Dangerous Beauty | Full Episode | Forensic Files

Real people, real crimes, real life drama. [music] [music] >> You fell in love with a guitar playing
gentle soul. [music] what I thought was, "Yeah, Jim was intelligent and he could
provoke my thoughts and [music] and make me think beyond superficial things." Jim Huden and her were a whirlwind for
sure. He was very [music] charismatic and she was very charismatic and I think the two of them together were everything
she probably wanted at the time. I've known Peggy Sue for 15, 20 years. She was my best friend, my confidant. She
was sexy. She was stunning [music] and was a beauty queen. >> Miz Washington Peggy Thomas.
>> Jim led two lives. I only knew of the one he led with me. [music] >> I fell in love with the wrong man.
It's dark, secluded, deadend road, not a lot of traffic. It's a good spot for a murder. My name
is Mark Plumbumber, the lead investigator in the Russell Douglas homicide investigation.
The car was in a dark driveway, door open. Russell [music] was inside the vehicle. Jim Huden is the one that met
him and was able to put a gun right between his eyes and shoot him once in the head.
>> I could not believe that someone I loved and allowed into my house [music] could
kill someone. >> I'm convinced she is involved. I believe that her and Jim were on this
[music] fairy tale roller coaster romance and it was all drinking and drugs and alcohol and I think that they
thought that they were going to get something. I have no reason to want anybody dead.
>> I believe she knows a lot more than she has told us. >> I am telling the truth. I have no reason
to lie. [music] >> It is all so bizarre. It's something that you see in the movies, something
that some writer dreamt up. >> There's nothing about this other than just a cold blooded [music] killing.
>> Believe none of what you hear and half of what you see. [music] I'm Peter Vans. Tonight on 48 hours
dangerous beauty. [music] This is Whidby Island where I grew up from birth until I was 8 years old. Go
get it. The hard memories outweigh the good memories because I'm accused of a crime I didn't commit.
Though she didn't pull the trigger, investigators are convinced Peggy Sue Thomas helped set the stage for Russell
Douglas's murder on the island she knew so well. >> How does a former beauty queen end up at
the heart of a murder case? >> I don't even know how to answer. I don't know how I ended up here.
But before she was a murder suspect, 48-year-old Peggy Sue Thomas had already lived a full life. Next, we welcome
[music] Peggy Thomas. >> Sure, she's a former beauty queen, but Peggy wasn't born with a pageant sash
across her chest. >> I'm all about proving myself in a man's world. >> Peggy was a trailblazer. In the Navy, a
very differentl looking Peggy served as an aircraft mechanic during Operation Desert Storm.
>> Do you see yourself as a patriot? >> I'm very patriotic. Yes. >> Along the way, Peggy married and
divorced three times, raising two beautiful daughters, Taylor and Mariah. >> My kids are my proudest accomplishment.
But in the late 90s with her second marriage on the rocks, Peggy physically transformed herself from this
to this. >> It was amazing. She started working out and the weight just fell off.
>> Vicky Boyer was once Peggy's good friend. >> To me, I was like, "You go, girl." And
then someone had approached her about maybe being Mrs. Washington. >> And I was down and a little heartbroken.
and she said, "Do something crazy." So, I did. >> Contestant number two, Peggy Thomas.
>> I ended up winning. >> They have chosen as Mrs. Washington International Pageant Physical Fitness
Award winner, Peggy Thomas. [music] >> I'd rather wear jeans and boots and jump on a Harley than be a beauty queen.
It's kind of nice to look back when times were more normal. >> In her home, however, Peggy's pageant
memorabilia holds a special place of honor. >> I think it meant everything to her.
Everything she needed came from that pageant. >> By 2003, Peggy Sue was living in Las
Vegas [music] where she worked as a glamorous limousine driver to High Rollers. I
spoiled my clients and my tips were often in the thousands for one night. It was probably my all-time favorite job
ever. >> To understand how this beauty queen made yet another transformation to murder suspect, you have to go back
to a cold, dark night on Woodby Island [music] in December 2003. >> Tonight, Island County detectives have a
murder mystery on their hands. They're looking for the person or persons responsible for the shooting death of
32-year-old Russell Douglas. >> We're in front of the the driveway where Russell Douglas was discovered about 30
yards in as >> right down here. >> Right. >> Detective Mark Plumbberg of the Island
County Sheriff's Department was called to the scene that night. >> It was a massively traumatic wound.
>> Russell was the aranged husband of Brena Douglas, one of Peggy Sue Thomas's good
friends. After we had confirmed the identity of the man in the vehicle as being Russell Douglas, we decided to go
and speak with the wife, Brena Douglas. >> It was after 1000 p.m. pitch black when
Plumbg and a colleague came calling. >> Came out and crossed her arms and leaned
against the doorframe and said, "May I help you?" >> She didn't say, "What's happened? Why
are you here? It's >> It was suspicious behavior, especially after they told Brena that her husband
had been murdered. >> Almost no reaction. I would expect at least a slew of questions. Who, what,
when, where, why, and how. >> And did Brena ask those questions? >> Not one. >> And Brena had even badmouththed her dead
husband. >> She mentioned that he had had some affairs. She mentioned that he could be
uh emotionally abusive. She alluded to some physical abuse. >> Brena said their marriage was in
trouble. They had separated, but Russ was staying with her and their two children over Christmas.
>> We know from experience that the spouse in a murder is often uh the perpetrator.
>> Island County prosecutor Greg Banks. >> There was no one else that the police
could find that had a reason uh to murder Russ. Uh and Brena was the prime suspect. Just weeks into the
investigation, cops discovered a possible motive. Money. Brena, who owned a hair salon, was in debt. And with
Russell's death, she would receive a six figure payout. >> There were at least two life insurance
policies. And that money, 400,000, we've heard 500. That would have cleaned the decks for Brena.
>> You would think so. Yeah. >> Brena was not arrested. Investigators couldn't link her to the
shooting. Detective Plumbberg then checked Russell's phone records and discovered
calls from a Las Vegas number. They came from Peggy Sue Thomas. She had called Russ several times in the days leading
up to his murder. >> Those phone calls were on the 23rd of December in which we were playing phone
tag. Peggy explained to cops she was back on Woodby Island for the holidays. She was calling Russ to give him a
Christmas present for her friend Brena. >> She was very open, answered all my questions. Nothing about her reaction
made me second guess anything. >> For the next 7 months, the case consumed Detective Plumbberg.
>> Not one person could tell me a bad thing about Russell Douglas. Certainly not
anything that would make me think that's why somebody wanted him dead. >> But a mysterious caller was about to
unlock all the secrets of this murder. A world away from Woodby Island, Washington, [music] it's happy hour in a
small town on the west coast of Florida. Someone on this stage is Detective Mark
Plumbberg's mysterious caller. When the informant called, he told us that he played in a band called Buck Naked and
the Exhibitionist. >> After googling the band's name, Detective Plumbg zeroed in on this man,
the bass player. >> His name was Bill Hill. lived in Florida in a town called Panagorta.
>> Hill said a band member, the lead guitarist Jim Huden, had confided in him during a late night drive to a gig just
one month after the murder of Russell Douglas. >> He needed to tell me something. [snorts]
I said, "Okay." I didn't know if he was going to tell me he was gay or something.
>> Instead, Jim Huden told Bill he'd been abused by his stepfather as a child. >> I could sense that it was something that
was really deep. What Hudin said next was bizarre. That he wanted to seek revenge for his
stepfather's abuse by killing another abuser. >> He says, "So I started looking for
somebody that met that mo." >> Jim Huden thought he'd found that abuser, Hill said in Russell Douglas.
>> Says, "I shot him." I said, "What?" He says, "Yeah, got a gun and shot him in the head."
>> Hill agonized over that secret, [music] waiting 6 months before he made the call
to turn in his good friend, Jim Huden. >> Jim Huden, what do you know about this
guy? >> We knew nothing. >> Hill said that Hudin began naming his accompllices. the first, his own
girlfriend, Peggy Sue Thomas. It was a huge break in the case. >> Peggy Thomas, the woman I had spoken to,
works in Las Vegas as a limousine driver. And I said, "Well, so far I can confirm his story. Let's go from here."
>> Hill then revealed the name of the second accomplice, Brena Douglas, the victim's wife. Bill Hill felt that the
widow had knowledge, [music] though not necessarily any active part. >> Meanwhile, Plumberg was learning more
about the relationship between Jim and Peggy. They'd had a long history together, both growing up on Whidby
Island. >> Had a childhood crush on him. >> But in the early 2000s, Peggy had moved
on, eventually settling in Las Vegas. Jim and Peggy lived separate lives until June of 2002 when she reconnected with
Jim at a funeral [music] on Woodby Island. >> Jim and I spoke connected on this level
of losing someone we both loved. >> Things got hot and heavy right away. I had really strong feelings for her.
>> But there was a little problem. Jim Huden was married and living in Puna Gorda, Florida with his wife, Jean. At
the time this was going on. Did you have any idea? >> Not at the beginning. I was so in love
with him and and so clueless. >> The man she loved was a successful software developer. Jim had even sold a
program to Microsoft. When he sold this to Microsoft, he made several million dollars.
>> Uh yes, or close to a million, but he did very well for himself. While Jean ran their business, Jim focused more on
his band. >> You're married to a rock star now. >> Yes. Or a wannabe rock star. >> But Jean says she started to notice a
troubling change in her husband after that funeral. >> He was just never the same. He started
to get very depressed and dark and started drinking heavily and doing drugs and it just wasn't Jim anymore. But Jim
was finding comfort in his longdistance relationship with Peggy. >> Were you in love with Jim?
>> I was. >> What'd you love about him? >> His mind, believe it or not. So that's
when the the double life began. >> Las Vegas became Jim Hudin's home away from home. He'd lied to Jean, telling
her he was coming here looking for gigs when he was really meeting Peggy. The beauty queen was now making a good
living driving that limo. >> You're having an affair with a married man? >> Yeah.
>> Are you a bit of a fem fatal? >> No. >> Are you troubled, Peggy? >> Far from it. Actually,
>> among the friends who visited Peggy and Jim in Las Vegas, Brena Douglas, who partied with them just 3 months before
her husband was murdered on Woodby Island. Did Brena ever say to you, you know, I
wish he was dead? >> Not. No, not that. >> You paused, though. Did she say something close to that?
>> At one time, she did say something. She's worth more to me dead than alive. >> That's a bit ominous.
>> It was Brena spoke, I guess, to a lot of people about hers and Russ's marriage.
>> As Peggy and Jim's fling progressed, she began flying to Florida. Reading Jim's
emails, Jean discovered the affair and confronted him. Jim swore it was all over. Then in April 2003,
there was a knock at Jean's front door. >> I opened the door and there's Peggy on
my doorstep. >> You, the mistress, wants to get together with the wife to confront the husband.
>> Yeah. Cuz he was lying to both of us and we were both believing him. >> What'd he say?
>> Said he loved two women. I told him to make a choice. I was like, "You need to
decide who you want to be with." He said he wanted to be with me. And >> And how did Peggy react?
>> Oh, she was furious. >> But Peggy's anger didn't last long. The two lovers couldn't stay away from each
other. And in December 2003, Jim told his wife he was going to spend the holidays with his family back on Woodby
Island. But it was just another chance for a romantic rendevous with Peggy. I don't think of myself as a stupid
person, but when it came to Jim Huden, I was a complete [ __ ] >> On the morning of December 26th, the day
Russell Douglas was murdered, Peggy and Jim were at a house on Woodby Island. >> He said he wanted to go out and get some
cigarettes. >> What time of day was this? >> Late morning, between 10 and 11, >> just around the time investigators
believe Russell Douglas was murdered. Tell me about the gym that comes back into the house. What do you see?
>> The gym I always saw. >> Did he have a handgun with it? >> I did not see again.
>> No tears, no strange behavior, no sweat coming out of his forehead. >> Not that Not that I remember. No.
>> And you're telling me the truth, right? >> I'm absolutely telling you the truth.
>> But Plumberg had an entirely different take. You believe in one way or another
Peggy Sut Thomas was involved in this plan to murder Russell Douglas? >> Absolutely.
>> His theory, [music] Peggy lured Russell to that secluded area on Woodby Island to exchange a gift
for Brena. It [music] was here that Jim Huden lay in wait with a gun. >> Did you encourage Jim to murder Russ?
>> Absolutely not. >> Did you Did you tell him, look, he's he's a child abuser? >> No. She did not participate in any way,
conspire to kill him. >> I swear on the love for my children. I swear on my life.
By August 4th, 2004, Detective Mark Plumbberg had traveled to Puna Gorda, Florida to confront the man he believed
murdered Russell Douglas. >> I looked him in the face and I said, "Mr. Huden, I know you're the man that
pulled the trigger and killed Russell Douglas." Later that afternoon, Jim agreed to be
questioned at the local police department where he denied shooting Russell. >> I'm a son of a [ __ ] but I I'm no
killer, but I'm a son of a [ __ ] This is quite a frightening experience. >> What is it that you're scared of?
>> That you guys are you're here. At the same time, cops had just raided Peggy Sue Thomas' home in Las Vegas.
>> I had at least three police officers with guns to my head, telling me to freeze, freeze, freeze,
and they take my car keys and put me in handcuffs, shove me in a dark laundry room. Peggy says her house was ransacked
with police taking computers, photographs, beauty pageant videos, but leaving her Miz Washington sash behind.
They then proceeded to grill her about the death of Russell Douglas. >> Detective Wallace said, "If you don't
start confessing now, we'll make sure that you get the death penalty and your kids are going to watch
you die." How did it come that your lover Jim Hudin shot Russ Douglas in the head unless you
put him up to it? Well, I thought he didn't know him. I don't believe I could have said or did say anything
to him to make him go psycho like he did. >> Investigators had a strong circumstantial case against Peggy and
Jim. Remember those insurance policies? >> I believe there is over 500,000 in insurance premiums.
>> Jim told Bill Hill how the money would be divided. >> Peggy was supposed to get a certain
amount and Jim was supposed to get 50,000 for pulling the trigger. >> Absolutely not true. Money is not that
important to me. >> Did Brena, Russell Douglas's wife, did she know that her husband was about to
be assassinated? According to Jim, the answer would be yes. >> You know what you've told Bill? He's
your best friend in the whole world who you told that you killed this guy on Whey Island.
That's not true. >> Detective Plumbberg presses Jim to see if he'll now implicate Peggy Sue Thomas
or the victim's wife, Brena Douglas. >> I think the plot for this didn't come from you. I don't think the scheme for
this came from you. Investigators have Jim right where they want him, but he shuts down.
>> You got played, Jim. >> That's fine. Um, it's attorney time. >> With no hard evidence against them, both
Jim and Peggy were free to go. >> At that point, they had nothing to hold him on. They had no warrant, no
indictment. So, they brought him home. Jim had told his wife [music] everything about the murder, including that Peggy
and Brena were involved, but Jean refused to betray the man she loved. >> I thought maybe some warped way that
this would bring us closer together, you know, if we shared this horrible secret
that Brena and Peggy and he had planned to kill Russell Douglas. Jean says after his interrogation, Jim
became frantic. >> At that point, he is just tripping out because he knows it's only a matter of
time. >> Also tripping out was Bill Hill, who couldn't believe investigators had told
Jim that he was the informant. >> Felt uh totally uh afraid. I slept on the couch
with 357 underneathneath my pillow. In an effort to generate new leads in the case, Island County investigators
went to the media. >> Eight months of investigation have now led officials to two persons of interest
>> and announced that Jim Huden and Peggy Sue Thomas were their prime suspects. They were hoping a tip might lead them
to the gun used to murder Russell Douglas. I assumed the murder weapon would be at the bottom of Puget Sound
and we would never see it again. >> But luck was on Plumberg's side when he received an unbelievable tip.
>> We got a phone call from an investigator in New Mexico who said he had talked to
someone who thinks they might have the murder weapon in the Russell Douglas homicide.
>> It was this 380 Bersa. A friend of Jim Hudins told police Jim gave it to him at
Peggy's house in Vegas. >> And I took it immediately to our state laboratory who was within hours able to
confirm this fired that shell casing and it fired the bullet that we pulled from
Russell's head. It was almost too good to be true. >> With this new evidence, Island County
investigators flew to Vegas. >> Could you say your name, please? >> Peggy Thomas. where Peggy agreed to
answer their new questions. >> They showed me a picture of a gun and asked if I'd ever seen it.
>> So, prior to February, you never saw a Jim in possession of a gun like that? >> No.
>> And I said, "No." He said, "Well, it's the murder weapon. We've matched it with
the ballistics." >> After the interview, Peggy called Jim to confront him. >> And I said, "The police told me they
have a murder weapon. What's going on?" And he said, "I did it. I killed Russ." And he said, "I'm sorry I got you
involved. Just know that I love you and you'll never see me again." And he hung up the
phone. >> Peggy claims she was in shock from Jim's confession. >> I broke. I broke.
I could not believe [sighs] that someone I loved and allowed into my house could kill someone. I was
hysterical [music] that day. >> Jean Huden says Jim became unstable, threatening to commit suicide, but she
had a better idea. >> I was like, "Run, do something, you know, give a chance. It's not over yet."
>> Jim caught a lucky break when Hurricane Charlie hit the west coast of Florida.
>> The murder suspect was now gone with the wind. August 2004, in the chaos following
Hurricane Charlie, Jim Huden blew out of town. >> Jim disappeared. >> He just falls off the face of the earth.
>> He just disappears. While investigators here on Whidby Island were left scratching their heads,
wondering where Jim Hudin had gone, little did they know that he was more than 2,000 miles away here in
Veraracruz, Mexico. [music] >> Jim loved this place. He would kind of sit here for hours, drink beer, look at
the people go by, listen to the music. Jorge Mabarak was a close friend of Jim Hudin in Verarac Cruz, but he knew him
by a different name. >> Jim Martin. Everybody knew him as Jim Martin. >> Jorge is a famous jazz pianist [music]
in Mexico. He often played on stage with Jim. >> He had emotional [music] insight on people. Everybody like him.
He likes everybody. Never had any problem. >> [music] >> He was a blues player. Definitely was a blues man.
>> Jorge remembers this concert in Veraracruz where Jim was one of the featured [music] performers.
Jorge, a CBS News consultant, says this fugitive from Justice had a soft side. >> If you look at the videos of him, he
looks really mean on the stage, but he was not. He was a very soft guy, very tender, very understanding, and there
was never any any sign of violence or any attitude, an aggressive attitude. Never.
>> But Jim wasn't comfortable talking about his past. >> He told me, "There are things about me
that I'm not going to tell you, so don't ask." >> While reporting this story, 48 Hours
learned about one of Hudin's old hangouts, and we got a tip. He may have left behind some belonging.
>> These two cabinets. >> An old friend of Hudins gave us permission to look. >> This hasn't been opened in more than two
years. Let's see what's inside. This one's empty. There's nothing. >> But we did find something else.
>> Jim Hudin's birth certificate from the state of Washington. This is Jim Hudin's
Florida driver's license. This is his border crossing paperwork. September 10th, 2004. This is when Jim Hudin first
began his life on the run in Mexico. [music] And it turns out Huden had help getting
to Mexico and staying out of sight for more than 6 years. >> I got Jim out of the country. I
supported him for years. I went to Mexico to see him. Jean Huden admits she lied to investigators about Jim's
whereabouts for years. >> It was definitely the wrong thing to do. >> Meanwhile, the other woman in Jim's
life, Peggy Sue Thomas, continued to drive limos in Las Vegas. Despite being a murder suspect, she hit the jackpot
when she met this man in 2007. >> First time I met Peggy was through a limo service. They asked, "Well, do you
want a guy or the ex Mrs. Washington?" I said, "Well, we'll take the ex Mrs. Washington."
>> Mark Allen is a multi-millionaire oil man and thoroughbred horse owner. And this one was the winner of the 2009
Kentucky Derby. >> Spectacular upset. MIND THAT BIRD HAS WON THE KENTUCKY DERBY. AN IMPOSSIBLE
RESULT HERE. >> HONESTLY, did you marry him for his money? I married Mark because I loved
him deeply. >> Mark was madly in love with Peggy. >> Head over heels. >> And Peggy was madly in love with his
bank account. >> Head over heels. >> Vicky Ber worked with Peggy and Mark on their ranch in New Mexico.
>> He was a good man and he did everything she asked him to. >> Vicki had always believed in Peggy's
innocence in the murder of Russell. That is [music] until one night in a bar, a drunken Peggy allegedly joked
about taking care of a problem for a friend and mentioned that she could use her gun.
>> And she looked at me and she said, "Well, at least this time I'll know to throw it in the water." I went home and
I literally just fell apart. I mean, I just like I just started shaking. I was crying.
>> Peggy has denied that conversation ever took place. But for Vicki, the episode
led to a startling realization >> that she did it. That her and Jim did this. >> The murder of Russell Douglas.
>> Yes. I mean, I was sure of it. >> And Vicki wasn't the only person having problems with Peggy.
>> Yeah, it started out good. And uh the more controlling she got, the uh less responsive I got. You know,
I won't be controlled. Not not by anybody. >> After just 7 months of marriage, Mark
was separated from both Peggy and a sizable chunk of change. >> You did get $700,000 in a housebo.
>> Yes, I did. But I can tell you if I was the true definition of a gold digger, we
had a prenap and it entitled me to way more than $700,000 and a boat. Meanwhile, back in Florida, Gene Hudin's
life had fallen apart by 2011. She had become a [music] drug addict, arrested multiple times on charges
ranging from possession to forgery to theft. >> It got to a point where I couldn't do it
anymore. I'm tired of paying for Jim's mistake. Facing serious jail time for multiple felonies, Gan decided to
cooperate with investigators. >> I had to finally tell them where he was. >> And [music] that's when investigators
got the break they needed. Jim Huden was arrested in Veraracruz, Mexico, and returned [music] to Whippby Island
nearly 8 years after Russell Douglas was murdered. One month later, authorities came for
Peggy Sue Thomas. When the detective came up, he said, "You're in some pretty big trouble."
>> And what was that moment like for you? >> Scary. My life became a tabloid story
with headlines [music] about Drop Deadad Gorgeous. I knew I had a battle on my hands.
Miz [music] Washington Peggy Thomas from a beauty queen strut. >> Peggy Sue Thomas looked away from the
cameras as she was led into court this afternoon in shackles >> to a perp walk at the Island County
Courthouse on Woodby Island, Washington. In the summer of 2011, Peggy Sue Thomas
is formally charged with the murder of Russell Douglas. >> These accusations that I'm involved in
this crime have been a lie since the beginning. >> First up for trial is Peggy's former
lover and alleged trigger man, Jim Hudin. Prosecutor Greg Banks says there may have been several motives for
murder. insurance money or that Hudin was out to avenge the abuse he claims he was subjected to as a child.
>> He had experienced abuse and so he was going to wipe this slate clean somehow
by killing an abuser. >> Yeah. I think that's that's what in the warped alcohol pickled drug altered mind
of Jim Huden was the thing that was making sense to him. Cops say they never found any evidence that Russell Douglas
physically abused anyone. At the trial, the star witness against Huden would be Bill Hill, who says Jim confessed to him
about killing Russell Douglas. >> What was that like to testify? >> It was a scary situation. I could not
look at him the whole time I was on the stand. >> Bill Hill was really a hero in this
case. I probably could have rested the case after Bill testified. >> Jim Huden never took the stand, leaving
unanswered what the real motive might have been. After an 8-day trial and 20 witnesses,
the jury took less than 4 hours to reach a verdict. >> Guilty as charged, an Island County
fugitive now faces years behind bars. >> Jim Huden was sentenced to 80 years in prison.
Six months later, it was Peggy Sue Thomas's turn to face justice. And Banks had a witness who was ready to implicate
her. Jim Hudin's wife, Jean. >> Peggy herself told me she was involved in this murder. So, I mean, it doesn't
get much clearer than that. >> Should Jean Huden be believed? No. Absolutely not. There are so many
problems with Gene Hudin's testimony, it actually boggles my mind to know where to begin.
>> Dynamic defense attorney Craig Platt will represent Peggy. He says Gene Huden
is a liability for prosecutors because she changed her story time and time again.
>> It's a road map of inconsistencies. When Gene Huden originally talked to detectives back in 2004, she said, and I
quote, "Jim never told her that Peggy knew." Now, 7 years later, "Oh, I remember Peggy's involved. The one that
stole my man. The one that ruined my life." Yeah, she did it. >> Even Jean admits her memory is a bit
shaky. Couldn't it be that what you said to Detective Plumbberg, >> this was the truth that Jim told you
Peggy wasn't involved in this case >> because your story didn't change for years.
>> Yeah, it's possible. It is possible. I just to be honest, I I honestly don't remember saying that
>> and we know that's not right. Platt says Gene Hudin's changing story demonstrates
how desperate the prosecution is to make a case without credible witnesses or evidence.
>> This is about a confederacy of dunes. This is about misinformation being allowed to grow and be perpetuated and
used against an innocent woman to try to convict her for a crime she didn't commit. Would you like to get Gene Huden
up on the stand with an opportunity to cross-examine her? That would be so much fun. That's almost too much fun for a
defense attorney like me, to be honest. >> That was a big problem for us. Uh, I did
not want to walk away from Peggy Thomas empty-handed. Uh, and the case really hinged on Jean.
>> State versus Peggy Thomas. >> Good morning. Thank you, your honor. >> Just a week before the trial is about to
start, prosecutor Banks folds his hand and offers Peggy a plea deal. four years in prison on a reduced charge of
rendering criminal assistance. Peggy accepts. >> So, what innocent person accepts a plea
deal where you're going to end up in prison for 4 years? >> A person that's smart enough to realize
that in this tiny little community of people who have been fed and fed and fed a story that isn't true, that I wasn't
going to get a fair trial. And remember the first suspect in this case, the victim's wife, Brena Douglas.
Investigators found no evidence that money ever changed hands between [music] Brena, Jim Huden, and Peggy Sue Thomas.
But prosecutor Banks says Brena remains on his radar. >> I mean, she remains a suspect in my mind
to this day. to this day >> after she ignored repeated requests to speak with 48 hours.
>> Hey Brena, Peter Van with CBS News. >> We finally came face to face with Brena.
>> After all this time, investigators still believe you were involved in the murder
of your husband. What do you have to say to that? >> I have to say that you're harassing me
and I already filed a police complaint for you guys following me. So, I want you to leave.
>> I have not followed you. These are questions you should talk about. >> Peggy says that you once said to her
that Russ was worth more to you dead than alive. >> Yeah. >> Brena, talk to us. I'll ask you two
questions and we'll go away. >> Peggy, with this plea deal, did you get away with murder?
>> Absolutely not. I don't want to minimize Russ's death in any way because I grieve
for his family, but I'm also a victim in this. >> I'm actually giving up four years of my
life for something I didn't do. >> But for Greg Banks, [music] the real victim in this case has been largely
forgotten. >> You know, this case is about getting justice for Russ Douglas. I mean, what
did Russ do? He was trying to do the right thing by his wife, trying to get back together. And for that, he got a
bull in the head. >> Just a few days before going to prison, Peggy shared some final moments together
with her daughters. >> See for my girls. Oh, I figure there must be a greater plan at
the end of all of this for me. There's something wonderful on the other side of this. And I don't know what the lesson
is yet, but there's got to be one. [music] >> [music] [music] [music]

How did a former beauty queen end up at the heart of a murder case? "48 Hours" correspondent Peter Van Sant investigates in this episode from June 2015. Watch more full episodes of "48 Hours" on Pluto TV.

True crime. Real justice. "48 Hours" investigates the most intriguing crime and justice cases that touch on all areas of the human experience including greed and passion. "48 Hours," which premiered in 1988, has developed a rich history of original reporting and impact journalism that has helped exonerate wrongly convicted people, caused cold cases to be reopened and solved, and along the way changed lives.

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Brief Summary

Peggy Sue Thomas and Jim Huden are implicated in Russell Douglas's murder, leading to a complex investigation and plea deal.

Key points

The Dark Side of Love. Peggy Sue Thomas's whirlwind romance with Jim Huden leads to a shocking crime.
Dangerous Beauty. A former beauty queen becomes embroiled in a murder investigation that shocks her community.
A Life Transformed. Peggy's journey from beauty queen to murder suspect reveals unexpected twists.
Jim's Confession. Jim admits to Peggy that he killed Russ, leaving her in shock.
The Disappearance. Jim vanishes after Hurricane Charlie, leaving investigators puzzled.
Peggy's Plea Deal. Facing trial, Peggy accepts a plea deal for a reduced sentence.

Episode highlights

Episode quotes

I'm accused of a crime I didn't commit.

3:50WatchMar 3, 2026

Tension

75/ 100High tension

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