An Invisible Enemy

The NCIS Investigates The Death Of A Young Marine

(CBS)  "After I had picked her up from her home, and was transporting her to the hospital, she wanted to stop at the store to pick up cigarettes," says Eva Stoner, the young military police officer who drove Cynthia to the hospital that night.

Stoner thought it was odd that Cynthia didn't seem to be in a rush to get to the hospital, but even more puzzling, she says, was the Marine widow’s behavior when they arrived at emergency room. "She wasn't crying in the vehicle, she wasn't crying at the hospital and even when the staff came in and told her that, 'We're sorry your husband has passed away,' I don’t remember her actually showing tears. I remember her crying, but it’s more like the act of crying."

Todd’s mother, Yvonne Sommer, who had never spoken publicly about their son’s death recounted the moment Cynthia told her that her only son had died. "The final call would have been that they couldn’t bring Todd back, that he was dead," she testified.

And what troubled Todd’s mother was a confrontation she had with her daughter-in-law about hanging out late with friends the night of Todd's memorial service. "I was concerned that she had not returned, because I didn’t think she would gone," Yvonne testified. "She told me to mind my own business, that she would grieve her way, and I could grieve my way."

The way Cynthia grieved and her behavior the night her husband died convinced investigators she had a motive for murder. "Todd had been deceased not more than three hours and she was calling the family accountant and asking about taxes and how she should file and how they were gonna get their refund-things of that nature, so money seemed to be the driving force here," Terwilliger says.

"I wasn't asking about money. My husband had just died. And I knew that being a military wife, I lost everything," Cynthia says. "I have four children and I just felt like my life had … everything that I had known at that time was gone."

When Cynthia got that hefty lump sum of $250,000 from Todd's life insurance, investigators say, Todd's family convinced her to put approximately half the money in a trust fund for the children. With the remaining cash, Cynthia paid off some debts and bought clothes and jewelry. But one particular purchase would raise eyebrows: the breast implants.

"Is this something that had just come or had you and Todd been discussing this issue?" Udell asked Cynthia on the stand.

"Discussing it for a while," she replied.

"What's the bottom line here, in your opinion as an investigator. At the time she was considering having those breast implants, did they have the money to pay for that operation?" Lagattuta asks Terwilliger.

"No they did not," the special agent replies.

"We were definitely saving for it, we definitely had plans for it and after he died, I really wanted to make myself feel better. And I thought that was one of ways I could do that," Cynthia says.

With no proof that Cynthia murdered her husband Todd, what do prosecutors really have?

Defense attorney Bob Udell works around the clock with his investigator to build a case to free Cynthia.

But prosecutor Gunn suspects Cynthia was clever enough to plan a murder without leaving any direct evidence of her using arsenic to kill her husband.

If her love for money seemed suspicious, Cynthia's behavior after her husband Todd's death would give prosecutors even more ammunition for their case. A string of friends were forced to testify about the marine widow's wild side.

Friends testified that Cynthia participated in a wet T-shirt contest, as well as a thong contest, in Tijuana, Mexico.

"Do you think the prosecution is attempting to put you on trial for your behavior, what they are attempting to paint as immoral behavior?" Lagattuta asks. "After your husband’s death?"

"Absolutely," Cynthia says. "I understand I did the thong contest and people do it in Spring break all the time. I don't see them standing trial for things that they didn’t do. I don’t think the actions that I did justified bringing me to trial."

Former Marine Christopher Reed spoke at Todd’s memorial service and testified in court that Cynthia suggested a threesome with him and his wife shortly after Todd died. He testified that they had sex; several other former Marines also testified about their sexual encounters with Cynthia in the weeks after Todd’s death.

"It’s not just a one sided thing. I didn’t go to the bar and pick up all these, you know, random guys, These were people I knew," Cynthia says. "I missed my husband and I wanted companionship and that’s how I got it."

Asked how she thinks the jury is going to evaluate her behavior, Cynthia says, "I'm hoping that they don't look at it as a moral issue. Those are things I did to get through it. I've been through a lot in my life."

[dudedudley]

By the way. As it turned out her husband was not murdered. Later test at an independent lab in Canada proved there wasn't arsenic in his blood. He died of a heart attack. Here we have a murder conviction without a murder. What next?

[dudedudley]

Cynthia was convicted without evidence. She was convicted although a state forensic expert testified the test for arsenic was flawed. Cynthia and her family are bankrupt from legal fees. Her conviction was the result of her character and show boating common to legal professionals. She should be compensated by the ones responsible, not the public. You could be the next innocent person convicted. Think about it. Convictions of the innocent is far too common.

[rudy654-2009]

Posted by dommino02 at 03:28 PM

You seem to be questioning that this poor fellow was killed by arsenic. Well question no more, because he did and that is a fact. It is also a fact that the only person who could have done it was his so-called wife. Now argue about that, but not that he didn''t die from arsenic. It has been proven that he did.

[rudy654-2009]

I am also convinced that she is guilty. Notice the sudden disappearance of the computer. Who loses a computer and just uh, doesn''t know it? Then there is the fake nonsense of doing CPR. As a CPR instructor, I can say that there is no way she could be talking on the phone and doing CPR at the same time. It is exhausting and anyone doing it knows that you don''t stop doing it until the ambulance arrives. So, I believe she did it. I want to feel sorry for her, but just can''t. I wish there was more evidence and I think they could have found it had they tried a little more. However, I honestly believe that they had less evidence in the Scott Peterson case than they do in this case.

[dommino02]

learn your medicine when you posin someone with arsenic it is found in all the organs and also destories or damages them his organs where in excellent condition after he died i know i can''t spell very well but i listen to the facts and then make my judgements i know a lot abt medince i have gone through a liver transplant and varius other medical problems and have done a lot of reasearch just to stay alive because of what i have been through rember eistein could not tie his own shoes and he his consider a genius

[dommino02]

the missing computer was reformated for her daughter by one of the mps that was a friend of hers on the base and todds also get your facts straight

[dommino02]

i see alll heatheans got there 2cents worth in they are not looking at the evidence they are just judge what they saw on 48 hrs which i once though presented both sides of an issue and let it up to the person to come to there own conclussions if the judge was comfortable with the verdict she would be on the way upstate ca. and he had to listen to both sides of this and saw all the evidence he evidently thinks it is a weak case he also mentioned the defense not challangeing that they could not connect her to the arsenic in any way i feel the judge knows the facts better than 48 hrs and the heathens out there i abde by his judgement i do not go to church i belive in a superior power than human intellenge in the universe we gve it the name god because noby knows what controlls the unverise i feel she is innocent until PROVEN guilty which the judge evidently feels the smae way or there would be no re-trial if you look up his record he is pro proscution which gives this decison by him all the more power of having his doubts

[nathan8804-2009]

This girl was a *** before Todd hooked up with her. She had three kids and divorced by 25. Tell me what a 25 year old women wants with a 19 yr old kid? In her case a daddy and stable paycheck. She admits to having *** with several Marine friends of Todd shortly after his death. And in the grieving process attending wet t-shirt/thong contest in Mexico. Sounds like she was really heart broken.

[opedanderson]

You people seem to want to give this woman a break because she is a woman. If a man had his wife die under similar circumstances and behaved that way after her death, he would be waiting to get a needle in his arm.....

[zootallures2]

A..... Pictures of Matchstick Women and You? Sell your soul for new t-ts...LOL! You gonna burn b*tch...for a long lnog long long long ...time.

[jshiver2]

To cepe10, although I do believe Cynthia is innocent, and I agree about the evidence, I would never speak poorly of Mr. or Mrs. Sommer. She did not do anything to sabotage the trial. She answered the questions she was asked, honestly and openly in my opinion. They have been through more than any parent should be. Please don''t trash her.

To rtclifford, you are just a very rude person.

[aggiekat2004]

Uh...who was watching the kids while she was out competing in wet t-shirt and thong contests?

[daniel808-2009]

she killed him end of story i hope her implants boobs sag to her knees

[rtclifford]

dommino02
you are an idiot. maybe you should rethink school and spelling. i make light of your education because if you had one, you would know wny arsenic is one of the most popular poisons . . . because it is very hard to detect if you are not looking for it. mothers who suffer from munschhausen by proxy use it to put forth their "sick" children who they wait on hand and foot. it is after the child dies, regretably, that it is discovered that they had ingested arsenic over long periods of time. as for the defendant and that judge . . . ineffective counsel does not mean because you have an ineffective defense STRATEGY that you should get a second bite of the apple . . . that is just plain bu****it. i have known wives like that in my 23 investigative years in the military and guess what, if the ncis looked hard enough they would find out she was "partying hard" when he was deployed and chances might be good that "his" child ain''t (''scuse the english) his. ''nuff said.

[dumbfounded5]

I feel like the same thing happened to my brother Todd a couple years ago. I feel his wife poisoned him because he was the picture of health and the next day he was dying. After he died she had him cremated before his body was cold. We as his family had no say in anything after that. We will never know.

[dommino02]

i have followed this fromm trial until now i do not see proof of a murder or any evidence of one 1st if you die by arsenic posing it would be in large leves in all his organs and his blood and urine as well we all have arsenic in our system but the tests were flawed and not accepted by the medical community pepole who jude cindy by her behavior are just moral nuts that dress up to go to church on sunday then sin all week long behind closed doors you judge pepole in court on evidence not charter there are a ot of heatheans telling us all how to live how we live is our own choice so just look at the evidence ther is none that is reiable enough to be used in a court of law in this case do not judge this case by what 48 hrs just glossed over the facts do the research and then make up your mind but only look at he evidence if you can find any that is reailable

[cepe10-2009]

Sounds like Yvonne Sommer the guy''s mother had a grudge to settle and did it by sabotaging the trial during her testimony.... The defense would not have called her.

The evidence is completely underwhelming and inconclusive.

Maybe he knew too much about something...

[luvtrucrime]

as far as the missing computer? yes, it does sound fishy but anyone who''s moved, i''m sure, can attest to the fact that things just go missing. i lost a tv when i moved cross country 4 yrs. ago. what happened to it? i have absolutely no idea.
ok, so this partying widow? well, it just doesn''t spell out murder. she had just lost her husband. she was lonely and ***** - and probably very scared about her future and what she was going to do with 4 kids all alone. perhaps she was just seeking some quick companionship or escaping from the reality of her life. anyone who''s had a 1-night stand knows what those emotions are about.
breast implants? - being an insecure woman with body issues doesn''t make her a killer. obviously there was some feelings of lack in her life and - like most people these days - she was seeking some kind of external solution. she''s only in her 20''s, which makes clear, mature thinking almost an impossibility. i say give this girl a break. as someone else said in thier posting - she has been tried solely on her behaviour after the death of her husband.

[pelostilaho]

At Luke Air Force Base in Arizona lives a widow. She''s the wife of the Air Force Wing Commander whose F-16 crashed in Iraq this time last year.

Instead of partying, painting the town, or purchasing a boob job, she prays, raises her kids, is supported NOT by a bunch of bedmates but by her Church and Military Community.

She misses her husband too - much more sincerely than this honey does.

Granted, there are different ways to express grief. But partying and spending new - blood - money isn''t one of them. This Judge Deddeh has the brains of a gnat. If this babe didn''t kill Todd, then who did? Her new boyfriend? Wonder if there was an investigation of him? At any rate, Cynthia deserves to remain locked in jail.

[al812-2009]

I agree with pcaves in a lot of ways,as a vet myself dealing with the va now for health problems.
The ammount of hands that the evidence had passed through is enough to screw anyone up,keep in mind that sometimes the simplest mistake can ruin a good sample of anything for testing or sway the outcome.There are many ways that arsnic or arsnic traits can show up in a persons body for some unknown reason.If he was on meds and drinking there are certin things that make arsnic in your body,just like carbon monoxide.Bleach and amonia are fine by themselves with in reason.But you mix them to together without knowledge of the outcome will find yourself dead as a rock.When you pass your body creates things that are''nt normally in your system until that point anyway.Why is it always easier to accuss than to go the route and see what happened for sure? The milatary has some good att. granted but as like most people when they think something is a certain way then thats all there is to it.It sounds to me like the prosacuter or the military att. may have influenced the witness''s to say what they felt was a correct way of thinking.Anyone thats been in the military knows that with enough pressure they can get anyone to do or say what they feel needs to be said.The misplacement of a single simple word can make anything seem what it''s not when there is alot of evidence against anyone for any reason.Why would anyone do this well look at it as maybe she rubbed someone wrong in the investigation