Bruce Leroy Miller was 48 when he was found dead on the floor of his auto salvage yard in Flint, Michigan, on November 8, 1999. He had suffered a close-range shotgun blast. At first the scene pointed to a robbery: a significant amount of cash Bruce was known to carry was missing.

Three months later, a dramatic twist came from Missouri when a former detective, Jerry Cassaday, died by suicide and left a note and a briefcase of printed instant messages confessing to the killing. The materials accused Bruce’s wife, Sharee Miller, of orchestrating the murder through an online relationship with Cassaday. The messages allegedly show Sharee inventing abuse, fabricating bruises and claiming pregnancy to manipulate Cassaday into traveling to Flint and carrying out the shooting.

Sharee Miller was arrested in February 2000; later that year a jury convicted her of conspiracy to commit murder and second-degree murder. She received a life sentence for the conspiracy conviction and an additional lengthy sentence for the murder conviction. Did anyone who knew Bruce, Sharee, or Jerry notice signs of this scheme before the violence?