Linda Stermer, now 60, was convicted of killing her husband, Todd Stermer, after she was confronted about her affair in what her children described as the ‘worst argument ever witnessed’
A cheating wife killed her husband after she lit him on fire and drove over him in the family van after an argument about her affair erupted, it has been reported. Linda Stermer, now 60, reportedly cheated on her husband, Todd Stermer, and shortly after he found out about the affair in January 2007, she doused him in gasoline and cruelly lit him on fire, according to WOOD-TV.
It was claimed that Stermer proceeded to run over her husband in a van as he tried to escape the terrifying ordeal, the outlet reported. Todd, who was just 42 years old, is said to have died in the garden of their home.
Stermer, from Michigan in the US, was convicted of murdering her husband in 2010 and was sentenced to life in prison, according to WOOD-TV. The outlet said Stermer had been released in 2018 after the federal appeals court overturned the conviction and ordered a new trial.
During the retrial by jury this year, Stermer was found guilty of two counts of murder, including first-degree murder. She now faces life in prison without the option of parole.
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Stermer had continuously denied killing her husband on purpose and argued that she ran him over in the van by accident while attempting to escape a fire, reports MLive. She reportedly claimed that the fire was started by one of her husband’s oil lamps.
During the trial, their two older children and nephew, who the couple also raised, reportedly testified against her. According to MLive, their son, Trevor Stermer, said his parents had an argument after his dad found out about the affair and described it as “the worst argument that we had witnessed.”
The outlet reported that Trevor claimed his mum, who he no longer refers to her as, had told them to lie for her in a bid to cover up the murder. According to MLive, Trevor testified: “She wanted to downplay the severeness of the fight.”
He continued: “It was severe. It was the most heated argument I heard from my parents. Second, no talks of divorce with the insurance agent and three, she said to tell them it was a chimney fire.”
After the trial, the husband was described as a “positive” and “chipper” person by his friend Larry Norris. “He was well loved and his kids loved him,” Norris said. “And that’s what’s more important than that, you know, than being loved by your family.”