Linas's Heart | Full Episode | Forensic Files

Help me please. My wife and body. She's not breathing. Please hurry up. >> I think about Lena every day.
>> She's on the floor. I don't know what's going on. >> She was stunningly beautiful.
>> Lena. Lena, come on. Wake up. Get off. >> She had class, elegant, style. >> He's not breathing. Oh my god. Oh my
god. This particular [music] morning. It was about 5:00. Remember waking up and seeing her not
there. And I figured, okay, she's with the baby. She's not in bed. She's with the
baby. Right around 6:00, I woke up again. She wasn't there. [snorts] That's when I got a pit in my stomach.
I remember calling, no response. I remember walking into the bathroom and seeing her there, slumped over onto
the magazine rack. >> She looked sick. She had moist on her neck. I don't know what happened.
What the hell happened? >> I just remember being in a frantic mode to to save her.
>> Please 15 16 14 18 19 >> I can tell what he's thinking, what he's going through. We do feel each other's
pain. That's how close we are. I am Seth Calfman, Adam Calfman's [music] twin brother.
When I got there, Adam was at the top of the staircase, hysterical, completely [music] distraught. I've
never seen him that way before in my whole entire life. [music] Total shock. What happened to her? My
name is Elaine [music] Calfman. My son lost his wife, Lena. >> Hello. >> 5 years ago. We'll never be the same. We
never will be. They were happy. They loved each other. They had a beautiful life. And they're
raising two beautiful kids. What could be more of a tragedy than this? >> Want to say hi
18 months later was like a second death in the family. A SWAT team came in with laser pointed
rifles and threw at him on the floor and arrested him. >> What? What happened? >> It was the most unbelievable thing.
>> Come on. Oh my god. My name is Adam Calfman. I've been accused of murdering my wife.
I'm Aaron Morardi. Tonight on 48 hours, Lena's heart. >> [music] >> I hear whispering when I go places.
Some people just ignore you. Some people don't want to hear from you. Elaine Calfman never imagined it would come to
this, that she and her close-knit [music] family would be snubbed in their own community, an affluent suburb of
Miami. >> There are people in this town [music] who think your son is a killer. >> Let them think what they want to think.
We're going to get through this and we're [music] going to show everybody that he's not. Adam Kaufman, a
successful real estate executive, husband, and father of two, now found himself branded a murderer.
>> You got to be kidding me. How could this happen? >> But there are these photos taken after
Lena's death that show marks on her neck. And in April 2009, a year and a half after he says he found his wife
unresponsive in their home, Adam Calfman was charged with strangling her. >> There's a mistake. What evidence is
there? [music] >> No one took the news harder than Adam's identical twin, Seth. >> Oh, it was devastation. They might as
well lock me up. >> Is he scared? >> Of course he's scared. The news of Adam's arrest and Lena's death shook
everyone around them. It simply didn't fit with the couple they knew. >> She was his soulmate and they were just
amazing together. >> Did you [music] ever see anything that concerned you about their marriage?
>> Never. I saw them all the time. They [music] were happy. They they loved each
other. And so friends and family search back in their minds. Did they miss something? Lena's mother, Freda Eisman,
remembers a strange conversation she had with Lena [music] just 2 months before her death. She said, "Listen, if
something happened to me, I want you [music] to know that I trust my kids only to you. I don't know why she asked
me. I don't know what what her [music] thought was in this moment." But Freda says there was no sense that anything
was wrong on November [music] 6th, 2007. She saw her only daughter at work at the
family's upscale [music] furniture business, never dreaming it would be the last time. I said, "You look so
beautiful, so classical." She said, "Are you proud of me?" Said, "Of course." [music]
>> And how would you describe her mood when you saw her? >> She was very, very, very happy
>> at the time. Lena, Adam, and their kids [music] live right around the corner from Adam's brother, Seth, and his bride
to be, [music] Raquel. Was Lena excited about the wedding? >> Oh, she was so looking forward to it.
She was one of Raquel's bridesmaids. I was Seth's best man. She was her happiest.
>> That evening, Lena got a spray tan, her first [music] to prepare for the big day. On the way home, she visited a
friend to show off her tan. have a glass of wine and a bite to eat. Adam was home, he says, taking care of
five-year-old Haley and two-year-old Jake. >> I remember her coming home around 11:00.
>> Did you see her when she came home? >> Yes. Yes, I was already in bed watching
TV. >> According to Adam, Lena undressed. >> You could definitely tell she was spray
tanned. It just seemed a lot to me. They went to bed and the next time Adam says
he saw his wife was in the early morning hours of November 7th. >> She was in this bathroom, he says,
slumped over the magazine rack. I remember going over to her, seeing all this red stuff all over, pink, frothy,
whatever it was. And I remember grabbing her from the back and she felt cold. Lena, Lena, Lena, wake up.
>> My wife and body, she's on the floor. >> At 6:10 a.m., Adam called 911. There's
blood, this stuff coming out of her mouth. This whole She looks pale. She looks sick. She has marks on her neck. I
don't know what happened. >> The operator instructed him to give his wife CPR. >> I need you to do compressions. Okay.
>> Push down on her chest rapidly 30 times. 1 2 3 4 5 >> and then back to breathing into her
mouth twice. >> Can you hear her breathing? >> No, she's cold. You told the operator there were marks
on her neck. Where were those marks? >> Here. Here. There were maybe three or four of them that I could see.
>> If something happened, did she fall? >> No. No. >> Calm down, sir. Help is on the way.
Okay. It would take fire rescue teams 16 minutes to find the Calfman home. >> They were frantic, putting something
over her face and putting something in her mouth, continually asking me questions about her health. I'm thinking
of, okay, what health problems does she have? Lena was always healthy to me. >> Seth and Raquel raced over to help Adam
and his children. We got there and they were working on her in the bedroom at that time.
It was just a an awful scene. It's just tough to to to [music] look at. >> They couldn't save her. Lena Kaufman was
pronounced [music] dead at the hospital. >> I was numb. I I [snorts] couldn't I couldn't think straight. [music] I
couldn't I I couldn't feel my body. What are you [music] thinking had happened to Lena?
>> I had no idea. >> Adam had to break the news to Freda. >> Adam was crying. Then he said she's
gone. That Lena is gone. >> What did you think? >> I don't know if I could think on this
moment. I just uh the only one thought I have that it's not true. That it's not true. She cannot leave me here
without her. She cannot do this to me. >> I could not comprehend how a healthy 34year-old woman just dies.
>> Lena's friends, Melissa [music] and Jennifer, were also in shock. >> Something happened. And that was my
question for months. [music] What happened? It was the question everyone was asking, including the Aventura
police. >> There are officers who said you didn't act normal. How do you act? Is there a
book on how you act when your wife just passes away? How do you act? How do you act?
When Lena Calfman was buried in November of 2007, no one could explain why she died,
making her loss even more painful. >> What did you think? What killed her? >> I didn't know. And it was very, very,
very frustrating. What do you miss the most about your daughter? >> I miss her love. I miss her smell,
her humor. Yes, I miss her a lot. >> Freda Eisman raised her daughter and son in [music] five countries before Lena
settled in Florida. Lena was as brilliant as she was beautiful. She spoke Russian, English, Danish, Flemish,
Hebrew, um, a little bit of Italian, >> sophisticated, >> very sophisticated. And I was just in
awe. >> They met at a party [music] and after dating 3 years, Lena and Adam were
married. >> Everybody say hi. >> Hi. >> Wow. One big happy family. >> Before long, Haley and Jake were born. I
was just kind of patting myself on the back saying, "Wow, you're a lucky guy." >> But in an instant, everything changed.
His wife of seven years suddenly died. And for almost 18 months, no one seemed to know why.
Adam says he repeatedly called the Dade County Medical Examiner's Office. >> And they all kept telling me, "We're
waiting on test results. We're waiting on test results." And I kept calling in. No return phone calls, no answers.
But in April 2009, the answer he got stunned everyone. After exhaustive [music] testing, the
chief medical examiner ruled that Lena died from mechanical [music] esphyxiation.
Adam was thrown in jail, accused of strangling his wife. I know my brother more than anyone in
this world and I know he's just not capable of anything like that. He just cannot [music] do that.
>> Adam's family cared for Haley and Jake while he was behind bars. At a hearing two months later, Adam's
lawyers made headlines with a unique defense. They said the spray tan did it. A few
hours before she passed away, she had a spray tan for the first time. It is possible to have an allergic reaction
from this. So that was our thought that everything else was normal. >> But prosecutor Kathleen Hog scoffed at
their theory. >> It was a laughable defense. Truly, >> laughable or not, Adam Calfman was
released on a half million dollars bond. Tracked by an electronic ankle monitor,
he went home to his family to prepare for trial. It would take three years. >> The defendant is charged with
seconddegree murder. >> But finally, in May 2012, >> ladies and gentlemen of our jury,
>> Adam Calfman goes on trial in downtown Miami. >> Do you swore the testimony you're about
to give? >> As the prosecution case begins, >> take me through it. What did you do
next? First responders testify they found Adam's behavior suspicious. >> Mr. Kaufman on the scene was sometimes
very calm, just talking like us right now. And within a second, he would be completely a grieving type, out of
control. It It was almost like an act. >> Everyone acts differently under pressure.
>> True. But probably there's probably nobody that sees more of that than these people. All right.
>> You know, they didn't think that it was real. >> Did you notice any marks on her neck or
on her shoulders? >> Yes, ma'am. >> But more troubling, Adam's initial stories seemed inconsistent.
>> Okay. Did you describe how he found her in the bathroom? >> Yes. >> Paramedic Kimberly Burke says Adam told
her that he found his wife slumped over the toilet. crouched over the toilet as if she was vomiting
>> when he woke up at 6:00 a.m. >> But the doctor at the hospital says he heard a different version.
>> She had some strange marks on her neck [clears throat] and uh I was asked him if he knew how
those might have occurred and at that point in time he stated that maybe the patient was laying on a magazine rack in
the bathroom. >> Why would these people think that you had something to do with Lena's death? I
I I I pondered that for for years now. And when someone that young and healthy dies, people want answers.
And I can't give people answers they want to hear. [music] >> Prosecutor Kathleen Hogue doesn't have
all the answers either. Unlike most spousal murders, this one doesn't appear to have a motive.
Is [music] there any evidence that Adam Kaufman was having an affair? >> No. >> Is there any evidence Lena Kaufman was
having an affair? >> No. >> Is there any evidence that there were serious domestic problems in this
relationship? >> No. But isn't that going to make it very difficult in front of a jury to believe
that this couple who seemed to love each other would just blow up one time and end up with with a homicide?
>> Well, you know, the injury speaks for itself. I don't know that he necessarily
meant to do it, but I know that he did it because of the injury to her neck here, there in the strap muscles. It was
very deep sustained pressure. Hogue believes Adam and Lena got into a fight in the early morning hours of
November 7th. Exactly what [music] they fought about, she isn't sure, but she says the proof is in these crime scene
photos. >> You believe that was an argument that started in the kitchen? >> I do because her her breakfast was half
done. >> Hogue is certain the compulsively neat Lena Kaufman would not have left a bowl
of cereal and a halfeaten banana on the counter. She believes the argument moved from the
kitchen upstairs. >> You know, she may well have just been going into the shower saying, you know,
screw you. I'm not going to listen to you anymore. I don't want to talk about it. And, you know, he just flew off the
handle. Yes, you are. Grabs her and, you know, it's not that hard for someone as
big and as strong as him to strangle someone. >> The prosecutor says that she believes
that there was a fight that morning before. Did you fight with Lena? >> Absolutely not. Lena and I argued just
like every married couple. Did we argue that day? Absolutely not. Everything was
perfect. >> But some say things weren't [music] quite so perfect. In the weeks before
she died, Lena was threatening not to go to Seth and Raquel's upcoming wedding. [music]
>> There were some minor issues that I tried to stay out of. There were some um there was an issue with walking down the
aisle. >> Adam was Seth's best man. Raquel wanted him to walk down the aisle, not with
Lena, but with her mate of honor. And that upset Lena, says her friend Jennifer.
>> When Lena found out that she wasn't walking with Adam, it it really set her off.
>> You call it a minor issue. Some of her friends say it was a >> I can't say it did not bother Lena, but
Lena and I did talk about it. We did. And she was upset about it. Definitely was
>> fight over that. Did that become a physical fight? Not at all. No. Never. [music]
>> She didn't do it to herself. You know, has to be done by someone else. [music]
He's the only person that could have done it. >> I've never laid a hand on her in our
entire relationship. Nothing happened. Look at the evidence. All right, jury. >> There is absolutely no doubt in my mind.
>> Good morning, members of the jury, >> that Adam Kaufman is innocent of this charge. None zero zip.
>> There are two sides to every story, ladies and gentlemen. to tell Adam Calfman's side. His family luckily had
the money to hire a dream team of defense attorneys. >> An innocent man has been falsely
charged. >> Two of Miami's toughest lawyers. Bill Matthew. >> I'm an ex- cop. >> And Al Millian.
>> I was a prosecutor for 12 years. [music] >> They're very different. They're the good
cop, bad cop. >> Adam's mother, Elaine, believes they're the perfect combination.
>> Bill never gets excited about things. We believe that this situation is unique
>> and Al is quite the opposite. >> It is improper. >> He's a ball of fire. >> I don't have any trouble hearing so
please don't raise your voice at me. Mr. Matthew, you may proceed. >> To counter Kathleen Hog and her
prosecution team. The defense attorneys have suddenly changed their strategy. They're no longer blaming Lena's death
on her spray tan because there's not enough evidence to support it. Now they're attacking what they say was
[music] a botched investigation by the Aventura police. >> This case was assigned to a detective
who had never conducted a homicide investigation. >> The lead investigator reported that Adam
told emergency personnel conflicting stories about how he found his wife. But Adam's attorneys question those witness
accounts. >> I've always been consistent with one story. one story that she was slumped
[music] over. >> You didn't tell anyone that she was over the toilet like she was throwing up?
>> Never. Never. Absolutely not. >> Where was [music] she exactly? >> Adam agreed to show us how he found
Lena. >> We had a leather magazine holder rack. >> And where was that in that corner?
>> That was right here. >> When I walked in, she was on top of it. She was draped over and her head, if you
turn your head to the right like that, and her hair was in her face, >> but she wasn't on the toilet.
>> No, it was almost like she was sitting on the toilet and then got up and this
happened or was about to sit down on the toilet and this happened. >> But then, how do Adam and his attorneys
explain the suspicious injuries on Lena's neck that prosecutors say prove that she was strangled? When Lena
Kaufman passed out, she fell onto a rack filled with very thick magazines. And those marks are consistent with her
resting on top, falling on top of those magazines in the magazine rack. And they're inconsistent with any type of
fingernails or fingers of anything of that nature. >> And those deep internal injuries inside
Lena's neck. Al Millian blames them on the paramedics. They tried to intubate her and and they made multiple efforts.
>> Witnesses admitted that there were three failed attempts to insert a tube down
Lena's windpipe to help her breathe. >> If a tube is is jammed into a person's throat, it could actually cause damage
around the throat area. Isn't that correct? >> Yes, sir. >> And Millian admits that Adam might have
caused some of the injuries himself in his desperate attempt to save Lena. My wife can get from it. She's on a poor
guy. >> I need you to do compressions. Okay. >> Do you think when you were giving her
CPR, you might have left some of these injuries? >> I I I I can't tell you one way or
another. I I'm working on my wife. >> 14 16. >> I want to believe that I wasn't rough on
her. >> I tilt her head back. I thought [snorts] I did it gently. >> Is it possible that I didn't? Yeah, it's
possible. >> The other bruises and abrasions on Lena's arms and legs occurred. According
to the defense, when Lena was being moved from room to room by firefighters, not from a struggle with Adam.
>> Nothing on her body indicates that she was involved in a struggle. You would have expected to see that Adam would
have had scratches on his face, on his arms, on his hands, on his wrist, none of which existed. and that bathroom
would have been full of marks. That tanning spray leaves trace evidence everywhere.
>> Crime scene technician Anna Howell admits in court she didn't find any marks on the wall.
>> Did you swab or test the side of the wall here? >> No, sir. Because there was nothing of
evidentary value on there. But a defense expert enhanced [music] photos and found what appears to be
traces of spray tan where Adam says Lena had contact with the bathroom wall. >> A rectangular to ovalshaped mark.
>> And then there's the magazine rack that Lena was laying on. Howell took the rack
as evidence, but says lead investigator Anthony Angulo told her to leave the magazines.
>> By the direction of Detective Angulo, the magazines were not collected. There
was no evidentary value on them. There was no blood. There was they were not wet.
>> But Bill Matthew contends there was some kind of fluid on top of the magazines as
seen in this enhanced photo. And it could have been crucial evidence. What happened to all that?
>> That's the $10,000 question. Where are those magazines? >> They're gone. They're not there.
>> You can't test it. >> We can't test them. [music] >> And then a development no one expected.
That raises even more questions about how this case was investigated. >> You're friends with Detective Angula?
>> I'm a co-orker of his. Yes. >> But when you've been off duty, you socialize with Detective Angula?
>> No, sir. But the defense knows it's not quite the truth. >> Good morning everybody. You may be
seated. >> And the following day, in a stunning about face, >> do you swear the testimony you're about
to give will be the truth? The whole truth. >> Anna How admits her real relationship
with the lead detective. >> Did you have an affair with Detective Angula? >> Yes. And my husband is well aware of it,
sir, and I am happily married and I don't have any issues with that any longer. Did you have any idea that this crime
scene technician was having a relationship with the lead detective? >> No. None.
>> It wasn't about the affair. It's about the lying and the motivation for covering up.
>> Yeah. It was very, very bad for us. >> But the biggest court battle is about to
come. >> The experts say that it's not a homicide. The experts say that it's absolutely not a murder. And the experts
[music] say that it is a natural death. >> There are unexplained deaths that happen
in this country every day. People pass away from natural causes and [music] sometimes they can figure out what it
is, sometimes they can't. And yet, a seemingly healthy young woman is dead with injuries and bruises on her neck
and body. The county's chief medical examiner testifying for the prosecution says there can be only one conclusion.
>> Cause of death is mechanical asphixxia. >> Mechanical esphixxia. >> Yes. >> And what would be the manner of death?
>> Homicide. >> Homicide. Dr. Bruce Hima tells the jury that Lena Calfman was murdered when someone or
something cut off her airway. >> And why would it be a homicide, Dr. Hima? >> Given all of the totality information
and and all of the injury and this mechanical esphyxiation could only occur at at the hands of somebody else.
>> And Dr. Heimmer's opinion is backed by his former associate medical examiner who supervised the original autopsy.
>> Did you know you had an asphixial death? Yes. >> Did you know you had a homicide?
>> Yes. >> But the defense has its own medical witnesses and they say something completely different.
>> Was the death of Eleanor Kaufman a homicide? >> No. >> And why do you say that?
>> The evidence does not point to that. >> According to Dr. John Maracini, a pathologist, Lena Calfman died simply of
undiagnosed heart failure. And these slides taken of her heart, he says, prove it.
>> This area is where normal heart muscle used to be and something happened. There
was disease here and disease changed the tissue from this to this. >> He tells the jury she had myocarditis,
an inflammation of the heart. >> My opinion is she developed an irregular heartbeat. She collapsed.
>> That's also what Dr. Michael Bodton, the former New York City chief medical examiner, concludes.
>> Mrs. Calfman died of her pre-existing natural, acute, and chronic myocarditis.
>> It's a shocking claim, especially since Lena Calfman appeared to have no history
of heart disease. But her husband now recalls unexplained figning spells after they married.
>> I remember standing at the bar in a club with her and all of a sudden, you know,
we're talking and she just collapses straight down. And luckily, I was standing there. I caught her. 2 3
seconds later, she kind of came out of it. I'm all right. I'm all right. >> Hi. >> There was a much more serious incident
after Haley was born, Adam says. >> Hey, what's going on? Lena had been home with a toddler when
she suddenly collapsed. >> She had called me and said, "I just fainted. I just passed out and I can't
get off the floor." I said, "Okay, I'm I'm rushing home." When I remember when I got home, she was up. She was fine
walking around like nothing had happened. >> Didn't that concern you? >> Of course. Of course.
>> But Adam admits Lena never sought treatment from a doctor. Why not push her to go see the doctor? Yeah. Um, she
didn't want to go. She She said she was perfectly fine and and life was back to normal.
>> Do you believe that she had a history of fainting spells? >> No. Her friends didn't, you know, didn't
corroborate that. >> What's more, says prosecutor Kathleen Hogue, none of the doctors hired by the
state believe the signs of inflammation seen in Lena's heart were serious enough
to kill her. >> Any indication she had trouble with her heart? No. >> Any indication she had a pre-existing
medical condition? Signs of dizziness, shortness of breath, anything that would have caused you concern about what she
had going into this? >> No. >> Nothing. >> Nothing at all. >> Did you see any signs at all in Lena
Kaufman's heart that suggested she had congestive heart failure? >> No. >> Dr. Monzo, do you agree with the
findings that Lena Kaufman had active inflammation in her heart and evidence of a scar?
>> I do not. I found nothing abnormal. How could six reputable doctors, four testifying for the prosecution and two
for the defense, take a look at all the same evidence, but reach such different conclusions. Was Lena Kaufman murdered
or did she die of heart failure? Her husband's future hangs on that answer. >> Does a case like this scare you?
>> It does. >> Dr. Gregory Davis [music] isn't working for either the prosecution or the
defense. He's the medical examiner for the state of Kentucky, [music] the expert we asked to look at all the
evidence. As you sit here now, do you now believe you know what killed Lena Kaufman?
>> I do. >> You have no question about it. >> No question. She died of myocarditis
that caused an acute cardiac dysriythmia and caused her death. >> It was Lena's heart that killed her, not
her husband, says Dr. Davis. He points to [music] the evidence that convinces him. This pink thing is a heart cell and
these are inflammatory cells that are actually attacking and destroying that heart cell.
>> The inflammatory cells are those small dark ones. >> That is a true myocarditis, a true
inflammation of the heart where the body's own immune system is actually attacking the heart.
>> And those injuries on Lena's neck, sadly, says Dr. Davis, they may have been caused by Lena herself. if she were
suffering a cardiac dysriythmia which causes can cause an air hunger in a patient whose hearts is rapidly failing.
She she feels out of breath. It can be very common for a person to grab at their own neck in that kind of scenario.
I think she died a natural death. >> Dr. Davis is just as sure of his diagnosis as is every medical expert who
testified at trial. proof that even in this age of high-tech crime scene investigations,
what is written on a death certificate is not fact, but simply one doctor's opinion.
>> I think these are honest, good physicians, but they are interpreting these findings differently. And I know
that can be scary because people's lives are on the line based upon these interpretations. But even if all these
doctors can't agree, 12 jurors are going to have to. [music] >> Two weeks into the trial, a surprising
witness for the defense. Your honor, at this time we would call Miss Freda Eisman,
>> Lena Calfman's [music] mother. >> Do you swear affirm the testimony you're about to give will be the truth, the
whole truth, and nothing but the truth? >> Yes. >> Do you love Adam? >> Like my own son.
>> Do you support him? >> I'm here. >> Do you? >> I really believe that he is not guilty.
He is not guilt. He did has nothing to do with this. Freda Eisman is Adam's best hope.
>> The fact that she was willing to come in there and testify for Adam and support
Adam in front of that jury was critical for us. >> Critical because attorney Bill Matthew
says she backs up Adam's claims that Lena had undiagnosed health problems that caused her death.
>> She had a habit, let's see, uh to faint. Yes. According to Freda, Lena suffered
fainting spells as a child. >> So, what did you think? It was just normal that she would faint
occasionally. >> Um, no. Of course, it's not normal, but it was when she was little. We went to
the doctors, of course, and they didn't find anything. >> Now, Freda believes the reason her
daughter asked her to take care of her children was because Lena knew she was ill. But prosecutors [music] say there
are no records Lena ever consulted a doctor about fainting spells. >> Was Lena ever taken by ambulance to the
hospital in response to any one of these episodes she had? >> No. >> So the fainting spells that you observed
in Lena were a long time ago, not close to her death. >> Yes. >> If she thought Adam killed her daughter,
why would she testify for him? >> She has no idea what's going on between Adam and her daughter. She's never
really seen the injuries to her daughter or, you know, she only knows what the Kaufman family has told her.
>> Adam Kaufman is not guilty. >> In closing arguments, the defense emphasizes Freda's unwavering belief in
her son-in-law. >> Freda Eisman lost her daughter. Freda still supports Adam, loves him
like a son, knows he's innocent. But the prosecution questions her motive for testifying.
>> Ladies and gentlemen, Ms. Eisman has two beautiful grandchildren. What do you
think would happen if she didn't support him? >> Do you think for a second she would be
seeing her grandchildren? You think she's going to go against him? >> Are you accusing me?
>> Freda's outburst angers the judge. All right, I'm not going to have any outbursts from the audience. You can
have a seat outside. >> Who orders her to leave the courtroom? >> If there was a side of you that thought
that Adam did have something to do with your daughter's death, would you have still defended him in court?
>> Of course not. >> Even to keep a father for >> Of course not. What What father he can
be if he can do this to a mom to this kid. So what father he can be? Of course not.
On June 5th, 2012, after a month-long trial, the case goes to the jury and the waiting begins.
>> It's a scary, scary, scary thing. >> Look what I made for you, Dad. >> Adam's biggest fear that his children,
[music] who have already lost their mother, will now lose him. kids live in poverty.
>> Every morning I leave and I go to um I go to work or the kids go to [music] school and you know you hug the kids and
you kiss the kids >> and you know you're going to see them. This morning was um was uh was different.
>> That hug and and kiss was was different. After [music] eight agonizing hours, the
jury reaches a verdict. >> Okay, please bring the jury. >> It was It was definitely that feeling
of, "Okay, here it is. Here we go." >> Madam clerk, please come. >> And I stood up in between Al and Bill
and put my head down and just thought of my kids. >> We the jury in Miami Day County,
Florida, finds The defendant is not guilty. So say we all for a person Bernard Wh Jenny.
>> All I heard was not guilty and I felt >> either party. >> Bill grabbed me and Al grabbed me and I
could hear the family and crying and and I'm like, is this it? Is it over? >> The defendant is discharged at this time
and free to go. Thank [snorts] you. The man branded as a killer for more than three years is acquitted of his
wife's murder. >> And it was uh amazing. It was unbelievable. It was pretty overwhelming. It was It was overwhelming
>> for prosecutors. It's a crushing defeat. Even though you're acquitted, aren't
there still some people who wonder, did you have anything to [music] do with your wife's death? Of course there's
people out there that are that are going to sit and wonder. People that matter, know the truth, and that's all I care
about. >> Freedom. >> Adam is now trying to get his life and his reputation back.
>> Has it occurred to you that you might not be sitting here if it wasn't for Lena's mom coming forward and
testifying? >> Absolutely. >> She probably saved your life. >> Yeah. Yeah, I think so.
saved by Lena's mom, Adam says, and Lena herself. >> I believe she she was she was a big part
of this entire process and she was uh she was watching over it. >> In the end, [music] Lena's heart saved
my life. Heat. Heat. [music] [music] [music] >> [music] [music]

A beautiful wife and mother is suddenly dead. Would a twin really know if his brother was a killer? "48 Hours" correspondent Erin Moriarty investigates in this episode from September 2014. 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

Lena Kaufman's sudden death leads to her husband Adam's murder trial, ultimately resulting in his acquittal after conflicting medical testimonies.

Key points

Accusations of Murder. Adam is accused of strangling Lena after her death is ruled a homicide.
A Tragic Morning. Adam wakes up to find his wife Lena unresponsive, leading to a frantic 911 call.
The Defense's Unique Strategy. Adam's lawyers claim Lena's spray tan caused her death, a theory met with skepticism.
The Affair Revealed. Anna Howell admits to an affair with Detective Angula, raising questions about the investigation.
The Heart of the Matter. Experts debate whether Lena's death was a homicide or due to natural causes.
A Surprising Witness. Lena's mother testifies in support of Adam, claiming he is not guilty.

Episode highlights

Episode quotes

What the hell happened?

1:30WatchJul 21, 2026

Tension

75/ 100High tension

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