Mary Winkler
Encyclopedia
Mary Carol Winkler was convicted of voluntary manslaughter in the 2006 shooting death of her husband
, Matthew Winkler
, the pulpit minister at the Fourth Street Church of Christ
in the small town of Selmer
, Tennessee
. She gained national attention because of public speculation about her motives and mental health, allegations of abuse by her husband, her brief flight from the state, and again for the brief length of her jail sentence. In August 2008, Winkler was granted full custody of her three daughters.
According to police, Mary Winkler confessed to the March 22, 2006 fatal shooting of her husband, whose body was discovered in their home by church members after he missed that evening's service. He had been shot in the back with a 12 gauge
shotgun
.
The couple had been married since 1996. One neighborhood family reported that Matthew Winkler had repeatedly threatened to shoot that family's dog after it strayed onto the Winklers' lawn. Also, other friends, as well as Mary Winkler's family, allege that Matthew Winkler had been abusive to Mary. Winkler maintained this was the reason for the shooting.
After police issued an Amber Alert
due to fears of kidnapping, Mary Winkler and the children (Patricia, then 8; Mary Alice, then 6; Breanna, then 1) were discovered in Orange Beach, Alabama
. Winkler was placed into custody there and later extradited to Tennessee to stand trial. When asked by investigators about what had happened to her husband, Winkler stated that she and her husband had argued about money and offered "I guess that's when my ugly came out." A grand jury indicted Winkler on Monday, June 12, 2006, accusing her of first-degree murder.
Mary Winkler had lost money in what her lawyer said was a scam. She had deposited checks that came from "unidentified sources" in Canada and Nigeria into bank accounts belonging to her and her husband. The checks amounted to more than $17,000. Winkler had become caught up in a swindle known as the "Nigerian scam", which promises riches to victims who send money to cover the processing expenses. She added "He had really been on me lately criticizing me for things — the way I walk, I eat, everything. It was just building up to a point. I was tired of it. I guess I got to a point and snapped."
Bond was later set at $750,000, an amount that defense lawyer Steve Farese Sr. claimed was excessive and "tantamount to no bond at all". A plea for reduction of bond was filed and subsequently denied. Winkler's lawyers, Leslie Ballin and Steve Farese Sr., also filed motions to throw out her confession on a technicality, to require prosecutors to state whether or not they would seek the death penalty (they did not), to give potential jurors an extensive questionnaire, and other motions relating to voir dire
. Winkler's entire defense team -- Attorneys Steve Farese Sr., Leslie Ballin, Tony Farese, Steve Farese, Jr. and Investigator Terry Cox represented her pro bono throughout the entire criminal case.
. The trial commenced on April 9, 2007, with the prosecution resting on April 16. The defense rested two days later.
. Prosecutors had asked that Winkler be convicted of first-degree murder, but the jury settled on the lesser charge after deliberating for eight hours.
. She had credit for already serving 5 months and the judge permitted her to spend up to 60 days in a Western State Mental Health Facility in Bolivar, Tennessee
. She was to be put on probation
for the rest of her sentence.
activists argue the sentence did not constitute justice for the killing of Matthew Winkler. They argued that society sees males only as victimizers and say that the definition of emotional abuse has been expanded to include mere criticism, thereby giving anyone who does not like being criticized justification to commit murder in order to end the criticism. Mary Winkler's family alleges that she was reacting to a combination of emotional, sexual, and physical spousal abuse.
In a 2007 interview with Oprah Winfrey
, Winkler stated that her jail time was too short. "There's no amount of time I think you can put on something like this. I was just ready for them to lock the door and throw away the key", she told Winfrey.
On their 2010 album The Big To Do
the band Drive-By Truckers
included a song entitled "The Wig He Made Her Wear", chronicling the shooting incident and subsequent trial.
Husband
A husband is a male participant in a marriage. The rights and obligations of the husband regarding his spouse and others, and his status in the community and in law, vary between cultures and has varied over time...
, Matthew Winkler
Matthew Winkler
Matthew Brian Winkler was the victim in a high-profile murder case in 2006.In the 1990s, Winkler attended college at Freed-Hardeman University in Henderson, Tennessee. Winkler was the pulpit minister at the Fourth Street Church of Christ in Selmer, Tennessee, at the time of his death...
, the pulpit minister at the Fourth Street Church of Christ
Church of Christ
Churches of Christ are autonomous Christian congregations associated with one another through common beliefs and practices. They seek to base doctrine and practice on the Bible alone, and seek to be New Testament congregations as originally established by the authority of Christ. Historically,...
in the small town of Selmer
Selmer, Tennessee
Selmer is a town in McNairy County, Tennessee, United States, in the southwestern part of the state. The population was 4,541 at the 2000 census. It is the county seat of McNairy County...
, Tennessee
Tennessee
Tennessee is a U.S. state located in the Southeastern United States. It has a population of 6,346,105, making it the nation's 17th-largest state by population, and covers , making it the 36th-largest by total land area...
. She gained national attention because of public speculation about her motives and mental health, allegations of abuse by her husband, her brief flight from the state, and again for the brief length of her jail sentence. In August 2008, Winkler was granted full custody of her three daughters.
Timeline
- 1992: Graduated from South-Doyle High School, part of the KnoxvilleKnoxville, TennesseeFounded in 1786, Knoxville is the third-largest city in the U.S. state of Tennessee, U.S.A., behind Memphis and Nashville, and is the county seat of Knox County. It is the largest city in East Tennessee, and the second-largest city in the Appalachia region...
public school system. - April 20, 1996: Married Matthew Winkler, by whom she later had three daughters.
- Early springSpring (season)Spring is one of the four temperate seasons, the transition period between winter and summer. Spring and "springtime" refer to the season, and broadly to ideas of rebirth, renewal and regrowth. The specific definition of the exact timing of "spring" varies according to local climate, cultures and...
2006: Part-time student at Freed-Hardeman UniversityFreed-Hardeman UniversityFreed-Hardeman University is a primarily undergraduate university in Henderson, Tennessee. The university is located within a short distance of the town's central area. The university traces its heritage to the members of the Churches of Christ who helped build it...
in HendersonHenderson, TennesseeHenderson is an incorporated city in Chester County, Tennessee, United States. The population was 5,670 at the 2000 census. It is the county seat of Chester County...
, the same institutionInstitutionAn institution is any structure or mechanism of social order and cooperation governing the behavior of a set of individuals within a given human community...
from which her husband graduated with a degree in BibleBibleThe Bible refers to any one of the collections of the primary religious texts of Judaism and Christianity. There is no common version of the Bible, as the individual books , their contents and their order vary among denominations...
Studies. She was working toward a Bachelor's degree in EducationEducationEducation in its broadest, general sense is the means through which the aims and habits of a group of people lives on from one generation to the next. Generally, it occurs through any experience that has a formative effect on the way one thinks, feels, or acts...
. - March 22, 2006: Shot and killed her husband and fled south with the children.
- March 23, 2006: Arrested in Alabama and remanded. (Later extradited to Tennessee.)
- August 15, 2006: Released on bond.
- April 19, 2007: Found guilty of voluntary manslaughter.
- August 14, 2007: Released after spending a total of seven months in custody: five months in a county jail and two months in a mental health facility.
- September 12, 2007: Interviewed with American TV talk showTalk showA talk show or chat show is a television program or radio program where one person discuss various topics put forth by a talk show host....
hostess Oprah WinfreyOprah WinfreyOprah Winfrey is an American media proprietor, talk show host, actress, producer and philanthropist. Winfrey is best known for her self-titled, multi-award-winning talk show, which has become the highest-rated program of its kind in history and was nationally syndicated from 1986 to 2011...
. - September 19, 2007: Won right to supervised visitation with her three daughters.
- May 16, 2008: Returned to court to fight for custody of her daughters,
- August 04, 2008: Gains custody of her three daughters.
Criminal case
Gauge (bore diameter)
The gauge of a firearm is a unit of measurement used to express the diameter of the barrel. Gauge is determined from the weight of a solid sphere of lead that will fit the bore of the firearm, and is expressed as the multiplicative inverse of the sphere's weight as a fraction of a pound . Thus...
shotgun
Shotgun
A shotgun is a firearm that is usually designed to be fired from the shoulder, which uses the energy of a fixed shell to fire a number of small spherical pellets called shot, or a solid projectile called a slug...
.
The couple had been married since 1996. One neighborhood family reported that Matthew Winkler had repeatedly threatened to shoot that family's dog after it strayed onto the Winklers' lawn. Also, other friends, as well as Mary Winkler's family, allege that Matthew Winkler had been abusive to Mary. Winkler maintained this was the reason for the shooting.
After police issued an Amber Alert
AMBER Alert
An AMBER Alert or a Child Abduction Emergency is a child abduction alert bulletin in several countries throughout the world, issued upon the suspected abduction of a child, since 1996...
due to fears of kidnapping, Mary Winkler and the children (Patricia, then 8; Mary Alice, then 6; Breanna, then 1) were discovered in Orange Beach, Alabama
Orange Beach, Alabama
Orange Beach is a city in Baldwin County, Alabama, United States. At the 2000 census the population was 3,784. It is part of the Daphne–Fairhope–Foley Micropolitan Statistical Area.-Geography:...
. Winkler was placed into custody there and later extradited to Tennessee to stand trial. When asked by investigators about what had happened to her husband, Winkler stated that she and her husband had argued about money and offered "I guess that's when my ugly came out." A grand jury indicted Winkler on Monday, June 12, 2006, accusing her of first-degree murder.
Bond hearing
On Friday, June 30, 2006: Mary Winkler's bond hearing was held. A Tennessee Bureau of Investigation agent read a statement Winkler gave to authorities in Alabama, where she was arrested a day after her husband's body was found. In it, Winkler says she did not remember getting the gun but she did know her husband kept a shotgun in their home. The next thing she heard was a loud boom. Matthew Winkler was shot in the back as he lay in bed. He rolled from the bed onto the floor, and, still alive, he asked his wife, "Why?" to which she responded, "I'm sorry." When she left the home, Matthew Winkler was still alive in the bedroom, and the phone had been disconnected from its socket. According to the statement, she and her husband had been arguing throughout the evening about many things, including family finances. She admitted some of the problems were "her fault."Mary Winkler had lost money in what her lawyer said was a scam. She had deposited checks that came from "unidentified sources" in Canada and Nigeria into bank accounts belonging to her and her husband. The checks amounted to more than $17,000. Winkler had become caught up in a swindle known as the "Nigerian scam", which promises riches to victims who send money to cover the processing expenses. She added "He had really been on me lately criticizing me for things — the way I walk, I eat, everything. It was just building up to a point. I was tired of it. I guess I got to a point and snapped."
Bond was later set at $750,000, an amount that defense lawyer Steve Farese Sr. claimed was excessive and "tantamount to no bond at all". A plea for reduction of bond was filed and subsequently denied. Winkler's lawyers, Leslie Ballin and Steve Farese Sr., also filed motions to throw out her confession on a technicality, to require prosecutors to state whether or not they would seek the death penalty (they did not), to give potential jurors an extensive questionnaire, and other motions relating to voir dire
Voir dire
Voir dire is a phrase in law which comes from the Anglo-Norman language. In origin it refers to an oath to tell the truth , i.e., to say what is true, what is objectively accurate or subjectively honest, or both....
. Winkler's entire defense team -- Attorneys Steve Farese Sr., Leslie Ballin, Tony Farese, Steve Farese, Jr. and Investigator Terry Cox represented her pro bono throughout the entire criminal case.
Trial
On April 18, 2007, Mary Winkler took the stand in her own defense. She told a jury of ten women and two men that her husband often "berated" her and forced her to wear "slutty" costumes for sex. As proof she displayed a pair of high-heeled shoes and a wig to which those in attendance gasped. Winkler claimed that she only shot her husband accidentally. She said that she went to the bedroom closet and retrieved a shotgun because she wanted to force him to work through their problems. "I just wanted him to stop being so mean," she said through tears. Winkler denied she ever actually pulled the trigger, but told the jury "something went off". She heard a boom, then ran from the house because she thought he would be mad at her.Release from jail
Winkler made bond on August 12, 2006 and was set for release from jail. Initially, problems stemming from a 1999 suspension of her bail bond company kept her in jail. However, she was able to post $750,000 bond and was released on August 15, 2006, on the stipulation that she live with Rudolf and Kathy Thomsen, friends in McMinnville, TennesseeMcMinnville, Tennessee
McMinnville is the largest city in and the county seat of Warren County, Tennessee, United States. The population was 13,605 at the 2010 census...
. The trial commenced on April 9, 2007, with the prosecution resting on April 16. The defense rested two days later.
Verdict
On April 19, 2007, the jury came back with the verdict: guilty of voluntary manslaughterVoluntary Manslaughter
Voluntary manslaughter is the killing of a human being in which the offender had no prior intent to kill and acted during "the heat of passion," under circumstances that would cause a reasonable person to become emotionally or mentally disturbed. In the Uniform Crime Reports prepared by the...
. Prosecutors had asked that Winkler be convicted of first-degree murder, but the jury settled on the lesser charge after deliberating for eight hours.
Sentencing
The sentencing phase was set to begin on May 18, 2007, but was delayed due to a scheduling conflict by one of the attorneys. On June 8, 2007, a Tennessee judge sentenced Mary Winkler to 210 days in prison for the conviction of voluntary manslaughterVoluntary Manslaughter
Voluntary manslaughter is the killing of a human being in which the offender had no prior intent to kill and acted during "the heat of passion," under circumstances that would cause a reasonable person to become emotionally or mentally disturbed. In the Uniform Crime Reports prepared by the...
. She had credit for already serving 5 months and the judge permitted her to spend up to 60 days in a Western State Mental Health Facility in Bolivar, Tennessee
Bolivar, Tennessee
Bolivar is a city in Hardeman County, Tennessee, in the United States. As of the 2000 census, the city population was 5,802. It is the county seat of Hardeman County. The town was named for South American revolutionary leader Simón Bolívar, but is pronounced to rhyme with the name Oliver. Bolivar...
. She was to be put on probation
Probation
Probation literally means testing of behaviour or abilities. In a legal sense, an offender on probation is ordered to follow certain conditions set forth by the court, often under the supervision of a probation officer...
for the rest of her sentence.
Reaction
Some men's rightsMen's rights
Men's rights is an umbrella term, encompassing the political rights, entitlements, and freedoms given or denied to males within a nation or culture....
activists argue the sentence did not constitute justice for the killing of Matthew Winkler. They argued that society sees males only as victimizers and say that the definition of emotional abuse has been expanded to include mere criticism, thereby giving anyone who does not like being criticized justification to commit murder in order to end the criticism. Mary Winkler's family alleges that she was reacting to a combination of emotional, sexual, and physical spousal abuse.
In a 2007 interview with Oprah Winfrey
Oprah Winfrey
Oprah Winfrey is an American media proprietor, talk show host, actress, producer and philanthropist. Winfrey is best known for her self-titled, multi-award-winning talk show, which has become the highest-rated program of its kind in history and was nationally syndicated from 1986 to 2011...
, Winkler stated that her jail time was too short. "There's no amount of time I think you can put on something like this. I was just ready for them to lock the door and throw away the key", she told Winfrey.
On their 2010 album The Big To Do
The Big To Do
The Big To-Do is the eighth studio album by the alternative country band Drive-By Truckers, released on March 16, 2010. It is their first album released on ATO Records, which they signed to after completing their four album deal with New West Records. The Big To-Do marks the seventh Drive-By...
the band Drive-By Truckers
Drive-By Truckers
Drive-By Truckers are an alternative country/Southern rock band based in Athens, Georgia, though three out of six members are originally from The Shoals region of Northern Alabama, and the band strongly identifies with Alabama. Their music uses three guitars as well as bass, drums, and now...
included a song entitled "The Wig He Made Her Wear", chronicling the shooting incident and subsequent trial.
External links
- MSNBC: Did preacher's wife get away with murder?
- Dateline: The Preacher's Wife
- The Winkler Case: A four-part series as Mary's trial begins
- Crime Library; Mary Winkler's Arrest
- The Memphis Flyer: Shocker in Selmer
- Fox News; Mary Winkler's Alabama Confession
- CNN News; Wife who killed preacher set free
- http://www.amazon.com/dp/0312949294The Pastor's Wife: The True Story of a Minister and the Shocking Death that Divided a Family, by Diane FanningDiane Fanning-Early life and education:Fanning was born Diane Lynn Butcher in Baltimore, Maryland. She attended Perry Hall High School, then Lynchburg College in Virginia, where she majored in chemistry.-Career:...
, St. Martin's Press, November 4, 2008]