Tracy Smith
Appearances
48 Hours
Post Mortem | The Perplexing Death of Susann Sills
Ja, ja. Ich auch. Wie sie anfängt zu sagen, er war nicht müde. Oh ja, ich glaube, er war ziemlich müde. Es ist interessant, wie sie diesen Schritt macht.
48 Hours
Post Mortem | The Perplexing Death of Susann Sills
Zwei Wochen nach dem Tod von Suzanne, hat Dr. Sills Marie eine Letter gesendet. Und ich möchte dir nur eine Teil davon lesen, weil es das ein bisschen mehr illuminiert. Entschuldige, er antwortet ihr als «Ma chère Marie».
48 Hours
Post Mortem | The Perplexing Death of Susann Sills
Whoever I find out there, and I pray it really is you, I am confident she will be an exceptionally bright and vivacious woman and I will be envied by all other men because I will have her. But you need to understand that in my heart, at the end of the day, that relationship will always be judged against your glow. I'm not just saying this to jack up your ego.
48 Hours
Post Mortem | The Perplexing Death of Susann Sills
For me, you really have set an incredibly high standard and you probably weren't even trying. So I want the original, and then in capital letters, you.
48 Hours
Post Mortem | The Perplexing Death of Susann Sills
But, you know, we did ask Jack early about this flat out. Did he want to get Suzanne out of the way? And he said no. And then he actually went on to say off camera that Dr. Sills really was just looking for a He's very complimentary to Marie and he actually kind of...
48 Hours
Post Mortem | The Perplexing Death of Susann Sills
Sure. Basically, first degree murder is premeditated and second degree murder is not premeditated. So second degree, you didn't plan it. First degree, you did plan it. Now, in this case, the prosecution.
48 Hours
Post Mortem | The Perplexing Death of Susann Sills
Er argumentiert, dass er vielleicht nicht über diese Tage oder Wochen vor dem Zeitpunkt gedacht hat, aber es wurde, wie sie sagen, premeditiert, dass er, wenn er sie verabschiedet hat, sie für einen langen Zeitraum verabschiedet hat. Und der Zeitraum, den es dauert, jemanden zu verabschieden, und nicht nur sie zu verabschieden, ist lang genug, um ihm zu sagen, was ich tue und stoppe.
48 Hours
Post Mortem | The Perplexing Death of Susann Sills
And so during that time that he was strangling her, he could have stopped. That was where the premeditation came in.
48 Hours
Post Mortem | The Perplexing Death of Susann Sills
You know, it's interesting because we talked with the jurors quite a bit about motive. And they said that they didn't They wanted to know the why, but they also said that they didn't need the why to know that he did it. And they told us that they spent a lot of time going first degree, second degree, first degree, second degree.
48 Hours
Post Mortem | The Perplexing Death of Susann Sills
And the reason that they couldn't do first degree is just that they felt like he snapped and that it was not something that he planned out.
48 Hours
Post Mortem | The Perplexing Death of Susann Sills
Yes, that sentence is 25 years to life in California. And he's eligible for parole, as we mentioned at the end of the hour, in 2033. Das sieht aus, als wäre es nur um die Kante.
48 Hours
Post Mortem | The Perplexing Death of Susann Sills
Oh yeah, we mentioned this in the hour, the staircase, that, you know, here is this staircase that Suzanne dreamed of seeing Mary Catherine walk down on her wedding day. And I think as moms, we all think about that. Like I think about the staircase in my home and watching my daughter walk down for prom.
48 Hours
Post Mortem | The Perplexing Death of Susann Sills
And that just was so poignant that, of course, the staircase ended up playing an entirely different role.
48 Hours
Post Mortem | The Perplexing Death of Susann Sills
So Jack Early, the defense attorney for Dr. Sills, says, yes, he calls her the patient, but he's in doctor mode. So he is maybe detaching himself a little bit, but that's because he's gone into doctor mode now. He's getting the pulse ox because the 911 operator asked if she was alive. So his thought is, I can get the pulse ox to find out if she's alive. This is what Jack Early is telling us.
48 Hours
Post Mortem | The Perplexing Death of Susann Sills
He also was saying, he's not doing CPR every day in his IVF practice. So of course he's maybe a little rusty on CPR. And he also argues that Mary Catherine, the daughter, is sitting there. Would Mary Catherine be in on this conspiracy? This is what Jack Early is asking me. Okay, those are all really, really interesting points that I had not considered.
48 Hours
Post Mortem | The Perplexing Death of Susann Sills
Yeah, I mean, it's an interesting point, Anne-Marie. The forensic pathologist testified at trial that the ligature mark required a sustained even pull on both sides. And the jurors discussed this when they went into deliberations. The dogs would have had to be pulling evenly at the same time.
48 Hours
Post Mortem | The Perplexing Death of Susann Sills
And the other thing that the jurors brought up is that if she was on this wooden staircase, how could the dogs with their nails even get a grip to be able to pull on the scarf? So, yeah, it would have to be a very coordinated effort by the dogs, according to how the jurors looked at this. Yeah.
48 Hours
Post Mortem | The Perplexing Death of Susann Sills
He kind of had two theories, but let me just explain this. It was tough to get the full story out of Jack early because he says he can't tell it because it's Dr. Sills' story. Dr. Sills didn't testify, so he basically said we didn't get the whole story at trial. There's more to tell and Scott Sills has to tell it. Now having said that, what he said to us was...
48 Hours
Post Mortem | The Perplexing Death of Susann Sills
Maybe she was killed by the C3 fracture, so the fracture to her neck, which would have happened from a fall down the stairs. Or maybe she was incapacitated enough from the C3 fracture that then she's at the bottom of the stairs and the dogs pull on the scarf enough to leave the mark, not necessarily to kill her.
48 Hours
Post Mortem | The Perplexing Death of Susann Sills
He also theorized that maybe it was one dog because the scarf was tied around her neck and then you wouldn't have to have the coordination of the two dogs. Then you just have the one dog pulling on the tied scarf and it could have made that even mark. This was his theory.
48 Hours
Post Mortem | The Perplexing Death of Susann Sills
Yes, he did. He even went so far as to test the scarf for dog DNA. And it came back positive with dog DNA, cat DNA and pig DNA, which they explained as the dogs were eating pig ears as snacks. And so that would leave pig DNA on the scarf. But yeah, I mean, he went with the dog theory.
48 Hours
Post Mortem | The Perplexing Death of Susann Sills
Yes, he poked holes in exactly in the ruling that it was ligature strangulation that caused that was the cause of death. Yes.
48 Hours
Post Mortem | The Perplexing Death of Susann Sills
Yeah, that's true. I mean, they said that they didn't need to prove motive, but they gave a lot of options. Right, Diane?
48 Hours
Post Mortem | The Perplexing Death of Susann Sills
I think the texts are really interesting because, you know, in talking to Jack early, he basically said, if you pull out these things that we pulled out, like I just want out and you're killing me. Yes, they sound very damning, but these are all related to work. This couple worked together, that it's that working relationship that caused all of the tension and you shouldn't read so much text.
48 Hours
Post Mortem | The Perplexing Death of Susann Sills
into it. You know what? I work with my spouse. I kind of get that argument. It can get tense. And it doesn't mean it's not a reflection on the whole marriage. It's just in that working situation.
48 Hours
Post Mortem | The Perplexing Death of Susann Sills
So it's basically this political chat room that's frequented by conservatives, kind of like Twitter or Reddit, but they say much more freedom of speech than either Twitter or Reddit.
48 Hours
Post Mortem | The Perplexing Death of Susann Sills
Well, the defense argued at one point that it was Mary Catherine who took the photo, right? And I'm not sure... wie das ihnen hilft, und sagen, dass es vielleicht eine Familienaktivität war, und dass er nicht so wütend sein würde. Ich schätze nur, ich bin nicht sicher, wo sie damit gehen.
48 Hours
Post Mortem | The Perplexing Death of Susann Sills
Aber Jack Early hat es uns sehr klar gemacht, dass er nicht glaubte, dass Scott von dieser Foto und dem Chat wütend war. Die Frage ist, wenn es ihn nicht so wütend macht, dann warum hat er ein Bildschirm von dem Patrick.net-Chat auf seinem Telefon und dann ein Printout von dem auf seinem Printer?
48 Hours
Marriage Secrets
It's one of Audible's top picks and an astonishing true story of wrongful convictions that keeps you hooked from start to finish. Whether you're into thrillers, memoirs, or even romance, there's something for everyone. Head over to audible.com slash 48 hours and discover all the year's best waiting for you. That's audible.com slash 48 hours. Audible. There's more to imagine when you listen.
48 Hours
Marriage Secrets
Join Wondery Plus in the Wondery app today. Some stories have a way of sticking with you. For me, it's the 48-hour series Murder in the Orange Grove. But Audible has a best of 2024 list that's packed with unforgettable listens you won't stop thinking about. Check out Framed,
48 Hours
Coerced Confessions
I could see maybe resemblance because my hair was a different color when I was younger. At that time, I was into drugs, and so we would get high together. After doing the drugs, he started to get a little paranoid. That's what he did. He would start thinking people were following him.
48 Hours
The Perplexing Death of Susann Sills
Dr. Sills, who was also coming out of a previous marriage, seemed to have met his match.
48 Hours
The Perplexing Death of Susann Sills
Suzanne fit right in at Scott's 20th high school reunion.
48 Hours
The Perplexing Death of Susann Sills
The couple married and welcomed twins through IVF, adding to Dr. Sills two older kids. And eventually, Suzanne's business acumen would lead them to start their own IVF practice in April 2015.
48 Hours
The Perplexing Death of Susann Sills
And Dr. Sills was often featured on the TV program, The Doctors, which was distributed by CBS.
48 Hours
The Perplexing Death of Susann Sills
Dr. Julio Navoa is an OB-GYN who co-authored a book with Dr. Sills.
48 Hours
The Perplexing Death of Susann Sills
But about a month before her death, Rick Leeds, another of Suzanne's friends, says she left him a troubling message.
48 Hours
The Perplexing Death of Susann Sills
When they spoke, Rick says it sounded like there was tension over a photo.
48 Hours
The Perplexing Death of Susann Sills
When news of Suzanne's death reached her friends, they were stunned.
48 Hours
The Perplexing Death of Susann Sills
It didn't sound like the vibrant Suzanne they knew. Dr. Sills' friends say they were equally perplexed.
48 Hours
The Perplexing Death of Susann Sills
What were your impressions of Scott Sills throughout the investigation?
48 Hours
The Perplexing Death of Susann Sills
All very businesslike. Yeah. In fact, the day after Suzanne's death, the doctor had gone to work.
48 Hours
The Perplexing Death of Susann Sills
Joni Ricker's daughter was a nurse at the Sills IVF clinic, and had called her in a panic. She said her patients are in cycle and they have to be treated. Joni volunteered to help manage the office, something Suzanne did, and ended up working there for two years. Did Dr. Sills talk about his wife?
48 Hours
The Perplexing Death of Susann Sills
Did he ever say how she died? Oh, it was never discussed. Pretty soon, she says, the doctor started changing his appearance. He started to dress like a movie star.
48 Hours
The Perplexing Death of Susann Sills
And she says the once balding doctor now had a full head of hair.
48 Hours
The Perplexing Death of Susann Sills
The behavior raised eyebrows, but it was hardly evidence. Then, in November 2017, a year after Suzanne's death, there was finally news from the coroner's office. Suzanne's cause of death was cited as ligature strangulation and the manner a homicide. Dr. Sills was now the prime suspect. DNA results on the blood in Mary Catherine's room showed a mixture of his and Suzanne's DNA.
48 Hours
The Perplexing Death of Susann Sills
On August 8, 2018, nearly two years after Suzanne's death, detectives Holloway and Hatch made a surprise house call at the doctor's home. Did you ask Dr. Sills at this point, just flat out, did you kill your wife?
48 Hours
The Perplexing Death of Susann Sills
They say the doctor denied killing his wife, and he now offered an explanation for his blood in Mary Catherine's room. He said he had injured himself replacing a window screen. Wouldn't Mary Catherine have seen the blood that he left from replacing the screen?
48 Hours
The Perplexing Death of Susann Sills
Despite the death being ruled a homicide, detectives said they still had more investigating to do, like finding a motive. A search of Suzanne's phone provided some clues. Text messages hinted at problems in the marriage.
48 Hours
The Perplexing Death of Susann Sills
In text sent in late August, less than three months before her death, Suzanne wrote, I am trapped. You are killing me. And about a month before her death, Suzanne had confided in Rick Leeds.
48 Hours
The Perplexing Death of Susann Sills
He said Suzanne was also upset about a photo she'd posted online.
48 Hours
The Perplexing Death of Susann Sills
Suzanne had posted a topless photo after making a bet in a political chat room called Patrick.net.
48 Hours
The Perplexing Death of Susann Sills
And on the day of her death, detectives had found a printout in Dr. Seale's home office of an exchange between Suzanne and another Patrick.net member from August 30, 2016, discussing the photo. The man, who went by 10lbbass, wrote, All I've got to say is you must have a super cool husband. Suzanne, aka Turtledove, replied, Dr. Sills denied that he had printed that chat.
48 Hours
The Perplexing Death of Susann Sills
But when investigators later searched his phone, they found a photo of the same exchange. Does this sound like this could lead to motive?
48 Hours
The Perplexing Death of Susann Sills
Detectives also learned that Dr. Sills had tried to collect on a $250,000 life insurance policy on Suzanne, but he claimed the insurance company had called him.
48 Hours
The Perplexing Death of Susann Sills
Do you think Scott Sills thought he'd gotten away with it?
48 Hours
The Perplexing Death of Susann Sills
On April 25, 2019, nearly two and a half years after Suzanne's death, Dr. Sills was arrested for her alleged murder on his way to surgery. He quickly posted a million-dollar bond, but investigators were about to get an unexpected tip from a woman who said she had met Dr. Sills while Suzanne was still alive.
48 Hours
The Perplexing Death of Susann Sills
She shared an email Dr. Sills had sent her about two weeks after Suzanne's death. Pour ma chère Marie. Yes. So it's in French. This is probably the most important manuscript I have ever written. I am asking you to seriously rethink our suspended but once intense relationship. When you first read that email, what was your reaction?
48 Hours
The Perplexing Death of Susann Sills
So could Dr. Sills have killed his wife to get her out of the way?
48 Hours
The Perplexing Death of Susann Sills
Dr. Sills' defense attorney, Jack Early, denies that there was a romantic relationship. And he says that email was merely a devastated father's desperate attempt to find a new mother for his children. Did you feel in your gut that you could win this case? Oh, yes. Yes.
48 Hours
The Perplexing Death of Susann Sills
In November 2023, just over seven years after Suzanne Sills' death, Scott Sills, now stripped of his medical license, went on trial for her murder. The Orange County District Attorney's Office declined our request for an interview, but cameras were allowed in court for portions of the trial where Senior Deputy DA Jennifer Walker laid out her case to the jury.
48 Hours
The Perplexing Death of Susann Sills
Walker argued that Scott Sills beat and then strangled Suzanne to death before staging the scene to make it look like she'd fallen down the stairs.
48 Hours
The Perplexing Death of Susann Sills
The prosecution's case relied heavily on Suzanne's autopsy, but Scott Sills' defense attorney, Jack Early, came to court armed with a unique theory. He suggested that Suzanne fell, either going up or down the stairs, and that one or both of the family dogs then tugged on the scarf that was wrapped around her neck. Do you honestly think that the dogs pulled hard enough to strangle her to death? No.
48 Hours
The Perplexing Death of Susann Sills
Instead, Early focused on another injury identified in Suzanne's autopsy, that fractured C3 vertebra. He says that injury is consistent with a fall and that it would have left Suzanne incapacitated.
48 Hours
The Perplexing Death of Susann Sills
The defense had the scarf tested for dog DNA. It came back positive. And there was testimony that the dogs were known to play tug-of-war, as seen in this video. And when Suzanne and Scott's now 19-year-old daughter, Mary Catherine, took the stand for the prosecution, her testimony supported the defense's theory. Investigator Dave Holloway was at the trial.
48 Hours
The Perplexing Death of Susann Sills
Early denies that. He says the reason Mary Catherine didn't tell investigators is simple.
48 Hours
The Perplexing Death of Susann Sills
He says Scott Sills did tell first responders. And he argued that Suzanne's toxicology tests point to an accidental fall. She had a muscle relaxant and pain medication in her system. And Early told the jury that Suzanne suffered from a fainting disorder and that vertigo would accompany her migraines. But the prosecution said the defense's theory just doesn't make sense.
48 Hours
The Perplexing Death of Susann Sills
Not reasonable. And why would Suzanne have a scarf around her neck that early in the morning to begin with? Prosecutors suggested that Scott Sills used it to strangle her and then left it around her neck to cover the marks. But Early told the jury it wasn't unusual for Suzanne to wear a scarf, especially when she wasn't feeling well.
48 Hours
The Perplexing Death of Susann Sills
But the prosecution also pointed out that Suzanne and Scott's son, Eric, told investigators he saw his mother put the dogs away in their crate in the hours before she died. Eric said that his mom put the dogs in the crate.
48 Hours
The Perplexing Death of Susann Sills
There was also no blood on the stairs or damage to them. There are all these injuries that you say come from the fall down the stairs all over her body, but she leaves no marks on the stairs. But there's no marks anywhere in the house. But there was that blood in Mary Catherine's bedroom, and the prosecution argued it was evidence that a fight occurred.
48 Hours
The Perplexing Death of Susann Sills
A forensic scientist testified that the stains on the nightstand and drapes were consistent with Scott Sills' DNA. Early did acknowledge that his client's blood was in the room, but he told the jury about Scott's claim that he hurt himself there on an earlier date. From Scott replacing a screen?
48 Hours
The Perplexing Death of Susann Sills
That forensic scientist, though, testified that one of the stains on the wall was a mixture of DNA — And Scott and Suzanne were likely contributors. Early says that doesn't mean it was Suzanne's blood and that it could have been her touch DNA that was picked up.
48 Hours
The Perplexing Death of Susann Sills
But the prosecution pointed out that there were also clumps of Suzanne's hair found in Mary Catherine's room. And there were bloodstains on Suzanne's clothing that were found to be consistent with Scott Sills' DNA, too. Early had a rebuttal to it all, starting with the hair.
48 Hours
The Perplexing Death of Susann Sills
The jury was also shown pictures of those injuries that were observed on Scott. Remember how he told investigators that he hurt himself while working on his car with his son? And how, according to investigators, Eric said that his father didn't get injured? Well, when Eric took the stand, his testimony allowed for the possibility.
48 Hours
The Perplexing Death of Susann Sills
So he didn't necessarily say at age 12, dad didn't get the injury from the car.
48 Hours
The Perplexing Death of Susann Sills
While Eric Sills did testify that a loud discussion between his parents had woken him up shortly before his mother's death, the defense told the jury that there was nothing to it. And those texts between Scott and Suzanne in the months before Suzanne's death?
48 Hours
The Perplexing Death of Susann Sills
The jury didn't hear about the life insurance policy, that email Scott sent to another woman, or his social media photos in the wake of his wife's death. But they were told about the Patrick.net posts. And the prosecution argued that topless photo that Suzanne posted on the site enraged Scott.
48 Hours
The Perplexing Death of Susann Sills
It's not striking to you that he had this photo in two places, on his phone and then on the printer?
48 Hours
The Perplexing Death of Susann Sills
Scott Sills chose not to take the stand. The trial spanned three weeks, and then the case went to the jury. My heart was just pounding.
48 Hours
The Perplexing Death of Susann Sills
Chat now with the 48 Hours team on Facebook and X. Jurors Aaron Ellis, Jack VanCamp, and Susan Blahoe say that when deliberations began, they felt the pressure.
48 Hours
The Perplexing Death of Susann Sills
Do you think that the dogs could have pulled on her scarf hard enough to strangle her to death? Could they do it? Yes. When you came to the house, it was a death investigation. By the time you left, was it a murder investigation?
48 Hours
The Perplexing Death of Susann Sills
Did you think about that, that these kids didn't only lose their mom, that if you convict him, now they're losing their dad? Of course. Yeah. They say they also felt a clear motive was lacking.
48 Hours
The Perplexing Death of Susann Sills
Guilty of second degree murder. Scott Sills, who gave the gift of life to so many through his IVF practice, now convicted of taking the life of his wife, the mother of his kids.
48 Hours
The Perplexing Death of Susann Sills
The jurors we spoke to say that no one on the jury bought the defense's theory about the dogs.
48 Hours
The Perplexing Death of Susann Sills
Instead, what they spent the most time grappling with was whether Scott Sills was guilty of first-degree or second-degree murder. First-degree murder requires premeditation and deliberation.
48 Hours
The Perplexing Death of Susann Sills
But investigator Dave Holloway says while Scott Sills may not have planned his crime, he certainly had the time to think about what he was doing.
48 Hours
The Perplexing Death of Susann Sills
On March 15, 2024, about three months after the verdict, court reconvened for sentencing. Suzanne Sill's mother, Teresa Neubauer, addressed the court and kept the focus on her daughter.
48 Hours
The Perplexing Death of Susann Sills
Hopes and dreams, Neubauer said, that one day Suzanne would see her daughter, Mary Catherine, walk down the stairs of the family's San Clemente home on her wedding day.
48 Hours
The Perplexing Death of Susann Sills
Mary Catherine also addressed the court and spoke of all the loss she had endured at such a young age. She and her brother were taken in by a family friend after their father's arrest, and that family friend died suddenly of a health condition around the end of the trial. She asked the judge to show her father mercy.
48 Hours
The Perplexing Death of Susann Sills
Judge Patrick Donahue sentenced Scott Sills to the mandatory sentence under California law, 15 years to life in prison.
48 Hours
The Perplexing Death of Susann Sills
His fate was decided, but for so many, questions remain. Exactly what led up to Suzanne Sills' death? Do you think we'll ever know exactly how it happened?
48 Hours
The Perplexing Death of Susann Sills
Scott Sills declined our request for an interview. But in the end, no explanation will suffice or ease the profound sense of loss that lingers. Patients now without their doctor.
48 Hours
The Perplexing Death of Susann Sills
Do you have a spidey sense when you go into these scenes?
48 Hours
The Perplexing Death of Susann Sills
On that Sunday morning in November 2016, Orange County Sheriff's homicide detectives Eric Hatch and Dave Holloway had more questions than clues. At that point in time that morning, November 13th, was Scott Sills a victim or a suspect?
48 Hours
The Perplexing Death of Susann Sills
Dr. Scott Sills had made that 911 call and reported finding his wife and business partner, Suzanne, at the bottom of the stairs.
48 Hours
The Perplexing Death of Susann Sills
Did it seem plausible that a 45-year-old woman in pretty good shape would have fallen down the stairs to her death?
48 Hours
The Perplexing Death of Susann Sills
The detectives say Dr. Sills didn't seem nervous that a homicide team was in his home asking questions.
48 Hours
The Perplexing Death of Susann Sills
And when they interviewed the Sills' children, Mary Catherine and Eric, the 12-year-old twins, each told a similar story to their dad, that Suzanne had not been feeling well that night.
48 Hours
The Perplexing Death of Susann Sills
And the empty pill bottle was for a pain medication Dr. Sills said his wife took to treat her migraines. So did that make it sound more possible that she could have fallen down the stairs because she was suffering from a migraine?
48 Hours
The Perplexing Death of Susann Sills
And there seemed to be nothing in the couple's relationship to suggest another reason. What did you learn about the Sills' marriage?
48 Hours
The Perplexing Death of Susann Sills
Both children attested that their parents loved each other and said they rarely argued and were never violent. Detectives started piecing together a timeline of the weekend.
48 Hours
The Perplexing Death of Susann Sills
It was around midnight when Eric said he and his mom went back upstairs after she put the dogs away in their crate. Mary Catherine had gone to bed in her parents' bedroom. Suzanne was going to spend the night in Mary Catherine's room, which was the quietest.
48 Hours
The Perplexing Death of Susann Sills
Mary Catherine had left a note on her door with what would be her last words to her mom. I know you are tired, she said, but you need to know that I love you. Around 4 a.m., Eric said he woke to the sound of his parents arguing in the next room.
48 Hours
The Perplexing Death of Susann Sills
So Eric is right next to Mary Catherine's room where his mom was.
48 Hours
The Perplexing Death of Susann Sills
Eric told detectives that after about five minutes, he decided to go sleep in the main bedroom with his sister. According to Mary Catherine's statement, she thought he'd come in around 3.40 a.m., and told her their parents were arguing about a work email.
48 Hours
The Perplexing Death of Susann Sills
Dr. Sills told detectives he had argued with Suzanne because he found her working late on her laptop, which made her migraines worse. When you heard that they had an argument shortly before she was found at the bottom of the stairs dead, what was going through your mind?
48 Hours
The Perplexing Death of Susann Sills
Neither Eric nor Mary Catherine heard their dad return to the bedroom.
48 Hours
The Perplexing Death of Susann Sills
It was around 6.30 a.m. the next morning when Dr. Sills and the twins woke up. He asked them if they wanted to go to the pool and get some donuts. Mary Catherine said when she left the bedroom and looked over the banister... she saw her mom's body at the bottom of the stairs, that long red and white scarf around her neck.
48 Hours
The Perplexing Death of Susann Sills
Adding to the mystery were the injuries to Suzanne's neck the deputy coroner had noticed during a preliminary examination of the body earlier that morning.
48 Hours
The Perplexing Death of Susann Sills
Is it possible that she could have fallen down the stairs and then somehow the scarf strangled her?
48 Hours
The Perplexing Death of Susann Sills
As detectives continued their investigation, the questions mounted. Did anybody in the house hear a fall down the stairs?
48 Hours
The Perplexing Death of Susann Sills
And something else the detectives thought was strange.
48 Hours
The Perplexing Death of Susann Sills
As it turned out, Suzanne wasn't the only one with injuries that morning.
48 Hours
The Perplexing Death of Susann Sills
Dr. Scott Sills said there was a simple explanation for the injuries. He had hurt himself while working on his car in the garage with his son, Eric. There was just one problem.
48 Hours
The Perplexing Death of Susann Sills
Did he say to you, I left the garage, so maybe you hurt himself while I was gone?
48 Hours
The Perplexing Death of Susann Sills
And investigators said they found something Dr. Sills couldn't explain on that day. You found blood?
48 Hours
The Perplexing Death of Susann Sills
Blood in Mary Catherine's room, where Suzanne had been staying, on the curtains, the wall, and the nightstand. So that morning, when you asked Scott about the blood, what did he say?
48 Hours
The Perplexing Death of Susann Sills
Mary Catherine told investigators the room was, quote, perfect when she left it. She also said she'd turned down the bed, but now it was made.
48 Hours
The Perplexing Death of Susann Sills
So if you found blood in Mary Catherine's bedroom, you know that there are ligature marks on Suzanne. Why not take him down to the station at this point and question him?
48 Hours
The Perplexing Death of Susann Sills
Suzanne's autopsy four days later didn't provide any definitive answers. The forensic pathologist noted that Suzanne had injuries all over her body that could have resulted from a fall, including a fractured C3 vertebra near the base of her neck, which can be fatal. Then there was that ligature mark across her neck and hemorrhaging of the blood vessels in her eyes, which pointed to strangulation.
48 Hours
The Perplexing Death of Susann Sills
In the meantime, detectives requested DNA testing on evidence collected from the Sills' home and forensic analysis on Suzanne's phone and laptop. They also dug deeper into who the Sills were.
48 Hours
The Perplexing Death of Susann Sills
Sandy Roberts and Jamie Akins have known Scott Sills since their high school days in Harriman, Tennessee.
48 Hours
The Perplexing Death of Susann Sills
His future seemed limitless. He was accepted to both law school and medical school.
48 Hours
The Perplexing Death of Susann Sills
And it was no surprise when the hometown boy became a renowned IVF specialist, a profession that would lead him to Suzanne.
48 Hours
The Perplexing Death of Susann Sills
Chris Soleimani met Suzanne Arsuaga in business school, where she earned an MBA. She had confided in him about her struggles to get pregnant.