges that Krampton-Brophy was motivated by greed and paid out a total of $ 1.4 million in insurance policies, The Oregonian newspaper in Portland reported.
Crampton-Brophy has been in custody since his arrest in September 2018.
Nancy Crampton-Bruffy has been in custody since 2018. Photo: Portland Police Bureau
Mr. Brafi was the only person in the culinary school at the time of his death. The prosecution said. There were no security cameras, the prosecutor added.
Defense attorney Lisa Maxfield says both the author and her money have declined since her husband’s death, The Oregon reported.
She added that her client had no reason to kill her husband and said the author had lost “a great listener, a great lover, a perfect chef and a true life partner”.
The trial is expected to last seven weeks.
