Oregon romance writer’s alleged slip-up confession to husband’s killing never happened, former bunkmate says

The testimony of a last-minute witness anticipated to supply bombshell proof that romance author Nancy Crampton Brophy inadvertently admitted to killing her chef husband largely fizzled Wednesday because the homicide trial nears an finish.

Crampton Brophy’s former jail bunkmate as an alternative described the remark as a easy verbal error.

Prosecutor Shawn Overstreet final week instructed the decide he needed to name inmate Anndrea D. Jacobs, 51, as a witness as a result of she instructed detectives in an interview that Crampton Brophy mentioned: “I used to be this far-off when the taking pictures occurred.”

Crampton Brophy used her arms to suggest the taking pictures was at shut vary, then corrected herself when she realized what she had implied, based on Overstreet.

On the stand, Jacobs described the jailhouse dialog as a barely noticeable slip of the tongue.

“She began to say ‘I,’ however she switched actually fast to ‘it,’” Jacobs defined with a shrug. “She used her arm span and mentioned, ‘It was about this far.’”

Overstreet requested Jacobs: “Is that what you instructed detectives?” and reminded her that her interview with investigators was recorded.

Jacobs repeated her tackle the remark and Overstreet rapidly ended his questions.

Crampton Brophy is charged with homicide within the June 2, 2018, taking pictures of her husband, Oregon Culinary Institute teacher Daniel Brophy, 63. He was discovered useless on the ground of a classroom, shot as soon as within the again and once more as he lay dying on the ground, police testified.

Prosecutors declare Crampton Brophy needed to money in $1.4 million from life insurance coverage insurance policies and avert a plunge off a monetary cliff.

The self-published writer, who gained notoriety after her arrest for a 2011 essay titled “Easy methods to Homicide Your Husband,” took the bizarre step of testifying in her personal protection earlier this week and mentioned she cherished her husband, didn’t kill him and was higher off financially with him alive.

Surveillance video exhibits her driving by the varsity shortly earlier than Brophy’s physique was found.

Crampton Brophy mentioned she suffered from retrograde amnesia to elucidate why she by no means instructed police that she was within the neighborhood on the time her husband was killed. The trauma of studying that her husband was useless erased her recollections of the journey, Crampton Brophy and a psychologist employed by the protection testified.

She additionally mentioned she wasn’t certain what occurred to a lacking gun barrel that she mentioned purchased as analysis for her writing. Prosecutors allege the barrel was used within the taking pictures.

Protection legal professional Lisa Maxfield had objected to bringing in Crampton Brophy’s former bunkmate to testify, however Multnomah County Circuit Choose Christopher Ramas allowed Jacobs to be flown from Texas, the place she’s now being held. Jacobs and Cramptom Brophy shared a cell at each the Multnomah County Detention Middle and Inverness Jail in Portland.

Maxfield hammered Jacobs over her prison historical past. Courtroom data present Jacobs pleaded responsible to submitting a false tax return, impersonating an IRS worker and financial institution fraud in September 2020 as a part of a plea deal that sentenced her to 4 years in a federal jail camp.

Maxfield mentioned Jacobs embezzled about $1 million whereas working as a receptionist for an Oregon physician between 2011 and 2015, then took cash from one other firm whereas on pretrial launch. All expenses had been settled as a part of the plea deal.

Jacobs is also below federal investigation for alleged fraudulent Medicare payments value greater than $200,000 in addition to $579,000 in chapter fraud, Maxfield mentioned.

She famous Jacobs is looking for compassionate launch from jail.

“You had been hoping that in the event you instructed Mr. Overstreet what he needed to listen to that your Medicaid case would go away?” Maxfield requested. “That he would make your chapter fraud disappear?”

Jacobs denied that she had cooperated in hopes of reaching a deal, saying she had needed to testify and now confronted fixed threats from fellow inmates in Bryan, Texas.

“The worst factor you are able to do if you’re incarcerated is to testify towards one other inmate,” Jacobs mentioned. “I instructed myself if I used to be requested questions that I wasn’t going to lie, and that’s the reality of the matter.”

The trial of Crampton Brophy is predicted to go to the jury as quickly as Friday.

— Zane Sparling; zsparling@oregonian.com; 503-319-7083; @pdxzane