The Detective's Wife | Full Episode + Post Mortem | Forensic Files

[Music] [Music] Amy wrote Shadows are created around us whenever something or someone blocks the
light we are created to live in the light he is calling me out of the darkness turn toward the light and the
truth truth [Music] truth Amy's Outlet was her journaling she wrote to me about The Bible and
having faith I believe that her faith was important to her because she lived by her faith she was the salt of the
earth genuine and loving I found out that Amy had passed in a phone call from our mutual
friend in the next sentence I found out how she had passed it's not a phone call
you know you want to get 911 this sign is recorded what's the address of your emergency hi this is Brian Pion I'm at
in North Road my wife just shot herself can you send me some help all right Brian we'll get him right
out there okay I remember remember my supervisor telling me we have a death investigation
in Westfield and it's a police officer's wife that was a rarity to me I had not experienced a case like that she's
gone God okay are you sure yes yes Brian's role at the Westfield Police Department he was their uh evidence guy
and the detective hero we both knew Brian he was very well [Applause] respected when you walked in the fan
house what did you see then I walked into the dining room and that's when I observed the body of
Amy fion and a pool of blood on the floor with a gunshot to the right side of her
head I saw the 45 caliber Smith and Wesson firearm on the stairs that led to the Breezeway there was a police radio
paperwork mail and so forth chairs pushed about and on top of this dining room table you had a peanut butter and
jelly sandwich intact on a plate you had an empty plate that had some blood smear
on it what was Brian's demeanor when you arrived he seemed like he was in a State
of Shock he was looking straight ahead just SN the gun just exploded just so quick
hesitate at all I'm the only one that could make her that angry I offered her my condolences I
told Brian that you know that I was going to conduct a thorough investigation that it was going to be by
the numbers is it standard for the District Attorney's office to be involved in a suicide investigation yes
part of our duties at the District Attorney's office was to investigate all deaths what can this deceased tell us
about what happened right before she found herself in that state so I'm taking in everything that I
can about that scene and I saw the entry wound to her head it didn't seem right in that moment
how would something like that happen [Music] [Music] it was 1 p.m. on May 8th 2018 when
massachusett state police detectives arrived at a farmhouse in Westfield 51-year-old Amy fan lay dead in the
dining room from a single gunshot wound to the head detective Mike MCN Amy was essentially in a pile of blood that was
beginning to congeal under her left side Amy's husband Brian fion a detective in
the Westfield Police Department had called 911 minutes earlier reporting that his wife had shot herself the
dining room rearranged to accommodate medical personnel was in disarray as detectives work to identify clues of
what may have happened there was a blood spatter around that window frame from that dining room into the Bree way there
was a pair of glasses that looked like it had some kind of red Brown spatter on it and then there was the bullet
detectives Brendan OU and Mike Blanchet the actual projectile was in that front enclosed porch area the spenell casing
was still in the dining room we could see the direction that it traveled through Amy's head
that round impacted that dresser came to AR rest right around there in the Breezeway Brian was sitting in a chair
with his back to the wall and he's with the chief of police from the Westfield Police Department who's talking with him
everyone was in a State of shock everyone including Amy's brother Eric Hansen who told detectives that he had
just finished playing disc golf behind the house when he heard Bran's cry for help and that's when he walked walked
into the house saw Amy on the floor a gun next to her and Brian holding Amy's hand so he picked up the gun himself and
moved it out of Brian's reach because he was worried about Brian's state of mind
having just lost his wife yes what kind of gun was used it was a Smith the Wesson uh MMP 45 Brian fanon's Duty
weapon did that give you any pause that it was Brian Fan's weapon yes it gave me
pause this point I know that I'm going to really do a detailed investigation to avoid conflict of
interest otou said he decided that his unit the Massachusetts State Police would be the sole investigators and he
wanted to get Brian away from the house to get a statement I asked if he would accompany me to the massachusett state
police barracks in Russell and I took a tape recorded statement from him Tuesday
May 8th it's 2:41 p.m. I'm with Brian fan Brian um you understand and I got a recorder on right now
yes Brian told detective otou that he left his office at the Westfield police station around 11:45 a.m. and drove to
North Road to meet his wife who was on her way home to prepare their lunch well she making butter and jelly sandwiches
Brian said that when he arrived they continued an argument from the night prior an argument that had gotten pretty
heated that evening oh when you say heated I guess well just uh I don't know she just uh was very
angry okay what was your argument about um I'm retiring soon we're discussing what each of us expects retirement to
be Brian said he told Amy that he didn't want to spend his retirement maintaining
their 200-year-old home which Amy still loved they also discuss their aging dog and his reluctance to get another one
yeah I don't want to be tied down by a dog she always wants to have a dog I want to travel more than she does
according to Brian that afternoon during lunch Amy told him she had scheduled them to attend a family memb play on the
day Brian wanted to attend a disc golf tournament I just said no I don't like that stuff why would you commit me when
you're without asking that's when according to Brian things soon took a turn for the worst it took i g out of
the holster and put it on our Hutch because I had to use the bathroom where's the hutch located in the dining
room Brian said he closed the bathroom door and when he came out Amy had the gun in her hand she has the gun pointed
up to the right side of her head what did you hear her say I think she said I guess you don't want it's you don't want
me to around or you don't want to be around me was she seated or she stood up she was standing okay according to Brian
he was was 4 to 5 ft away when he tried to stop Amy from pulling the trigger tried to get to
her I almost did the gun just exploded just so quick hesitate at all I just went over
and I just held her hands she's held her 911 recorded Ryan called 911 yelled out to Amy's brother Eric for help Eric
uh what is how do you spell your last name Hans h n Eric told detectives that Brian said
he and Amy had been having a tense argument and she grabbed the GU he just was so
distraught he say what they were I about no I was just trying to conso him say it's not your fault it's not your fault
Amy's death had shocked the Westfield Community my name is Stephanie Barry and I'm a reporter for the Republican in
Springfield Massachusetts Amy's maiden name was Hansen she came from a fairly large family she and her sisters were
all known as some of the prettiest girls in school some of the smartest and some
of the nicest it was 1983 when 16-year-old Amy met 19-year-old Brian fion f came from a
long line of police officers and politicians and in Westfield the fan name was a source of Pride the fion were
kind of like the kennedies of Westfield they were well regarded Brian and Amy tied the knot in
1985 and the couple eventually had two children Travis and Victoria Amy's close friend Terry lucardi says Amy loved
being a stay-at-home mom Amy's Focus was Raising her children she thought that being a parent was the best job in the
whole world the fion deeply committed to their faith dedicated their lives to God
and community service with Brian serving as a church Deacon and working as a missionary to build wells in
Mexico after 30 years of marriage the fans were planning their next phase of life when those plans derailed is there
any knowledge that Amy fan had any mental health issues or suffered from depression so I I asked Brian and um he
mentioned um many years earlier when she was having some psychological issues and
was done medicine for a period of time other than that nothing nothing recent but what Brian did stress was that Amy
had bouts with anger she had a temper but she hid it well from everyone but me she only
got that angry when we were alone Midway into the inter interview detective otou
asked Brian if there were any female friends in his life I have a woman who lives in Pittsfield that I met
recently I did a mission trip to Mexico and we become good friends what's that lady's name
Cory does she have the last name or Cory NOS k n o w h yes you guys aren't going to contact
her are you for detective OU Brian fion admitted friendship with another woman raised
questions Ryan had told detectives that Karin nolles known as Corey was a fellow
missionary at a nearby Church the two met in November 2017 on a mission trip in Mexico and a friendship
developed but it had never gone beyond that an emotional affair he said there was some flirting but he qualified it
that it wasn't sexual a sexual it was not a his term was it was not a friends with
benefits at the end of the interview detective otou asked bran to turn over his personal phone I turned off the
recorder and that's Brian told me is you're going to see some things on there and it's not what it appears to be a red
flag for you yeah there's several red flags as a an investigator you have to keep an open
mind within a week of Brian's interview on May 14th 2018 Amy's wake was held Brian planted a tree in nearby
Stanley Park in his wife's memory [Music] but the investigation into her sudden death was just beginning detectives
recovered a treasure Trove of deleted text messages from Brian's phone there were just hundreds of texts
that expanded the relationship that he was having with Cory on May 7th the the day
before Amy died Brian and Corey exchanged 72 text messages until 9:47 p.m. that evening in one exchange at 9:23 p.m.
Brian writes good night my love I hope you have wonderful dreams of amazing days and nights to come and Corey
responds good night my love I will dream of you and all that the future holds for
us the next morning at 10:30 a.m. Corey texts when can I hold you again to which
Brian responds not soon enough turning into a very long morning and within an hour or to Amy
fanan is dead yes for fem part possibly intentionally shot herself police in rout
Brian has not been entirely truthful to us at this point and so we want to speak
with him again on May 17th 2018 3 days after Amy's wake Brian fan arrived at the
District Attorney's State Police office for another round of questioning Brian so we just needed to you know clarify
some things we you know your Miranda right so I'm going to read them up this form the other day you didn't do this
has something changed so you're not you're not under arrest or any I know that and on that same day across town
detectives met with Corey nolles to learn more about her involvement with Brian if somebody Wass to say who's Cory
who are you Cory noes a 48-year-old wife grandmother and member of her Church's choir told detectives that Brian's
friendship helped her work through a troubled second marriage marage very easy to talk to nothing but affirmation
and love and I'm here for you but over time their relationship moved from Friendship to
flirtation that I feel passion for him absolutely by April 16th 2018 5 months into Brian and Corey's relationship
their texting gave way to something more intimate When Corey visited Brian's house before they left for volunteer
work was that the first time you were in that you kissed at on that April day the
16th and then where was that the kitchen I got there before got home Cory told detectives that by late April she
and Brian were having passionate make out sessions in her [Music] truck Brian left work early met up with
Corey in Westfield at Stanley Park and and they made out there was some sexual touching but according to Corey Brian
could not perform more like because I'm still married to to Amy we've seen the text messages and all
honesty Brian it looks like it's a lot more than a friendship you know I know it escalated and I'm completely
embarrassed by it ashamed of it shouldn't happen but a lot of people have affairs and
correct don't kill their wife correct detective otou then asks Brian to go back over his statement of what
happened beginning at the moment when Brian said he placed his gun on the hutch and went inside the
bathroom all right so you come out of the bathroom right she's at the table where where just indicate like where
between the table and the hutch and a chair right there I don't know if she sitting or standing I think she was
standing I mean shoot I think she was sitting now when we were trying to get these stepbystep details he seemed to be
wavering so you come out of the bathroom Okay and then what's the first thing that happens I just remember her saying
that that you obviously don't want he and then detective otou asked Brian to demonstrate what Amy did with the gun
just remember seeing her hand come up with the gun towards her head yeah so she puts it to the side of her head yes
okay and and where was the gun when it went off was it in the sink but there is a problem what Brian did not know was
that a CSI report and Amy's autopsy results had arrived The Gunshot entrance WB was not consistent with a
self-inflicted wound fair to say it took this case in a whole new Direction yes during the second interview with Brian
fion detectives otou and Blanchet found themselves facing a challenge that tested their experience as
investigators this is not a a normal interview for myself and Mike we've done thousands of interviews
you know we're pretty good at it but it's hard when it's a police officer because he knows exactly how we
work it was a difficult interview there's a problem straight detectives laid out what they considered to be
crucial evidence in their investigation there's no indication so whatsoever so far that she
had a gun close to the side of her head me wrong cuz she did cu I saw and it happen you know how do you say there's
no indication well I mean that's what that's what you know that's what it's showing you us right
now the medical examiner listed Amy's manner of death as undetermined in combined with CSI
findings investigators did not believe that Amy died of a self-inflicted wound I mean there's no doubt she get
was shot but but the question is from what distance it was right freaking there I'm telling
you do what you need to but I'm telling you it was right there in Amy's case distance mattered
this is because with self-inflicted gunshot wounds debris known as gunshot residue is expelled from the firearm and
leaves a distinct pattern on and inside the wound known as stippling as demonstrated here like Brian you you
understand like guns and stippling and all that I do and I can't there's none honor Bri there's none honor there has
to be cuz the gun was there right freaking there there's not hon then they're wrong I'm telling you
they're they're flat out wrong cuz it was right freaking there the other option is you got pissed and you're a
foot or few feet away and you shot her in the head when she's sitting eating her sandwich didn't happen didn't happen
did not happen all right with Fanny 's Affair exposed in CSI reports in hand detectiv suspected F
had likely shot his wife but they still needed more evidence on May 24th 2018 detectives obtained a search warrant for
Fan's home and when detectives arrived Brian asked if I was there to arrest him and I told him I wasn't and then he
asked me if I thought he did it were you surprised he asked you that I was noting
it I didn't know how to feel and I didn't answer his question detectives took additional
measurements to analyze the trajectory of the bullet Fan's home electronics were
confiscated and at the same time his desktop computer and laptop at the Westfield police station were seized for
data extraction do you see any signs that Brian fan planned to kill his wife any evidence that points to that
we see a totality of all the evidence here um we're not the fact finders um we're we're detectives so we we collect
all this information and then it's going to be presented someone else is going to
make a determination on that and that's someone would be Hampton County assistant District Attorney Mary
sandstrom new to the homicide division sandrom had arrived in Massachusetts by way of New York is it fair to say you
were a fish out of water a bit it's always um hard not being from the area in which you prosecute uh it's a
very small very intimately connected town so yes you're never at an advantage where you don't know everybody by name
adding to the difficulty Brian fanion is a detective yes and respected very much in in that
Community as spring gave way to Summer Corey ended her relationship with fan and by early 2019 fan retired from the
police force the investigation into Amy's death continued we're still trying to get some
testing done because we want to have as strong a case as possible before we go in before the grand jury and a
complication in the form of a letter was among the Case Files Amy's family members expressed their unfailing
support of Brian fion saying we are certain Amy took her own life the letter was signed by Amy's siblings and and
even her own mother that's got to be tough for you it's an awkward position for a
prosecutor where your victim family isn't supporting you it was an odd spot to be in an odd spot perhaps but not a
deterrent on November 6th 2019 17 months after Amy died detectives arrived at Brian Fan's
door Brian came to the dining room door pretty quickly as I recall it and he said something to the effect of come in
then Mike Blanchett began to describe to Brian Brian we have an arrest warrant for you police say Brian fion told them
that his wife shot herself with his gun while he was at home on a lunch break last
year I remember telling him put your hands behind your back I took out my handcuffs through their investigation
they only solidifi their suspicion that Brian pulled the trigger he was eating assorted nuts was uh popping some in his
mouth and as he put his hands behind his back he let him drop to the floor we transported Brian to the Russell State
Police barracks and he's processed photographed fingerprinted if st's accused of killing
his wife in what was originally report I assessed a feeling of Despair on Brian's
face like I can't believe this is happening Stephanie Barry a crime reporter at the
Republican newspaper recalls the unusual scene that played out 15 miles away in Springfield Massachusetts inside the
Hampton County Superior Court in early November 2019 there's no one who spent any amount
of time in Westfield who didn't know who Brian fion was was it was a pretty full
house and the kind of palpable shock remained throughout the entire proceeding fan who appeared for his
initial arraignment entered a plea of not guilty and sitting right behind him were members of both Brian's and Amy's
family I can't think of another instance when I've seen the family of a victim sticking up for the accused murder of
their loved one and despite the absence of support from members of Amy's family Ada sandstrom continued to build her
case what was Amy fion like she sounds like a fairy tale giving selfless completely
dedicated to her family according to sandstrom the night before Amy died she was making a gift
for an upcoming baby shower that she planned to attend and was texting her daughter Victoria
did anyone ever say that Amy was ever suicidal she wasn't a person who was ready to die Amy was healthy she was
happy what do you think Brian Von's motive was he was ready to start a new chapter of his life that did not include
Amy fan he's chosen his life partner in Corey Amy's the only thing standing in the way now and that's always the
million-dollar question why not divorce he can't divorce Amy for how he's going to be seen in this community divorce is
public but in his mind murder doesn't have to be the trial started today for a former Westfield police officer who's
accused of murdering his wife on February 23rd 2023 in what would be Westfield's most publicized case Brian
Fan's trial began he faced a life sentence for the first-degree murder of his wife 48 Hours made several interview
requests to Brian fion his attorney Jeffrey Brown as well as family members of both Amy and Brian but never received
a response this is a big case a lot of attention how are you feeling for any trial you're always nervous and this was
probably the most high-profile case I've ever done opening statements revealed conflicting accounts of the
circumstances surrounding Amy Fan's death the defendant was a deacon at wyan Union Church and an officer for the
Westfield Police Department the evidence will show that while the defendant was was repulsed by continuing his marriage
with Amy he couldn't divorce her either leaving him trapped and once that evidence is before you I will ask you to
find the defendant guilty of murder in the first degree Von's defense focused on Amy's anger issues and claimed she
suffered from anxiety Brown alleged that on the day of Amy's death an argument over Brian's retirement plans and his
refusal to attend a family member's play pushed pushed her over the edge in the days before Amy shot herself
Amy was very mad at he had to tread lightly around Amy for fear of setting her off and at the conclusion of the
evidence in this case I'll will ask that you find Brian F not guilty thank you Anna Hansen Amy's
younger sister was the first witness for the prosecution she was the only family
member who signed the letter of support that willingly test ified against Brian fion Anna stated that during the
investigation into Amy's death her brother-in-law confided that he was worried about searches he had conducted
on his computer I asked him what that search was and he said how to make a murder
look like a suicide he specifically said he searched quote how to make a murder look like a suicide those were his exact
words Anna told the jury that when she asked her brother-in-law why he made this search fan told her that Amy asked
him to do it after they watched a CSI show it was a show that Anna questioned if Amy had ever
watched did she ever say that she liked those shows she never shared that with me the prosecution's next witness was
Fan's former lover a divorced Cory nolles now Corey Hasty who told the jury that fion was concerned about ending his
marriage ever talk about what could happen to him if he divorce Amy yes if Amy was to ever leave excuse
me he divorced her that she would take him for everything he's got because he would Yol sustain on retirement at that
point the prosecution called Tom forest from the Cyber crimes unit all of Fan's devices were examined but it was Fan's
office computer that produced some Curious results Forest said fan visited common and dangerous poisons which drug
caused es the most deaths each year 16 common household items that could kill you but it's only when this affair
starts up that all of these incriminating searches start to appear carbon monoxide
The Invisible Killer household poisons common prescription overdoses and 11 days prior to Amy's
death fan used his office computer to view a news report on YouTube called what gunshot residue tests tell us
he wasn't assigned to any active investigations in April and May of 2018 that would necessitate looking up
gunshot residue nobody in the Westfield police department does gunshot residue testing
I was trying to keep a very open mind about what the evidence was going to show but I didn't think that was great
news for Brian fion morning your honor detective John Shrine a ballistic expert and a crucial witness for the
prosecution testified that Amy's wound was not self-inflicted citing the absence of gunshot residue near the
wound coupled with the trajectory of the bullet Shrine concluded that Amy fan was
shot from a downward angle and at a distance of at least 18 in not at close range as fion had
claimed you form an opinion as to whether or not the def firearm was discharged at a distance of 18 in or
greater over 18 in without anything Ving that's correct after 12 days of testimony and
27 Witnesses the prosecution rested but waiting in the wings was a defense poised to introduce a significant
element that could potentially unravel the DA's case any prosecutor who's not worried about a defense probably isn't a
good prosecutor what do you think is the most damning piece of evidence chat now with
the 48 Hours team on Facebook and X [Music] defense attorney Jeffrey Brown whose
client faced life in prison launched a Counterattack when he cross-examined Fan's former lover Corey Hasty according
to this state fanon's Affair was the primary motive for murdering his wife but Hasty admitted to the defense
sense that when she ended their relationship fan didn't try to stop her when ultimately you ended it with Brian his
response was okay isn't that right to my recollection he didn't say to you oh my god I killed Amy for you
and you're leaving me he never said that right correct and what about the websites
detective forest from the Cyber crimes unit said fion visited car oxide The Invisible
Killer common and dangerous poisons 16 common household items that could kill you the defense argued that
some of the websites he visited were related to an aging house an old wood burning stove and the potential hazards
it might pose to a young family member did you know that the fions um were beginning to have a young niece a child
stay in their home during that time frame no I did not but what the defense couldn't reconcile were fan searches
about gunshot residue days before Amy's death and there was Amy's sister Anna the only family member who willingly
testified for the prosecution she claimed that Brian told her he searched how to make a murder
look like a suicide on his computer you didn't find any sites that were searched or visited relating to the
terms how to make a murder look like a suicide isn't that true that is true the defense narrowed its focus and
scrutinized Amy's personality by cross-examining Amy's own mother Patricia Taran did your daughter Amy have a
temper yes a temper according to Amy's sister Holly that would typically be directed
toward her husband well did she snap at Brian in front of you she would I was embarrassed for him you
don't usually talk to your husband kind of in that way maybe you reprend a child
but not a husband but would 's temper lead to an impulsive decision such as grabbing
Fan's gun according to Amy's son Travis it would I could easily picture or Envision
her her grabbing the gun impulsively to make a point that she picked it up intending to complete a trigger pull and
and and shoot herself but what would explain the lack of gunshot residue on Amy her wound is
consistent with a close-range gunshot wound based Alexander Jason a senior certified crime scene analyst testified
for the defense that's the foundation of the whole prosecution and this whole idea that it had to be 18 inches because
the absence of gunshot residue is not valid Jason says the lack of gunshot residue was not due to distance it was
due to Amy's Hair what could Amy Fan's hair have told us Amy fion had very dense thick hair
that will block The Gunshot residue Jason's research effect of hair on the deposition of gunshot residue was
published by the FBI's forensic science journal in 2004 Jason says there could have been gunshot residue commonly known
as GSR embedded in Amy's Hair the crime scene analyst did not test her hair what they should have done is taken
the hair and then analyze those little specs to see if their gunshot residue or not which was a
mistake Jason's testimony was limited at trial to support his theory he and his daughter Juliana met us at a gun range
in California to demonstrate what may have happened to Amy fion I'm going to fire two times using a 45 caliber gun
and ammunition identical to what was found at the scene Jason fired a single round into a mound of hair backed by a
ballistic skin simulant so you just shot a 45 caliber gun 3 Ines away through hair yes Amy
fion had considerable hair maybe more dense than this where the bullet entered and the hair will act as a filter and
prevent The Gunshot residue from reaching her skin for comparison Jason positioned the gun at the same distance
using identical ammunition and fired into the skin simulant without hair and I pull this away wow you can
see there's a big difference now look at that that's a very clean wound that's a
very dirty wound that's incredible all from the hair all from the hair the hair acted as a filter pretty fascinating
while G believes this scenario is what happened to Amy fion he stopped short of saying whether or not fion killed his
wife that stuff out but what he does believe is that basing the case on the absence of gunshot residue is
wrong and he should not be convicted on that basis that's my bottom line after 40 Witnesses and 15 days of
testimony closing arguments she raised the gun up to her head in a fit of rage and in effect
caused her own death this defendant murdered Amy Fon with deliberate premeditation on March 21st 2023 the
jury got the case and after two days of deliberations the verdict poor person what say you is
the defendant guilty or not guilty guilty guilty of what guilty of what degree of Ryan fion was found guilty of
the first-degree murder of his wife Amy fion and sentenced to life without parole that same
day Brian's side of the aisle just collapsed in sobs these people loved Brian and
sincerely thought that he was innocent for assistant District Attorney Mary sandstrom Fan's conviction was
bittersweet and hard one it's never a victory Amy fan should be here she should be with her daughter
and son and her now grandchildren and she's not and it was all for nothing so that Brian
F could enjoy his life and end [Music] hers a mother disappears evidence points to homicide and she's nowhere to be
found the suspect is gone too leading US Marshals on a Relentless man hunt he was
using the railways to move around hopping trains the chase is on Justice is coming 48 hours Saturday on CBS
streaming on Paramount [Music] [Applause] [Music] plus hello and welcome to post morning
I'm your host anarie green and today we are discussing the case of Amy fion whose husband Brian of Westfield
massachusett police detective was charged with her murder so joining me to give us an inside look at reporting on
this case our 48 Hours producer Marie hegwood and field producer Morgan KY welcome thank you for joining us hi good
to be here hello so listeners you know what I'm going to say if you have not listened or watched the episode the
detective's wife go do that now you can find the full audio right below this episode in your podcast feed and then
you can join us after you've already listened for a deeper dive for everyone else here we go what is so unusual of
course about this case is that Brian is a detective himself how did his colleagues at the Westfield Police
Department react when they first learned that he was being investigated for Amy's
death because he's not just a detective he has been a detective for many years he comes from a prominent family and
he's really well-liked the colleagues were really shocked the colleagues from the Westfield PD they really supported
Brian they actually loved him they they respected him because he comes from a long line of police officers his father
before him was a detective and so the fions had a legacy there you know law-abiding people who um love the
community supported the community and when they heard about this they all came to his house and full force and Stood
Beside him just trying to comfort him and help him get through it yeah even the police chief um who who is now the
mayor of Westfield Massachusetts he ended up testifying and he called Brian his go guy and from the beginning of the
investigation the ones who responded first to the scene of the crime was Westfield PV but Massachusetts State
Police took over the case to avoid a conflict of interest um we heard in the broadcast though that it was actually
really hard for them to interview Brian because he's a detective I mean he knows
how this is going to go down the detectives we spoke to the ones who interviewed Brian they did a really
excellent job they were on top of their game they knew exactly what they were doing going into it let's listen to a
clip from detective otou this is not a a normal interview for myself and Mike we've done thousands
of interviews you know we're pretty good at it but it's hard when it's a police officer because he knows exactly how we
work it was a difficult interview the state police they all talked about how difficult not just because he was a
detective because they knew him he was The Evidence Officer so he would be on scene for a lot of these cases there
picking up evidence so they knew him he was known and like I said the fangs were
well respected they had been around for years in that community and so I think that was also difficult because you you
know you're basically interviewing one of your own oh that's interesting um in the hour we see Brian's interviewed he's
interviewed twice by police and he kind of changed his story a few times so initially the first interview Brian told
the detectives that he saw Amy standing with the gun in her hand in Brian's second interview he changed it to Amy
was sitting and so that was where the detectives noted that there was a flip-flop between whether Amy was
sitting or standing when Brian you know talked about what he saw that day yeah and I mean if he's the evidence
guy he knows how police would think about the evidence that they found at his own
scene the questions that they would ask the things that they would look for Brian tells detective otoul during his
first interview that he and Corey who's a fellow missionary that he met on a trip in Mexico in 2017 that they were
just friends that's it we later find out right that this is not true I want to listen to this neverbe aired clip of
Brian talking to detective otou did this Cor you want to take it to a different level with you Bri or or we
we talked about that and we we had an understanding that that's as far as it's going to go okay okay so Cory talked
about it with you or we we both T from the beginning we said okay this is what it is and just to make sure we were
both on the same page right exactly you know just friends just friends no not a sexual relation I don't want to
put words in your mouth but friend cuz you know what I'm saying you know I don't want not of friends would benefits
okay all right so in case in case people don't know what friends with benefits is
the benefit is usually sex when people are talking about that um it seems like they had never slept together and maybe
that was what made the the big difference for him from what we've what we've learned from um Brian's police
interviews um police interviews with Cory NES the woman who Brian was seeing they never slept together they never had
sex um we do know that they that they kissed we do know that there was some make out sessions in the back of her
truck um and there were thousands of text messages between Brian and Corey that police would find uh deleted from
Brian's phone so were they texting back and forth like throughout the day how long it had been going on it's very
difficult for me to believe that Amy didn't eventually discover the texting because it was so pleni I mean they were
texting every single 10 15 minutes I don't even know how they had time to work because they were texting so much
you know and you could see the relationship evolve through the text I mean the first it was just a it was a
friendship because Brian told Corey that he had women friends like that was his thing he had several women friends and
they would text so having that friendship the way it started wasn't unusual for Brant but it started to
evolve and even when you look at the text you start seeing moments where they was they were starting to flirt and then
at one point he apologizes you know I shouldn't have said certain things to you you know we just need to take it
down a level because I don't want to it to go any anywhere and but then he just kept on texting and she also wanted to
get out of a marriage she was in a marriage so that was kind of the foundation of their text can you help me
I'm dealing with a difficult marriage I'm thinking I should leave what do you think so they were that's how it really
got going in the text message that you guys saw does he talk about his wife I mean he does say some things
about Amy you know um but more of it is you know more flation was it was sexting
were they sexting no okay okay there were just a lot of flirty text there were things there were inuendos but no
no photos or anything explicit um there were some text messages where Brian he'll refer to Amy he'll say something
like um he'll put a sad face and say Amy's being so clingy right now so there are moments when you know it's clear
that he doesn't want to be where he is and I think the also in context was that you know he's trying to sneak and do
things like he wants to go meet her and here's Amy you know won't let him go but
he was really struggling with this because he was on the computer looking up things like is it a sin or his
adultery a sin like he was really struggling with what he was doing with Corey by April of 2018 he started
Googling can you have an affair without sex um he was Googling things about infidelity um he visited
websites like my perfect Affair how I'm getting away with it um emotional infidelity worse than a sexual Affair so
it seems like he was really having this like soul-searching moment of trying to figure out if what he was doing was okay
because this is a man who is a deacon at his church so I think he just was really
struggling just remember that you know Brian and Amy got married basically out of high school they were each other's
first and they come from a religious background where they don't believe in divorce and also adultery so he was
really struggling you know in terms of what he was doing um and so here we have another case right where the big
question is was the victim's death of suicide or was it a homicide I feel like there's been several like that this
season uh the prosecution alleges that that Brian killed Amy but the defense argues that she shot herself in the
midst of an argument one of the biggest questions that we heard from our audience was about The Gunshot residue
and I was wondering that myself do they test Brian Fan's hands for residue so I know 48 Hours viewers always want to
know about the evidence and um in this case the detectives who responded to the scene they did actually have Brian and
Amy's hands uh tested for gunshot residue and both of their hands tested positive her gunshot residue so it was
sort of inconclusive you know it didn't tell them any information about say who was holding the gun but part of the
reason that that might have happened Brian says that he was holding Amy's hand after she was shot and fell to the
ground so there could have been a transfer of gunshot residue we don't know there's another aspect to it which
is not in the show is that he actually did wash his hand so they fingerprinted Amy's thighs or legs you could see where
his hand print was and even her brother who came into the house he testified saying that yes Brian was holding her
hands had his hands on her thighs but once he did that he had blood on his hands that's what that's what was said
we didn't have pictures of that but we do know right before the detectives arrived that he did wash his
hands it seems like with every one of these hours when I say but didn't they test the hands the answer is there's
gunshot residue everywhere and so it's really difficult to determine um you know who was holding
the gun at the time yeah and I think the thing you know the biggest thing was that was there fingerprints on the
trigger because that was a question that you know who pulled the trigger right so
they did test the gun for prints that was another test that was kind of inconclusive because there there there
weren't sufficient prints on the gun to make an identification it's something called friction Ridge detail that they
found on the gun um it's just it's not quite enough to get a fingerprint off of and so they couldn't identify if
anyone's fingerprints were on it but they also tested the gun for DNA and on the gun they found positive profiles for
both Amy and Brian of course it's a gun that's in their house it would even if you know it would stand a reason that
his DNA would be all over it so of course yeah and also Amy's brother Eric as Marie said came into the house he saw
Brian distraught he saw the gun next to him he decided to pick the gun up and move it outside so that Brian might not
hurt himself with the gun and when testing was done on the gun they found an additional minor profile we don't
know whether or not that was Eric Hansen Amy's brother or not but he did pick up
the gun Brian's DNA was found on it Amy's DNA was found on it Eric's also could have possibly been on it but they
couldn't positively identify his DNA right and one thing I just want to say bring up to that you know this not in
the show but that in testimony they talked about the trigger on his gun the weight of the trigger how difficult is
it to pull and for a police officer's gun evidently this was a lighter weight so it was easier to pull the trigger oh
so you know that kind of lends itself a little bit to did she pick the gun up and actually pull that trigger not
realizing how easy it would be to go back we don't know but that was part of the the testimony about the weight of
the trigger wow okay so police actually don't arrest Brian until 17 months after
his first police interview when they finally feel they have enough evidence against him and and one of the biggest
pieces of evidence against Brian was the CSI report and autopsy results that concluded The Gunshot entrance wound was
not consistent with a self-inflicted wound a and there's also no gunshot residue or GSR found on Amy's
head there's also the prosecution talked about stippling and tattooing so when the the gun is fired this particular
residue just sometimes makes a tattoo or a marking around the wound and that wasn't present the defense said that her
hair might have been in the way of that the defense their expert um Alexander Jason he testified that the hair was the
reason there was no gunshot residue on her head so he he says that it you know the reason for the lack of gunshot
residue wasn't distance at which the gun was fired it might have just been because Amy's Hair was was in the way
and it caught all of it but would they did they even test that so that's a really excellent question and that's
something that came up a lot in the trial um no one on the prosecution side did any testing of the hair for gunshot
residue um on the scene there was some looking at the hair looking at the wound at the autopsy um the medical examiner
Dr Robert Welton he um Ed some of Amy's Hair looked at it and sent it away to the crime lab the biggest thing here was
that gunshot residue is light so she was on the ground and by the time they picked her up that gunshot residue could
have fell out of her hair we don't know so the time to test and look in the hair
would be when she was there at the scene that's when her hair should have been collected and bagged um we do have
photographs of some type of residue in her hair we just don't know what it is and just like the expert Alexander Jason
said that we should have tested it on the scene so that was the biggest era in terms of CSI work is not testing Amy's
Hair bagging it right there on the scene welcome back we're going to dig into the trial now and at trial the
prosecution raised a lot of damaging evidence against Brian so I want to ask you guys what stood out the most to you
I think the um the web searches yeah so uh just about 10 days before Amy was shot dead Brian was
making multiple searches for GSR testing um which was pretty strange because at the Westfield Police Department that's
not something that they do so there's not necessarily any reason that he would have been doing these searches or any
justification um he visited a couple of different websites related to GSR testing he watched a couple of YouTube
videos related to GSR testing and what that can tell us so that raised questions for the
prosecution um about why he could have possibly been conducting those searches but the the thing is in terms of what
we've received in terms of evidence we only can see searches on his work computer not at the home computer now
granted it was 10 days before Amy died approximately 10 to 11 days before she died so could he just could be a guy
that just has the worst look you know that he's searching this stuff and all of a sudden now this happens but I
thought that was very damning the day before Amy died he's um searching several times for how to delete
frequently contacted off of his phone and you know of course because he seeing this woman that's extra suspicious and
then the morning that Amy dies he was searching on his work computer about essentially the massachusett state
police units that would be responding to the scene of a Murder that's a very specific search and investigating the
forensics so it's it's it's just odd and there doesn't seem to be any reason connected with his professional life
that he would have been searching that so the prosecutor at trial argued that he was he was researching exactly who he
would be dealing with after he killed his wife so of course we can't talk about this case without talking about
Amy's family when I was watching the broadcast I I was really shocked to hear that they had signed a letter of support
for Brian and they said that they were certain they were certain that Amy took her own life they all stood by Brian at
trial with the exception of course of Amy's sister Anna what was it like listening to their testimony you know it
was really interesting and Anna um Amy's sister initially signed that letter but
by the time the trial came around you know it was 5 years after um Amy's death Anna testified for the prosecution and
she was the only family member who willingly testified for the prosecution nobody else wanted to talk with them um
so it was really interesting to see the things the family had to say on the stand about Amy her own mother testified
um one of her other sisters testified and uh they talked about Amy's character and it wasn't especially flattering to
Amy's character when I looked at the letter I was like oh it must be both families you know just assuming because
it's was a long list of people but it was really her family saying that she had they believed that Brian was
innocent and that that Amy had taken her own life and I think that was really kind of a shock and then even in court
there was the visual element to it because on Brian's side is where everyone sat packed when they testified
Amy's family talked about the Amy look they use that terminology it's the Amy look and the Amy look was basically when
you knew that she wasn't she was dis pleased with something they all got up there and did that and it was kind of
like in unison talking about Amy look there was one thing that the mother just went into great pains didn't make the
show cu the time was that she said that Brian cooked and clean when he came home
from work if I almost felt like the mother was pained when she talked about how Brian was treated by her daughter I
think that was the part that kind of hit me a little bit because it's like you know the victim's own mother you know is
really saying that her daughter was not the best person in terms of how she treated her husband so it's one for them
to say listen we know Amy and she's got a temper on her but then they find out that there's this affair you know maybe
Brian and Corey never slept together but it's clearly a very strong emotional affair that doesn't sway their opinion
of him at all no and in fact after Amy died he went to each family member and had a talk and said listen I'm in love
with this woman and he had a Frank talk with him he it seemed like he went to each family member but particularly Anna
um he talked to her and told her he was in love with Corey and and I think it came across like Brian was planning the
next chapter of his life you know definitely like the prosecutor said with this woman with Corey and he wanted them
to be okay with it in fact you know when Amy had her wake at the Wake was at the
father's house you know they were down in the basement wait who was down in the basement Brian and Cory no he testified
that um she and Brian during Amy's wake at Brian's father's house they were kissing
in the basement wow so despite all the support that he's getting from Amy's family though the jury does convict
Brian of first-degree murder and they sentenced him to life without parole was it surprising to you that the
jury came back with a guilty verdict after hearing all of the testimony in support of Brian from Amy's own family I
thought it was somewhat surprising um part part of the reason for that is there's evidence there but I don't know
for me personally if that evidence completely proves that he's the one who pulled the trigger so that's a
question that came up for me but the jury you know the the jury came to their own conclusion how did the community
react to Brian's sentence so you hear in the show immediately after Brian is sentenced the courtroom erupts with sobs
and gasps um and the people sitting behind Brian it's both his family and Amy's family and they just break down
like they are just blown away by the fact that he was found guilty and that he was sentenced for this crime I talked
to a friend of both Amy and Brian she didn't want to be interviewed on the show um but she told me that so much of
the community still stands behind Brian they love him um and she's part of a church that Amy and Brian were a part of
and that Church stays in contact with the prison where where Brian is housed and they believe in Rehabilitation they
visit with Brian they talk with Brian and they also correspond with other inmates at the prison um and they're in
favor of everybody's Rehabilitation wow I think the thing with Brian and Amy the
family there is that they're very much a religious community you know God is the
center of their life I think in back of my mind I said I really hope that whatever Brian is saying or having them
to believe I hope it is the truth because they definitely do love him and support him MH well we learn at the end
of the hour um that his conviction is under appeal um what what do his prospects
look like though in terms of getting this conviction overturned or getting another trial so that remains to be seen
you know um the you know the the case is under it's under appeal um his appellate
attorney Rosemary's capito um she's a pretty big deal there's a trial on Netflix it's called trial 4 it's about a
wrongful conviction case she spent 10 years uncovering corruption in the Boston police department so I feel like
if there's somebody to help Brian out with this it's her yes definitely her I spoke to her a
few times over the phone she did not make an appearance on our show because Brian they talked and they decided that
she would not but she's a powerful she's a heavy hitter and I think that you know with
her on this case he's got a chance to have his conviction overturned it'll be interesting to watch his things move
forward um Marie Morgan it's great talking to you about this case um you g you gave us so many tidbits that just
filled out the characters you really helped to bring color to this story I really appreciate it thank you so much
for joining us today thank you thanks for having us all right everyone listen you know
what I'm going to say join us next Tuesday for another postmortem and watch 48 hours on Saturdays 109 Central on CBS
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48 Hours Plus subscription on Apple podcasts

A detective becomes a suspect in the shooting death of his wife.

Watch "The Detective's Wife" and then catch up with "48 Hours" producers Marie Hegwood and Morgan Canty on "Post Mortem" as they share exclusive interview audio and tackle your most pressing questions about the case of Amy Fanion, whose husband Brian, a local police detective, was charged with her murder. The team discusses his suspicious internet searches about gunshot residue and addresses the surprising letter of support for Brian signed by the victim's family.

00:00 The Puzzling Death of Susann Sills 42:01 Listen to a post-mortem on the episode

Listen to "Post Mortem" wherever you get your podcasts: https://apple.co/3VyY2JD

Crime. Social justice. Impact. "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

Brian Fion was convicted of murdering his wife Amy, despite claims of suicide and family support for him.

Key points

Brian's Emotional State. Brian was in shock after discovering Amy's body, raising questions about the incident.
Amy's Tragic Death. Amy Fan was found dead from a gunshot wound, leading to a complex investigation.
Text Messages Reveal Affair. Detectives find incriminating texts between Brian and another woman, raising suspicions.
The Investigation Deepens. Detectives uncover evidence suggesting Amy's death may not have been a suicide.
Brian's Arrest. After months of investigation, Brian is arrested for the suspected murder of his wife.
Damning Evidence from the Computer. Evidence reveals Brian searched how to make a murder look like a suicide.

Episode highlights

Episode quotes

I offered her my condolences.

3:07WatchJan 3, 2025

Tension

85/ 100High tension

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