ABC show chronicles murder case
The ABC news magazine “20/20” will air an hourlong report tonight on the murder trial of Justine Winter for the 2009 car crash that killed Erin Thompson and her son, Caden Odell, north of Kalispell.
Camera crews from “20/20” attended Winter’s trial earlier this year and did additional interviews. A story on the ABC News website based on the TV report is entitled, “Did Montana Teen Purposely Crash Car, Kill Mother and Son?”
Thompson, 35, and Odell were driving north on U.S. 93 on March 19, 2009, returning home to Columbia Falls after Odell had played drums in a performance at Kalispell Middle School, where he was a seventh-grader.
They were killed when their car was struck by a vehicle driven by Winter, at the time a Glacier High School sophomore.
Winter later was convicted of two counts of deliberate homicide and now is serving a 15-year sentence with the Montana Department of Corrections.
Prosecutors said Winter had sent text messages to her ex-boyfriend threatening to kill herself after a fight earlier in the evening.
The deaths of Thompson and Odell led to a tremendous outpouring of grief in the community. The opening clip of the hourlong ABC show, which is posted online, weaves together the lives of Winter, Thompson and Odell in a compelling manner to show the circumstances that created tragedy for all involved.
A number of other videos also are posted on the ABC News website, including a touching video of a song that Thompson’s brother-in-law Dave Young wrote for Caden, Erin and her unborn child. He, Erin’s sister and her widower, Jason Thompson, sing part of the song together.
Jason Thompson also is seen addressing Winter directly in court, asking her to take responsibility for her actions and talking about his loss and grief.
In addition, Winter responds before her sentencing and is seen trying to grapple with the results of her actions while still seeming to be unable to accept her part in the deaths that she caused.
The program will air at 9 p.m. today in Kalispell on KTMF (channel 11 on local cable). The preview clips are available now at http://abcnews.go.com/2020.