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When Leonila Stickney died from a gunshot wound, her fiance Russell Bertram was quick to provide an explanation. The former police chief told investigators that she\u2019d died in a hunting accident. He explained that she\u2019d been in the passenger\u2019s seat of his truck when he climbed into the driver\u2019s seat. As he climbed in, he\u2019d pointed the gun in her direction. He claimed she\u2019d grabbed the barrel of the gun, keeping it pointed at herself, and leaned in for a kiss. Then the gun went off. He was totally innocent! Nothing to see here! Infuriatingly, investigators bought his story.
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\nAnd now for a note about our process. For this episode, Brandi copy and pasted from the best sources on the web. And sometimes Wikipedia. (No shade, Wikipedia. We love you.) We owe a huge debt of gratitude to the real experts who covered these cases.
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\nIn this episode, Brandi pulled from:
\n\u201cThe Hunter and the Hunted\u201d episode Accident, Suicide or Murder
\n\u201cJealousy, greed marked 2016 murder trial of former South Dakota police chief Russell Bertram\u201d by Erik Kaufman, Mitchell Republic
\n\u201cFormer South Dakota Police Chief Murdered Pregnant Fianc\xe9e And Blamed It On An Accident\u201d by Joe Dziemianowicz, oxygen.com
\n\u201cLeonila Stickney\u201d podcast episode, Forensic Tales
\n\u201cEx-Police Chief Convicted of Murdering Pregnant Fianc\xe9e Years After Claiming Her 2009 Death Was an Accident\u201d by KC Baker, people.com
\n\u201cWhy would a former police chief kill his young fiancee? Jealousy and greed, prosecutors allege.\u201d By Sarah Larimer, The Washington Post
\n\u201cState v. Bertram\u201d findlaw.com
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