Betty Broderick, convicted of killing ex-husband and his new wife, dies in prison at 78

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Elisabeth “Betty” Broderick, the La Jolla socialite who infamously killed her ex-husband and his new 28-year-old wife, has died in prison, authorities said.She was 78.Her story of violent vengeance enthralled and appalled the nation — inspiring multiple books, a television movie, an L.A.

Times podcast and an eight-episode miniseries.Broderick died in a hospital from natural causes at 3:40 a.m.

Friday, according to the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation.She had been transferred to the external medical facility from the California Institution for Women on April 18.Before her rise to infamy in the late 1980s, Broderick appeared to be living the suburban dream.

California ‘It Was Simple: The Betty Broderick Murders’ is a podcast hosted by L.A.Times columnist and reporter Patt Morrison.Married to prominent medical malpractice attorney Daniel Broderick, she maintained a position of influence and popularity in the ritzy La Jolla community where the couple raised their four children.

But their apparent domestic paradise was thrown into disarray when Betty began to suspect her husband was having an affair with his younger office assistant, Linda Kolkena.The couple divorced in 1985 after 16 years of marriage.

The already acrimonious relationship continued to sour amid a protracted and bitter legal battle, and as Dan started dating Kolkena, before eventually proposing to her.Betty repeatedly left lewd messages on the newlywed couple’s answering machine, to the point that Dan threatened to file criminal contempt charges, The Times reported at the time.

Then, in the early hours of Nov.5, 1989, Betty entered the Marston Hills home Dan shared with his new wife and fired five shots from a .38-caliber revolver, three of which hit the sleeping couple.

Later that day, Betty turned herself into police and was taken into custody.She has been incarcerated ever s...