Anastasia Nicolazzi
Appearances
Anatomy of Murder
Something to Fix (Emmett Corrigan)
But as you can imagine, police were curious if they would turn up any evidence at the scene that might contradict her statement.
Anatomy of Murder
Something to Fix (Emmett Corrigan)
So this had all the makings of a classic and tragic love triangle, which meant that a motive for the altercation at the Walgreens parking lot may well have been coming into focus.
Anatomy of Murder
Something to Fix (Emmett Corrigan)
On March 11, 2011, gunfire had broken out in a parking lot in Boise, Idaho. When the smoke cleared, two men had been shot. 41-year-old Rob Hall had survived. 30-year-old Emmett Corrigan had not.
Anatomy of Murder
Something to Fix (Emmett Corrigan)
According to Candy Hall, she left her home around 9 p.m. to meet Emmett, parking next to his black Range Rover in the lot of a local Walgreens. Here's a recording from her interview with police on the night of the shooting.
Anatomy of Murder
Something to Fix (Emmett Corrigan)
and just kind of looking around. As Emmett and Candy were driving back to the Walgreens pharmacy, Candy received a call from her irate husband, who had spotted Candy's car in the parking lot. Here's more of that interview with Candy Hall.
Anatomy of Murder
Something to Fix (Emmett Corrigan)
It was clear from the beginning that Emmett was ambitious and eager to get on with his big plans for the future. In fact, he and Ashley had only been dating for two months before he popped the question.
Anatomy of Murder
Something to Fix (Emmett Corrigan)
And when they returned to the parking lot, Rob was there waiting.
Anatomy of Murder
Something to Fix (Emmett Corrigan)
At this point, Candy says that her attempts to de-escalate the situation failed, so she turned away and headed back to her car to leave.
Anatomy of Murder
Something to Fix (Emmett Corrigan)
Candy's version of events painted Robert as a jealous man whose emotions might have spiraled out of control. However, she also claimed that Emmett was the aggressor in the confrontation.
Anatomy of Murder
Something to Fix (Emmett Corrigan)
I mean, this is one of those things as prosecutors that we would, I mean, I'd probably use this in my opening and my summation, right? Because what Candy says, it's absolutely going to be admissible at trial. And here's your like legal trial evidence 101 for the day.
Anatomy of Murder
Something to Fix (Emmett Corrigan)
It's called an excited utterance because she says it in the heat of the moment when she's still under, you know, that mindset of what is happening at that moment. And what she says clearly is pop, pop, pop. So you're going to have to look at it because it certainly seems that what she recounted during that call sounds like someone is intentionally firing multiple shots, at least initially.
Anatomy of Murder
Something to Fix (Emmett Corrigan)
So I would go with the way that you ended that, Scott, with like, this is someone who is firing and then just maybe turn that gun on himself.
Anatomy of Murder
Something to Fix (Emmett Corrigan)
And while firsthand witnesses can obviously be invaluable to a homicide investigation, Candy's relationship with both men meant that investigators would have to rely on physical evidence to verify her story. They can't know for sure if she's telling the truth or if maybe she was, I don't know, complicit in the murder or the cover-up, or maybe none of them.
Anatomy of Murder
Something to Fix (Emmett Corrigan)
But now that this horror has happened, police have to consider if she is going to stick with the last man standing, her husband, Rob Hall.
Anatomy of Murder
Something to Fix (Emmett Corrigan)
After a spring break honeymoon on the Oregon coast, Ashley went back to Utah State, a married woman. Their twins arrived during Emmett's first year of law school. The young couple was deeply in love, but as you can probably imagine, juggling books and babies is no easy task.
Anatomy of Murder
Something to Fix (Emmett Corrigan)
One of the hardest things to face after she learned the truth about her husband's relationship with another woman was that she actually knew the other woman, Candy Hall. And while Emmett had described the older woman as just a friendly coworker, Ashley had always had her suspicions that there was something going on between them.
Anatomy of Murder
Something to Fix (Emmett Corrigan)
On March 13th, 2011, investigators from Meridian Police sat down with Rob Hall. He'd been released from the hospital and now they were going to question him about the night of the shooting and try to get a clearer picture about what happened. Would he double down on what was sounding like an unlikely scenario or would he maybe come clean?
Anatomy of Murder
Something to Fix (Emmett Corrigan)
A trial was set for the fall of 2012, yet another painful ordeal to be endured by Emmett Corrigan's widow and their five young kids.
Anatomy of Murder
Something to Fix (Emmett Corrigan)
The prosecution's case against Robert Hall was that he had gone to the Walgreens parking lot armed with a loaded, unholstered gun with the intention of confronting Emmett Corrigan. He had the motive, his wife's infidelity, the means, a loaded automatic handgun with a laser sight, and the opportunity, knowledge of exactly when and where to find his target.
Anatomy of Murder
Something to Fix (Emmett Corrigan)
He also claimed that Emmett, who was younger and more physically imposing, had attacked him first during their argument, pushing him to the ground, taking the gun, and firing first, grazing Hall on the side of his head.
Anatomy of Murder
Something to Fix (Emmett Corrigan)
Those tests proved that Hall was the only one who had fired the gun found at the scene. Rob Hall's DNA was also found on the trigger.
Anatomy of Murder
Something to Fix (Emmett Corrigan)
Prosecutors also pointed to Candy Hall's own recorded statement in which she described the sequence of gunshots that she heard.
Anatomy of Murder
Something to Fix (Emmett Corrigan)
But the medical examiner determined that Emmett's wounds to his chest and head were instantly fatal. So then the question is, who fired that third shot? The prosecution's theory, Rob Hall himself.
Anatomy of Murder
Something to Fix (Emmett Corrigan)
Incredibly, a statement surfaced from a jailmate of Hall's that this may not even have been a spur-of-the-moment decision.
Anatomy of Murder
Something to Fix (Emmett Corrigan)
And I agree that I really think it's the front end of this that is so telling. I mean, let's just look at this. You have Rob Paul going to the place that he believes his wife to be with the man that he believes she is having an extramarital affair with. He doesn't just go on his own. He brings a gun. He has the gun with him when he confronts them. You have Candy's quick response
Anatomy of Murder
Something to Fix (Emmett Corrigan)
rendition of the way that those gunshots are heard. Remember, she is saying that as the 911 operator is taking the call, as the officers are first responding. I mean, that is within moments before she has time to think or reflect or to make up like what might sound or what might help her husband at that point.
Anatomy of Murder
Something to Fix (Emmett Corrigan)
It really does point to the fact that, again, whether he planned to go kill him or just planned to confront him and hurt him. And then again, in that heat of passion, which what that does, it's still a crime, but it takes it potentially from murder to manslaughter. It definitely seems to point much more in that direction just based on common sense than with what Hall is saying to police.
Anatomy of Murder
Something to Fix (Emmett Corrigan)
And even after the initial confrontation in the parking lot, Hall still had time to de-escalate that situation if he wanted to, right? He could have simply left. Instead, he drew his weapon and fired more than once. And keep in mind, it wasn't just any weapon.
Anatomy of Murder
Something to Fix (Emmett Corrigan)
Candy Hall did finally admit that she and Emmett were indeed involved in a physical relationship and that on the night of the murder, the plan was not just to drive around and talk as she told police.
Anatomy of Murder
Something to Fix (Emmett Corrigan)
But in the end, Candy Hall came to her husband's defense, testifying that she had never intended to leave him and was committed to their marriage.
Anatomy of Murder
Something to Fix (Emmett Corrigan)
It was clear to the judge and jury that Candy had changed her story. And so the veracity, the truthfulness of her entire testimony was thrown into question.
Anatomy of Murder
Something to Fix (Emmett Corrigan)
On October 25th, 2012, Rob Hall was convicted of second-degree murder and sentenced to 30 years to life in prison.
Anatomy of Murder
Something to Fix (Emmett Corrigan)
But according to Ashley, she had some reservations about putting down roots in Boise, a place where she knew Emmett had a long and sometimes troubled history.
Anatomy of Murder
Something to Fix (Emmett Corrigan)
Incidentally, just two months after the trial, Candy Hall would be convicted of theft for embezzling $300,000 from a former employee and sentenced to 14 years in prison.
Anatomy of Murder
Something to Fix (Emmett Corrigan)
Through her blog, her now multiple books, and speaking engagements, Ashley hopes to provide support for those dealing with grief, loss, and trauma, particularly focusing on widowhood and surviving infidelity and homicide.
Anatomy of Murder
Something to Fix (Emmett Corrigan)
And we want to thank Ashley for being so candid about her experience with such a traumatic and painful event in her life, one in which she and her kids will always be coping and healing.
Anatomy of Murder
Something to Fix (Emmett Corrigan)
What happened to Emmett Corrigan is awful. And yes, Emmett's infidelity was wrong, obviously. But Rob Paul's revenge? You don't get to take a life because someone did you wrong. Paul also took a father away from five children and a husband from a woman, Ashley, who still loved him very much and at least at the time wanted to try and make their family work and to get it back on track.
Anatomy of Murder
Something to Fix (Emmett Corrigan)
Talking with Ashley for this interview struck me for many reasons. For the pain she lived through while she didn't know what was wrong in her marriage. And then to be hit head on with her husband's murder, his infidelity, and that the murder was at the hand of the husband of the other partner in the affair. Devastating.
Anatomy of Murder
Something to Fix (Emmett Corrigan)
Yet even with all that, it is Ashley's openness and strength that stays with me even now. She made it back into light out of deep darkness. It is Ashley's goal to help others out of the darkness by sharing her experience. And for me, for us, that says so much about who she is. Survivor Strong. So, what do you think, Chuck? Do you approve? I approve!
Anatomy of Murder
Something to Fix (Emmett Corrigan)
I'm Anastasia Nicolazzi, former New York City homicide prosecutor and host of Investigation Discovery's True Conviction.
Anatomy of Murder
Something to Fix (Emmett Corrigan)
After opening his own law practice, Emmett was working long hours, regularly staying late at the office. And with Ashley juggling five kids at home, the couple began to experience what many couples do, a growing distance between them, both physical and emotional.
Anatomy of Murder
Something to Fix (Emmett Corrigan)
But by February of 2011, Ashley felt that there was something else causing a rift in their marriage. It was a rising suspicion that her husband was hiding something from her, that perhaps he was not being faithful.
Anatomy of Murder
Something to Fix (Emmett Corrigan)
We've often said that our primary goal on this podcast is to advocate for not just the victims of violent crimes, but for the survivors as well.
Anatomy of Murder
Something to Fix (Emmett Corrigan)
On the evening of March 11th, Ashley set Emmett down for a heart-to-heart, baring her soul in the hopes that Emmett would do the same.
Anatomy of Murder
Something to Fix (Emmett Corrigan)
As Ashley recounted to us, she finally convinced Emmett to speak to a friend who was also a marriage counselor.
Anatomy of Murder
Something to Fix (Emmett Corrigan)
At a little before 9 p.m., Emmett left. It was the last time Ashley would see him alive.
Anatomy of Murder
Something to Fix (Emmett Corrigan)
One of the 911 calls was from a woman identifying herself as Candy Hall. And in the recording, you can hear her frantically begging for help.
Anatomy of Murder
Something to Fix (Emmett Corrigan)
On top? Okay. Who shot you? Do you know who did it? Robert Hall had what looked like a graze wound to the side of his head, but was still conscious. Emmett Corrigan, lying just a few feet away, had suffered two gunshot wounds, one to the chest and one to the head. He was declared dead at the scene. Ashley Boyson would get the news about her husband just a few minutes later.
Anatomy of Murder
Something to Fix (Emmett Corrigan)
Today's story is as much about its survivors as it is about the victim. It's about a mother and her then five children whose lives were forever changed by a deadly incident of gun violence. But for Ashley Boyson, the survivor's journey has also been about reconciliation, not only with the homicide, but also with the betrayal that led directly to that tragedy.
Anatomy of Murder
Something to Fix (Emmett Corrigan)
The plainclothes detectives informed Ashley that her husband had been shot. News that was still almost impossible for her to process.
Anatomy of Murder
Something to Fix (Emmett Corrigan)
That second bullet entered his skull, and I'm going to be pretty specific here. The bullet entered just inside the hairline of his upper right forehead, traveled in a slight downward and leftward direction through the entire right side of his brain.
Anatomy of Murder
Something to Fix (Emmett Corrigan)
Hall was a 41-year-old former deputy and part-time salesman who lived just a few minutes away from where the shooting took place.
Anatomy of Murder
Something to Fix (Emmett Corrigan)
Hall went on to describe how he then managed to wrestle the gun away from Emmett and return fire, striking Emmett twice, once in the chest and once in the head. He claimed that he acted instinctually out of fear for his own life.
Anatomy of Murder
Something to Fix (Emmett Corrigan)
So was this argument over a parking space? A falling out between friends or business partners? To answer those questions, police would rely on the one witness that actually witnessed the shooting, Rob Hall's wife, Candy Hall.
Anatomy of Murder
Something to Fix (Emmett Corrigan)
The first and most important revelation, these two men were not strangers. And this argument was not over a parking space or business. It was over her.
Anatomy of Murder
Something to Fix (Emmett Corrigan)
When police asked Candy if she and Emmett had a romantic relationship, she denied it.