Episode 531: Tom Bird and Lorna Anderson Eldridge｜Morbid

Hey weirdos, it's Ash here, ready to share a little secret.

Have you heard of Wondery Plus?

With ad -free episodes and one week early access, it's like having an all -access pass to our lighthearted nightmare.

So come join us on the dark side and try Wondery Plus today.

You can join Wondery Plus in the Wondery app or in Apple Podcasts or Spotify.

You're listening to a Morbid Network Podcast. Listening on Audible helps your imagination soar.

Whether you listen to stories, motivation, innovation, expert advice, any genre you love.

You can be inspired to imagine new worlds, new possibilities, and new ways of thinking.

Listening can lead to positive changes in your mood, your habits, and, ultimately, your overall well -being.

Audible has an incredible selection of over 1 million audiobooks, podcasts, and Audible Originals all in one easy app.

Find the genres you love and discover new ones.

Explore bestsellers, new releases, plus thousands of included audiobooks, podcasts, and Originals that members can listen to all they they want with more added all the time right now i am listening to the southern book club's guide to slaying vampires by grady hendrix and i just cannot get enough of it i never want to pause it i'm literally like loading the dishwasher listening to it on the treadmill listening to it constantly it's so awesome i love being able to listen anytime anywhere i want to and there's more to imagine when you listen sign up for a free 30 -day audible trial and your first

audiobook book is free.

Visit audible .com slash morbid.

You guys, I tried my mochi ice cream the other day, and I was lifted off of this planet into just another galaxy entirely.

It is a cool, creamy scoop of ice cream wrapped in a soft, chewy dough.

It's literally like a little sweet ice cream dumpling.

It's pillowy soft, D to the E to the L -I -C -I -O -U -S, and it just feels very very indulgent.

I loved it. I tried the cookies and cream flavor, and I still have the mango flavor to try.

I'm so excited to try the mango, because if it's half as good as the cookies and cream, I'll probably just like fall on the floor and start crying.

Tears of joy. My Mochi is only around 70 calories per piece.

My Mochi is gluten -free, and each box has six perfectly portioned Mochi snacks.

And guess what? My Mochi is the original Mochi ice cream.

The founder of MyMochi invented mochi ice cream.

That makes MyMochi the mochi OG.

Feel joyfully chill this summer with every bite of MyMochi ice cream.

Look for the purple box of MyMochi ice cream at Walmart or visit MyMochi .com to find a store near you.

Hey, weirdos. I'm Elena.

I'm Ash. And this is Morbid.

oh my god it's morbid again oh my god how have you guys been how have you been good tell us right now bad painous I hope not everybody's like it's been a long year and it's like that meme that's like we're three days in we're three days in but you know it's all right it hasn't been that long of a year okay yeah you know there were there were beautiful little whimsical flurries in the air this morning.

Really? For a little bit.

And I said, oh, and then they went away.

I didn't see those.

Um, there's going to be big old flurries this weekend.

And I'm actually pretty excited.

It didn't snow at all last year.

Yeah. It didn't snow literally at all.

And the girls love snow and I can't wait to see Sydney and Blanche in snow.

Oh, that's going to be cute.

Because they're going to lose their damn minds.

See the thing that I like about the snow is staying out of it but watching it I like being in my house like cozy as hell make it cozy as hell as hell I like to make some pancakes from scratch if it's a snowstorm and then maybe have like a little a little pancake party a little pancake party I like that watch a documentary or like a movie just like cozy see with kids of a certain age oh yeah that's you just know that your snow day is going to be spent putting on and off wet snowsuits all day yeah and having red cheeks red cheeks but also having so much fun because sledding with them is hilarious

oh i love sledding with them and also with dogs now it's gonna be cleaning up all the dog like shenanigans when they run in from the snow so it'll be pretty relaxing weekend yeah i have I have like a couple more years before I have to do that.

And even after that, a couple more years because newborns don't go in the snow.

Yeah, no, I'm not going to take my newborn in the snow.

That's a bad idea. I think they advise against that.

You're good for a little while.

Yeah, that's kind of nice.

I have like six years at least. Well, no, probably like, I don't know, maybe like four or five.

Yeah. I don't know.

Once they hit two, you're doomed.

So I got like five years.

Yeah. Hopefully anyways.

Well, that's my timeline.

mine how's yours you're like well babies babies that's my sole focus but anyways um my sole focus for this hour is really really tragic true crime case oh what a lovely truth sole focus yeah that's my job right now that's my job that's my job that's your job yeah that's our job so yeah um I have a story about, like, a love rectangle.

A love rectangle? Correct.

Or square, if you will.

Okay. But two of the parts of the rectangle square did not know what was going on, and it's a cheating scandal.

Oh, no. It's awful.

And it's terrible. God.

It's got, like, preachers in there being bad.

Oh, my. It's wild. Okay.

okay. You, the, the affairs that your cases have been shedding light on.

I am in a place of affair with my cases.

Well, thank you for ending with your cases.

Of course. I quite literally just got married and I would quite literally never have an affair.

And, uh, drew quite literally would never because, oh my God, stress.

But, uh, but my cases, they're all up in there.

Well, because I like a little bit of Escandalo, and then also I think it's the High Societies that I usually do.

Oh, yeah, and they're all cheating on each other.

That always has an affair.

This is not High Society.

This is Kansas. Just affair.

It's just a Kansas affair.

And you love Kansas, too.

I love the— Yeah! Oh, shit, Kansas was in my last story.

The vibes of your cases are right.

And then you were in Kansas earlier this week.

I was in Kansas. Yeah.

Hey, Kansas. Auntie Em.

Auntie Em. All right, so let's start.

I'd say we're not in Kansas anymore But we are But we are I was like, you can't say that Because here we are in Kansas I sounded really Kansas Like I said, in Kansas You definitely did That's what you said We're in Kansas We're in Kansas Here we are in Kansas Reporting from Wait, stop Okay, we'll get into it eventually But sometimes on TikTok I get like news gone wrong clips do you ever get those and it's like the girl and she looks at the camera and she goes i so pale and the lady's like we're we're live and she's like reporting live from that just made you think reporting live from ken's ass

from ken's ass oh god i almost got the hiccups you know when you're about to get one yeah i'm not a fish and i don't have gills i'm glad we could be with you through that so we can hold your hand through that don't try any time So let's start.

When Tom and Sandy Bird packed up their three children and left West Memphis, Arkansas for Kansas in 1982, everybody assumed that they were off to bigger and better opportunities.

Tom had graduated with a master's degree in sacred theology in 1976, which, like, that— I feel like that would be, like, kind of a fun degree to get.

Is he the preacher?

Correct. Yeah. What gave it away?

way. So you know what?

Sacred theology to me just felt like it might be something a preacher would take.

But doesn't that? I think I would take that.

It sounds very important.

It sounds whimsical as fuck.

Sacred theology. Yeah.

I'm not saying it sounds easy.

Like I don't want anybody to get that impression.

It just sounds very interesting.

Yeah. I feel as though I would be interested in that.

But anyways, he had graduated with that master's degree in sacred theology.

theology. Sounds like Hollywood.

Sacred theology. Just like you have to say it.

Yeah. But then ever since that, he had been working as an associate pastor in Little Rock, like, you know, pastoring.

Yeah. His big hope, though, was to one day lead his own congregation.

And the opportunity finally came in 1982, when the Lutheran Church, Missouri Synod, assigned Tom the task of establishing a a new congregation in Emporia, Kansas.

So while he worked to build up the new Faith Lutheran Church, Sandra split her time between, listen to everything she was doing.

I'm listening. Raising their three children, ages two, three, and five, which I just do that alone and you're a hero in my eyes.

She was also teaching part -time at Emporia State University and, at the same time, pursuing a graduate degree in computer mathematics.

Sandra! Like, I'm sorry, what?

What? Bob's bitch alert.

Did you just say superwoman?

I did. Did you just say Wonder Woman?

Synonymous. Yeah. Doing it all.

Because that's what I heard. Sandra?

Sandra? Superwoman?

Yeah. Wonder Woman.

Doing it all. And the thing was, both of them at this time were both thriving in their new roles.

And by the end of the year, the Faith Lutheran Church had become an established part of the community, with the Church Elders praising Tom as one of the best spiritual leaders they ever had.

Wow. Quote, unquote.

The Church Elders always sounds like it's from Middle Earth.

Doesn't it? it really does like I know that's a real thing and I know like there's like town elders and shit there's town elders I think so in some towns that's cool I feel they had them in Gilmore Girls so maybe I'm just making that up I think those are just townies no they call them the town elders they had to speak to for Luke to buy a certain house you know you guys don't care oh yeah you're right but they had to talk to the town elders about it in a sauna yeah so that's where I would be if I was a town elder I feel like church elders elders and tom it was a tom elders uh any kind of elders

i feel like is very middle earth yeah i agree you know just like the elderly just yeah just the elderly is if you listen to buffy and mikey just said he's the pod lab elder you are you're from middle earth it's true what earth am i from then i'm the pod lab child i thought you were just gonna say you're the pod lab i'm just the pod lab no. But anyways these elders of the church they said that he was the fucking tits.

Except they didn't say it like that.

I was wondering. From the outside Tom and Sandy's marriage of course looked strong.

That doesn't bode well for reality.

No. It was the type of relationship that their friends and family admired and actually aspired to.

But like I'm always saying, behind closed doors things between the couple were not how they appeared to be to everybody on the outside.

Tom's work at the church was keeping him busier than he'd ever been before and obviously sandy's responsibilities at work school and home left her really little time to pay attention to tom and privately he complained to his friends about sandy's job and the fact that she never had any time for him and she likewise confided to friends that she was worried that he didn't love her anymore oh geez so it's like they were both just really steering away from each other at this point growing apart part.

Yeah, definitely. Outside of the church, Tom's greatest passion was for sports and he wasted no time getting involved in local athletics, which totally cool to have a hobby, but if you feel like your wife has no time for you and you're trying to make time for each other, why go out and grab a hobby that's like away from each other?

Yeah, because he joined the Optimist Club basketball team and then he became the first baseman for the church softball team.

So it's even get one hobby you got two but anyways it was through sports that he met martin anderson and his wife lorna martin and lorna anderson had also had moved to emporia from uh hutchinson kansas in the mid -1970s and just like tom and sandy they also had several young children between two and eight years old martin anderson managed the laboratory at newman hospital and he also had a love of sports so that's how him and tom kind of got along and struck up a casual friendship yeah they didn't know it when they first met but the couple's had a lot more in common than just sports like tom and sandy

by 1982 the cracks in martin and lorna's marriage had started to show unfortunately but neither of them really seemed like they wanted to address the problem or they could address the problem in 1982 lorna alarmed a friend when she casually asked whether or not he knew someone who would um kill her husband I'm sorry that escalated so fucking quickly sure did it went from like they're pretty instagram curated on the outside and like some shits you know kind of unravel a little bit on the inside to like she was actively trying to get a hit on her husband I think that's how the friends that she asked

felt like whoa this this really escalated I know you guys were like growing apart or whatever but I always wonder what kind of friend do you think What kind of friendship do you have where you feel comfortable asking that person if they, first of all, confiding that you would like your husband murdered?

And then two, thinking your friend knows somebody that could get your husband murdered.

It's like there's many dynamics involved in that friendship that I myself am just not privy to in my friendships.

I would call that a point in your columns.

but yeah like I have one I love my friends yeah but um one I don't want to kill my husband that's good good news I don't think any of them know someone who would if I wanted to well don't ask because you'll end up in a story later it's just always kind of wild to me I'm like wow yeah it's like when two serial killers find each other I'm like how'd that conversation start it's true like did one of you be like hey do you you know what I do sometimes and it's like the other one's like same crazies where does that happen that's it Lorna just feels like, I'm like, that was bold.

It was bold. It was bold and reckless.

Yeah, because her friend was like, I don't actually know anybody that would kill anybody, specifically not your husband.

Also, what? She's like, weird, weird conversation we just had.

Like, this was kind of alarming.

But Lorna was like, oh, my God, I'm just kidding.

JK. Just joking, girly.

I'm so jokey. But that incident obviously hinted at the problems that would later escalate way beyond measure.

Morbin is sponsored by Squarespace.

Squarespace is the all -in -one website platform for entrepreneurs to stand out and succeed online.

With Squarespace's collection of cutting -edge design tools, anyone can build a bespoke online presence that perfectly fits their brand or their business.

Start with Blueprint AI, Squarespace's AI -enhanced website builder, or get a fully customizable website in just a few steps using basic information about your industry, your goals, and personality to generate premium quality content and personalized design recommendations.

Squarespace gives you everything you need to offer services and get paid all in one place.

From consultations, events, and experiences, showcase your offerings with a customizable website designed to attract clients and grow your business.

Get paid on time with professional on -brand invoices and online payments.

Plus, streamline your workflow with built -in appointment scheduling and email marketing tools.

Head to squarespace .com slash morbid for a free trial.

And when you're ready to launch, use offer code morbid to save 10 % off your first purchase of a website or domain.

You know what time it is?

It's time for a fresh approach to dog food, and that's where the Farmer's Dog comes in.

Developed by board -certified nutritionists, which is pretty impressive.

The Farmer's Dog is human -grade dog food that's made with real meat and veggies and gently cooked to preserve those nutrients.

Traditional pet food is highly processed and difficult to portion correctly, but the Farmer's Dog, it's changed that with their freshly made food.

They take the guesswork out of serving sizes by precisely portioning your dog's food based on their very unique nutritional needs.

Sydney and Blanche are are eating The Farmer's Dog right now, and we absolutely love it.

What's really fun is each packet has their name on it.

So it says Blanche's Food, Sydney's Food, which is just fun.

They love it. They can't read, but I kind of pretend that they do.

Maybe they can. Maybe they can.

Who am I to say? Get 50 % off your first box of fresh, healthy food at thefarmersdog .com slash morbid.

Plus, you get free shipping.

Just go to thefarmersdog .com slash morbid to get 50 % percent off.

That's thefarmersdog .com slash morbid.

That same year, Lorna had her attorney actually prepare divorce papers, which, you know, maybe you should have gone there first. A little backwards.

But later, she claimed that Martin talked her out of the divorce.

So, messy, messy, messy everywhere.

So, the man you were fully willing to have killed talked you out of divorcing him?

I feel like you You should be like, no, this is better for both of us.

Yeah. Very much for you.

You would think. Yeah.

Well, in early 1983, Lorna appeared to be the quintessential Midwestern housewife.

She was delicate, vulnerable.

She doted on her husband and children.

She was always, quote, quick to smile and quick to cry.

That's how people described her.

But under the surface, however, she was deeply unhappy in her marriage, as we know.

And also, as we know, desperately looking for a way out.

Oh, this is upsetting.

setting privately she told friends that martin was abusive toward her and sometimes toward the children oh no i don't know how true that is okay personally uh it was that desperation though that eventually led her to accept a part -time job as tom bird secretary at faith lutheran just a few weeks after their first meeting it sounded at first like maybe she was kind of trying to like beef up some personal funds and try to become more independent to prepare to get out of her marriage that's the the vibe I got at first but then I read more about it and I was like I don't think that you had pure intentions

with this yeah and unfortunately she wasn't solely focused on her job when she got it later she said I had a real problem not feeling good about myself Tom was very supportive very encouraging I bet I'm sure he was like that though so the new job got Lorna out of the house and offered new opportunities for socialization so socialization goodbye goodbye but what she really liked most was talking to tom at first the relationship was casual it was friendly but within a month or two friends and church members were noticing some things and specifically they were noticing kind of an intimacy between tom

and lorna that was you know usually absent in friendly relationships friendly platonic relationships people who are married to other people yeah yeah tom insisted though that their closeness was quote unquote quote, due to the counseling he was giving his secretary and nothing more.

Uh oh. It's like, remember that other case that I did, the Don Hackney murder, and that all had to do with counseling?

Yep. Not good. That's always the excuse.

Now, in no time at all, Tom became Lorna's primary confidant.

He was a shoulder to cry on every time things weren't going well at home.

And within a few months of starting the job, the relationship became sexual.

Oh. Looking back, she said, he told me that I was not what he needed in a wife, but that he could make me into what he needed.

Sweet. Um, what? And you wanted to continue that?

What? I feel like that should have been his, like, how he breaks up with you.

The first part of this.

That doesn't sound like a compliment.

And I can make you into what I need?

I don't like that at all.

The fuck? And he's like, you're not what I need for like a life partner, but like I could, I can like mold you into what I need right now.

It's like, what about that sounds appealing.

Couldn't tell you. Oh boy.

Yeah, sad. But as Tom and Lorna's relationship grew, so did the suspicion and the rumors about them spreading around the church. According to journalist Scott Craft, witnesses described an electricity between the two and said they had pet names for each other.

Oh, ew. Guys, you should try to hide this a little better.

Like you're having an actual affair.

Don't do this. But to try to avoid being found out, they started meeting in nearby towns or renting motel rooms in the country where they knew that they could be together away from the prying eyes of small -town Emporia.

Despite their efforts at secrecy, though, Lorna couldn't help but tell someone about her relationship with Tom.

This is where it begins.

Uh -huh. One night in January, before her affair with Tom had actually begun, though, she went out out for drinks with one of her friends and actually her supervisor jan mead when the conversation turned to guys relationships all that lorna stunned jan when she told her about her crumbling marriage and admitted that she had cheated on her husband more than once in the past and again that was before she had even started sleeping with tom oh damn yeah with that second confession it was most likely less of a surprise when just a few months later lorna told jan that she had taken the job at the church

to be close to Tom.

Oh, so she had, like, intentions going into this.

It wasn't like, I just want to...

According to what she told Jan, that's what it sounds like.

Allegedly. Yeah. Now, she told Jan, Tom and I are seeing each other, and this is one chance that we have to be alone, and I enjoy working there.

Just a few months later, she would tell Jan, I know this sounds really awful, but I just wish something would happen to Marty and Tom's wife so we could be together for the rest of our lives.

There's, like, such, What is the word?

Divorce. I think it's divorce is what could happen for both of you.

Yeah. And then you could be together.

Just know that you want that.

Be final in your terms. You're not going to be able to talk me out of this.

I want a divorce. Hell, even say I'm cheating on you.

I want a divorce. Yeah.

And it's like that's the thing and it's like we don't know because Lorna was claiming later that Martin was abusive.

We don't know what the situation was.

So there's also that that to take into consideration because like I immediately I'm like just get a divorce.

Like Tom get a divorce from your wife.

Like just divorce your partners and be together if that's what you really want.

Like you don't need to have an affair.

Right. There's an out here.

But then I'm like if you put in there if that is true which we don't know.

No. If that is true that he's abusive towards her and the children then maybe that is the most dangerous time for somebody in an abusive of relationship is trying to get out of it and that's so there is that to at least hang on to there when we're like guys what the fuck right still not saying it's awesome to like have an affair because it's with somebody else's husband too and it's like also kind of your friend yeah well a little bit i guess sort of like not really not really but like you knew that he has a wife you know and you knew of her yeah like you know of her yeah so that's not cool but like

i guess me quickly saying like get a divorce is like me saying it without having knowledge of being in an abusive relationship that...

Allegedly. You know, an allegedly abusive relationship.

Exactly. It's important to at least consider in that situation.

It is a consideration.

Very good point. But Lorna wasn't the only one trying to escape a crumbling marriage, as we know.

Tom and Sandy's relationship was also falling apart, which was pushing Tom closer to Lorna.

Like the other members of the church, Sandy just recognized it for what it was, and Tom wouldn't outright admit to the affair, but he didn't exactly shy away from his unhappiness and the marriage and constantly complained like we know that sandy's work and education left her little time for him and it's definitely not his um sports hobbies and having a full -blown affair no it's definitely sandy's work and education and taking care of the children that's the other thing i love that like you're complaining about like she's taking care of the kids too much yeah taking care of those kids she's working

bettering herself what about me educating herself here i am playing playing baseball.

Right. A little bit of basketball.

Yeah. A little bit of a fair.

And pursuing my own dreams. And she's the problem.

And that's the other thing.

It's like, okay, she's pursuing her dreams. Yeah.

You're acting like you don't have any dreams to pursue.

You're pursuing your dream right now.

You wanted to lead your own personal congregation and here you are doing it.

That's the thing. She do the thing that makes her happy.

If you had a strong relationship, then this would not be a problem.

And you guys could understand that it might be a little tough for a little while and you might not see each other as much, but you're working Working towards goals, and once you get there, things will be different.

Yeah, exactly. It'll get older, things get a little easier, you see more of each other.

But this obviously was not a relationship that could stand that test. No. And I think the thing was, Tom had always envisioned a marriage where his wife would be content just being a pastor's wife.

Yeah, that seemed like it to me.

That's not Sandy. Very much not.

And I have to imagine that part of him knew that, getting into the marriage.

He had to have known that.

that you must have known that she had all these aspirations or maybe I'm just assuming and it won't I mean she's already doing this stuff like you know she's a very motivated highly like you know dedicated and just like uh like driven exactly like driven human being and it's like so why is this a shock to you that she's still that way right and just also putting into your kids and stuff too and I feel like that's what happens a lot in marriages that like that like like, we cover when we hear this, it's like, well, I always wanted this.

And it's like, but that's not what you sought out.

And it's like, and you should be upfront about that.

Yeah, exactly. Like, let someone know.

But I wonder if it was when he started having an affair with Lorna that he realized what he wanted.

I wonder if that's really what it was.

And what he wanted, he often complained to Lorna, was someone who, quote, considered being a pastor's wife a full -time job.

Good luck. Interesting.

So the more time he spent away from home the more sandy began to worry about the marriage eventually the worry started actually affecting her health and well -being she was losing weight she was having trouble sleeping and like i said this was when on more than one occasion she was telling friends i'm afraid he doesn't love me anymore oh which is like heartbreaking truly gut -wrenching later sandy's friend angie doosing would say that sandy quote was hurting a lot over her husband's relationship with his secretary according to angie whenever the subject of marriage came up quote sandy's voice would break

and her eyes would fill with tears oh i just want her to get out of there yeah because i'm like it's perfectly acceptable if some somebody wants to consider being a pastor's wife a full -time job if that's what fulfills you then like more power to you if that's what you want it's not you then like somebody else bye yeah but by summertime sandy's attitude towards her husband's not so subtle infidelity had changed her mother jane explained to reporters that Sandy felt like her life was good in the eyes of God and that it was up to Tom to make sure that his was and in early June she ended up getting

a promotion at Emporia State University so that meant she was going to begin teaching additional classes in the fall which to her was a welcome distraction from the increasingly dysfunctional marriage.

Yeah. But unfortunately she would not live long enough to embrace or experience that career advancement.

Oh come on. Despite their spouse's best attempts to address the problems in their respective marriages marriages neither tom or lorna seemed particularly interested in the marriages anymore instead they convinced themselves that they were meant to be together and their marriages were nothing more than a roadblock to their happy future together okay then leave them and that's the thing their problem could have been somewhat remedied by getting a divorce obviously we've talked about lorna's particular issues potential issue potential which we have no proof whether that's true or not.

Exactly. So it's like, if that's the case, then yeah, that's a roadblock.

That's a roadblock for sure.

If not, then what are you waiting for?

But the other thing was, and this is according to later witness testimony, and this is a quote, Lorna didn't want a divorce because Martin Anderson had a large insurance policy, and she wanted money, not the divorce.

Okay. So that was at least a part of it, according to witnesses.

Okay. And divorce also wasn't a permanent solution solution to what they really wanted at the end of the day, Martin and Sandy completely out of their lives.

Don't have children with people that you want completely out of your life, because that will never be the case.

Exactly. And if they had just divorced their respective spouses, Tom and Lorna would have likely found themselves with a net deficit.

He would end up paying alimony and a lot of child support with three children, and she would be responsible for four small children with little more than alimony to support them so instead together they devised a wicked scheme where they would kill sandy and stage the scene to look like an accident and then they would use the money from sandy's life insurance policy which was valued at three hundred thousand dollars to hire somebody to kill martin anderson so this is like like.

Devious. Diabolical.

Damn. So Tom was like, well, we'll kill my wife, make it look like an accident, get the money from her life insurance.

And with that money, hire somebody to kill your husband.

Wow. And they came up with that together, evidently.

Damn. In May, 1983, Lorna contacted her friend and former lover, Daryl Carter, and asked him to meet her at the church, saying that she had something important to discuss with him.

He went to the church a few days later, completely unaware of what Lorna actually wanted to talk to him about, and when he arrived, Lorna introduced him to Tom, who was also there to meet Daryl Carter.

They explained that they were in love and wanted to be together, but that couldn't happen as long as they remained married to other people.

Lorna explained that they had come up with this plan to murder Sandy and Martin, but they needed Daryl's help in order to pull it off.

Initially, Daryl Carter was like, absolutely not, not i don't want anything to do with murder and while also why don't you just get divorced from your spouses if you want to be together same question everybody's having they're like guys there's an easier way but tom explained that he loved lorna and was going along with the plan in order to help her get out of an abusive marriage he told carter lorna didn't want a divorce because martin anderson had a large insurance policy and she wanted the money and daryl carter explained that he wasn't a killer and he had never engaged in anything like what they

had planned to which tom replied haven't either i'm a man of god and i'm going to kill martin anderson implying that his actions were rooted in love for lorna wow but that he was still a man of god yeah obviously isn't it like a commandment like thou shalt not kill i feel like that's a pretty uh solid one i think that's a big one i think that's one that's like there's really no interpreting that any different yeah i don't like word on the street yeah i don't know that's kind kind of a big one but go off so it's rather unclear why daryl carter didn't just walk away from this conspiracy then and there

but instead of doing the rational thing he stuck around to hear their plans as lorna and tom saw there were two viable ways to successfully achieve their ends in the first plan they would get martin drunk or drug him and then put him in his car and take him to a remote location in the country and push the car over an embankment making it appear like a drunk driving accident my god if they went with this scenario daryl carter's role would be to pick tom up at the accident site and drive him back to the house leaving lorna at home all night with an alibi the second option involves saving a staging

excuse me a robbery at the home where martin stayed each month during his army reserve duty and shooting him to death making it appear like a robbery gone wrong and actually if they went with the second an option, they wouldn't actually need Daryl's help.

So Daryl was like, wow, okay, a lot to unpack here.

I was just gonna say that's a lot to consider.

He's like upsetting that I know you.

Yeah. So he left the church completely stunned after telling both of them that he was going to need some time to think about this before getting back to them.

A few days later, when they still hadn't heard from him, Tom actually ended up paying a visit to the construction site where Daryl was working and was like, did you make up your mind, dude?

But Daryl told Tom that he still needed more time to think about it and a short time later he called lorna and told her that he couldn't help them with their plan and assumed that without his involvement they would drop the whole idea i was like wow good that you didn't help them yeah bad that you didn't report this that's the thing like you could have saved two people's lives at the end of the day now on the evening of july 16th just a few days after learning about her promotion at the the university, Tom suggested that he and Sandy go out to dinner and a movie to celebrate the occasion.

After the movie ended, they went home around 9 30 p .m. and Sandy ran inside to grab a bottle of pink champagne for herself and a bottle of whiskey for Tom.

And she told the babysitter that they'd be back in about an hour.

According to Tom, they then went back to his office at the church where they had a couple drinks and then parted ways when Sandy left to go to her office was at the university with plans to return a short time later to pick up tom after he had gone over his sermon for the next morning oh which like this already sounds weird yeah you just went on a date you're celebrating something you have a couple drinks together and now you're going your separate ways to get like work done i don't like no i don't think so maybe but it's just a little and also wow to get your sermon done well that's what's really

struck out to me yeah so tom claims that he went out for a jog to think about his sermon and returned to the church expecting to find Sandy waiting because she was supposed to pick him up, but she wasn't anywhere to be seen.

After a little while longer, he got concerned and walked around town for a little while looking for Sandy before finally returning to home to relieve the babysitter without Sandy.

On the morning of July 17th, Sandy Bird's body was discovered by Kansas State Trooper John Rule when he stopped to investigate what looked like an accident when a car went over an embankment on rocky ford bridge god when rule made his way down to where the car landed he found sandy's body lying face down in the river just in front of her overturned car based on the scene it looked like sandy had missed the two 90 degree s curves leading to the bridge and then went through the railing and over the embankment to the river below obviously causing fatal injuries in the process but while the scene

appeared to be that of an accident, almost from the moment he arrived, something about it didn't feel right to the officer.

He told Scott Craft in a 1985 interview, I started to feel hinky about the whole thing.

Hinky. I like that.

For one thing, there were no skid marks anywhere on the road leading up to the point where the car went over the bridge.

That would stick out.

So that's strange. Yeah.

And while she might have missed the original curve sending her in the direction of the railing, surely she would have tried to stop the vehicle at some point before it went over the edge you would think right the lack of skid marks on the road were not the only problem there was other evidence that directly contradicted what had ostensibly happened on rocky ford bridge officer rule found sandy's watch under the bridge far away from the car and the body with no obvious explanation as to how it had gotten there and even more troubling were the spots of blood that he discovered on the bridge on the guardrail

and on on the leaves, on the trees below.

Oh, jeez. So how did that happen?

Yeah. He told Kraft, I thought something happened on that bridge.

But before he could investigate any further, additional officers and emergency workers arrived on scene and they started trampling on any evidence as they removed the car and Sandy's body.

And he's not, like, a homicide officer.

He just happened to be the officer that stumbled upon this.

Oh, jeez. So that's not even, like, his expertise.

But he brought his concerns to the sheriff, who immediately dismissed his theory, telling him it was highly unlikely that anyone would kill a preacher's wife.

What? Why is this, like, a weird running idea?

Isn't it? That, like, preachers and preacher's wives are, like, just immune to all the things.

Like, no one would kill a preacher's wife, and it's like, what?

Somebody who's mad about religion, maybe.

Somebody who's fucking a preacher, I feel.

like somebody like what are like things happen like people are not good all the time like what i love that like that job it's like it affords you like immunity couldn't possibly and it's like no everyone could possibly of course have you not seen that evil is in the world like it doesn't just because you have a job where you walk around saying that everybody should stop being shitheads and i'm the extra not shithead because i'm a pastor right doesn't mean that you're not a a shithead have you ever heard a wolf in sheep's clothing exactly hello I'm like anybody like they're not above it no they

should be but they're not I could name you there's a whole fucking show dedicated to it exactly but rule later said there was a mountain of evidence down there if you had been working a homicide I was sure she didn't die in a traffic wreck but I didn't have the training to prove otherwise oh man that must be infuriating so frustrating to feel it in your bones that like you know what you saw and what you saw wasn't right and to have have everybody tell you no and you're just like i want to prove this but i don't know how and he doesn't want to like fuck it up more right so he's just like stuck between a rock

and a hard place right and if i mean you're reporting to the sheriff like yeah you don't and you don't want to contaminate shit or make certain things if you did find it be inadmissible you know or get yourself into trouble like there's a whole laundry list of things that would make this incredibly frustrating.

So, the coroner essentially agreed with the sheriff that Sandra Byrd's death was the result of a tragic accident and nothing more.

In his autopsy, Dr. Juan Gabriel noted that many of Sandy's injuries could have resulted in death, but the most likely cause of death was a transacted kidney, which he stated was the kind of injury people receive in motor vehicle accidents.

Ouch. Despite some other, excuse me, some of the evidence contradicting the coroner's findings, like sandy only having a small trace of alcohol in her blood no one contested the findings and the cause of death was officially logged an accident and it's like just like just gonna ignore all the other stuff like no skid marks or anything wipe your hands of that no wow preacher's wives don't use their breaks no they're immune to that like what so when officer scott cronk delivered the news to tom bird that morning he was surprised by the preacher's reaction and and he started to feel a little bit

like Officer John Rule was feeling.

Tom responded to the officer asking, What was she doing out there?

We never go out there.

Where is it? What? First of all, so many questions.

Second of all, strange questions.

Strange questions, and you're really going like right off the bat being like, she's never gone there.

We never go there. I've never seen that road ever.

What is it? What's a road?

What is a road? Who's a car?

A vehicle? What? Huh?

Nope. Talking about a pterodactyl?

know what i don't know what that is it struck crunk as strange that tom would immediately assert that his wife never went to the location she was discovered uh before even knowing where that location was by the way that's tough because he said we we never go there where is it you don't know where it is but you also know that you've never gone there i just know that we have never been there you don't even know where it is like what what but that wasn't the only thing that seemed off in tom's version of events when sandy didn't arrive to pick him up he ran around town looking for her it seemed a bit

strange at least to this officer and a few others that he wouldn't just call the babysitter first to find out if sandy had just gone home and maybe forgot to pick him up immediately he assumed the worst obviously why but like rule suspicions officer rule there officer cronk put his own curiosities out of his head not wanting to assume a religious leader capable of anything nefarious because you know because you can't never happen no you cannot consider that ever oh you just can't so although he had acknowledged the coroner's determination that sandy's death was accidental officer john rule just

couldn't shake the feeling that everyone had either gotten something wrong or was just simply ignoring the obvious yeah he recalled i kept thinking what was she doing out there alone after dark and although he struggled to imagine someone wanting to kill a preacher's wife as well Of course.

Because at this point it's been put in his head, I guess.

He was convinced that he had come upon the scene of a homicide that night and he wasn't ready to let it go.

So he quietly continued to pursue the case on his own.

Oh, John Rule. I know.

John Rules. Yeah, exactly.

He does. Life doesn't happen biweekly, so why should payday?

The money that you earn can be in your hands today, day with Earning.

Earning is an app that gives you access to your pay as you work, up to $150 per day with a max of $7 .50 between paydays.

Just download the Earning app and verify your paycheck, then access up to $150 a day as you work and leave an optional tip.

Any money you access plus tips are automatically repaid from your next paycheck.

I feel like you should have your money as you earn it, and Earning makes that possible.

You want to go out for a little date night and spend your money you know sometimes things pop up unexpectedly i would hate this for you but you might have to go to the vet and drop some cash there you need the cash when you need the cash download earnin today spelled e -a -r -n -i -n in the google play or apple app store when you download the earnin app type in morbid under podcast when you sign up it will really help the show morbid under podcast earnin is a financial technology company not a bank cash outs are based on your available earnings standard cash outs take one to two business days with no mandatory

fees option to expedite your transfer for free tips or voluntary and don't affect the service, see the cash out user agreement for details.

Service is not available in all states.

Summer is in full swing.

Whether you're traveling, taking kids to summer camp, or heading to the pool, we are all looking for ways to stay healthy and save money this summer.

With GoToRex, you can save up to 80 % on prescriptions for you and your family.

Pets, too. Check GoToRex before every single trip to the pharmacy for big savings on both brand and and generic medications.

GoodRx is free and it's easy to use.

Just search for your prescription on the website or the app, compare prices, and get a free coupon to show your pharmacist. Use GoodRx to save at over 70 ,000 local pharmacies nationwide, including Walmart, Walgreens, CVS, Publix, Kroger, and many more.

And now you can enroll in GoodRx Rewards and earn points every time that you use a coupon at the pharmacy.

Remember, GoodRx is not insurance, but it works whether you have insurance or not, and it could even beat your insurance co -pay price.

Today, I saved $5 on a prescription from my grandpa because I pulled up the GoodRx app, and I said, look at this.

So, you could save too.

Save at the pharmacy this summer with GoodRx.

Go to GoodRx .com slash morbid.

That's GoodRx .com slash morbid.

While the coroner and rural superiors were unwilling to hear his theories, he was by Kansas Bureau of Investigations, a .k .a.

the KBI agent, J. Vernon Humphrey said, Of course not.

You know that this is happening, but nobody wants to talk about it.

That's even more sus.

Yeah, where there's smoke, there's fire.

Friends and family might not have wanted to speculate on whether Tom was having an affair, but that didn't mean that they didn't want to talk about Sandy altogether.

They did. Rule spoke to those who knew her best. And what emerged from those conversations was a portrait of a woman that Rule described as very diligent, very intelligent, and the sort of person who ran at 100 miles an hour, 18 hours a day.

Oh, Sandy. Just like we heard. She did it all.

Sandy. And he also learned that, among other things, she was a stickler for safety and always wore her seatbelt.

I could, you know what, that makes sense.

Of course it does. Obviously, none of us know Sandy, but it's like that just like fits that vibe.

Yeah. Like she was doing everything she needs to do, working hard. She would be one of those.

That's like, where are your seatbelt?

Put your seatbelt on.

Well, she's got three young kids.

That's the thing. It just makes sense.

Sandy breaks my heart, truly.

So the fact that Sandy always wore her seatbelt was yet another thing about the scene that didn't make sense.

When Ruhle initially made his way down to the crash site, he discovered Sandy's body face down in the creek, suggesting that she had been forcibly ejected from the car when it went over the rail.

Had she been wearing her seatbelt like she supposedly always did, there was only a very small chance that that could have happened.

And then there was also the interior of the car itself.

After it had been removed from the site, Ruhle learned that the driver's seat had been adjusted much farther back than would have been safe or even comfortable for Sandy, who stood at 5 '1".

As someone who's also 5 '1", you are smashed up against that steering wheel to reach those pedals.

And, like, I've seen when John drives the car before you how far back you are.

Yeah, like, he can't, or, like, when he tries to get in after I've been on it, he can't get in without moving the seat back.

Yeah. There's a very noticeable difference.

So, obviously, that suggested that somebody much taller had been driving the car when it went off the bridge.

I mean, that alone should be a massive red flag.

Well, why didn't nobody notice that?

That should be a massive red flag.

Yeah. It's very easy to tell when someone 5 '1 has been driving a car.

Let me tell you, because you've even driven my car before and I can't get in.

As Rule continued quietly investigating Sandy's death, Tom and Lorna began putting the second phase of their plan into action.

Because remember, they wanted both of their spouses dead.

We're not content with just one murder.

Only Sandy is dead now.

In September, Lorna placed another call to Daryl Carter, who again declined to help them.

So Lorna reached out to Daryl's brother, Danny Carter, and enlisted his help.

Why does she know so many people that she's willing to ask to kill someone for her?

I gotta wonder that myself, Lorna.

The thing was, Danny also wasn't a killer, but he thought he knew someone who was, and agreed to act as a middleman.

Okay. A few days later, Tom cashed a $5 ,000 check, which was a portion of the proceeds from Sandy's life insurance policy, and delivered that money to Danny, who claimed he, quote, sent it to a man in Mississippi who was to arrange the job.

Several days passed, then a week, but neither the couple or Danny ever heard back from the contact in Mississippi.

On the afternoon of November 4, 1983, Lorna and Martin, along with their four children, drove out to Fort Riley to pick up a new uniform for Martin's Army Reserve position.

On the way home, Lorna was driving and claimed that she started to feel sick so she pulled off the road and ran into an adjacent field to vomit their four children are in the car right now yes what the fuck is about to happen is something terrible oh boy yeah it's very sad that their kids were in the car when this happened so she claimed that she felt sick she pulled over and ran into an adjacent field to vomit she said as she walked back to the car she realized she had dropped her keys so she asked Martin to come help her find them.

And as they searched in the ditch near the car a man quote cloaked in a black ski mask seemed to come from nowhere and demanded that Martin hand over his wallet.

Before Martin could even respond the man shot him three times in the head killing him.

According. Oh my gosh.

Yeah. According to a statement given to the press by Tom Bird a few days after the killing.

I'm sorry what? So Tom Bird gave a statement about Martin's murder.

Which he was not present at.

yes allegedly yep he said the man went berserk shooting he shot marty a number of times he grabbed lorna and pulled her down then took marty's wallet then a car was coming by so he threw her in the ditch jumped on top of her and told her not to scream then he got scared and ran she didn't see where he went i'm sorry but that's the most fucking ridiculous story i've ever heard in my entire life and why are you telling me what happened when you weren't there well he's her counselor so excuse me don't forget also everybody how are the kids doing I know in this whole planned thing that just was done

in front of your children yeah that's like that's really gross aspect that's really gross unreal I'm horrified by this they're young after the attack a passing driver stopped to help Lorna and flagged down a school bus transporting a local high school football team to a game nearby this is like so small town several of the football players tried to revive five martin actually but it was too late i mean he'd been shot in the head yeah multiple times oh but they threw the football players tried oh yeah in their own statement to the press junction city undersheriff john depeer depeer co told reporters

they were quote interviewing witnesses trying to solve the bizarre killing but he said they don't have a suspect they don't have a weapon and most importantly they have no sensible motive for the murder of anderson except someone's got to come out of here and be like uh there is something weird she is having an affair.

So, like, somebody look into this.

Yeah. That would be my first thing.

I'd be like, there's all these rumors about her having an affair, everybody.

Exactly. Check into it at least. Don't you worry.

Okay, good. So the undersheriff might not have had any suspects or motive, but authorities in and around Emporia were starting to think that they might have some insight into who would want to kill Martin Anderson and why.

After hearing the surprisingly detailed yet also suspiciously vague statement that, again, Tom Byrd, question mark, gave reporters on Lorna's behalf.

Yeah, miraculous. The editor of the Emporia Gazette, Ray Kahl, told another editor, if you believe that, I'd like to sell you the Brooklyn Bridge.

That's honestly the truest statement.

No. Our friend J. Vernon Humphrey from the KBI also noted the unusual connection between Tom Bird, whose wife had also just died under mysterious circumstances.

That's the other thing.

I'm like, you two are reckless.

Reckless. I mean, you're many things, but you're reckless.

You're many things And reckless is one of them And reckless is one of them Because it's like You have this whole plan That you're gonna run away together And just like be together After both your spouses die Under suspicious circumstances And you're just gonna raise While everyone knows That you're having an affair already And you're gonna raise seven kids Between the two of you Seven kids who are gonna know What happened eventually To their other parent Yeah Yeah Wow That's That's That's interesting Interesting Mm -hmm Wow But yeah, like I said, Jayvern and Humphrey was like, there's a weird fucking

connection between the two of these, quote unquote, widow and widowers.

So, he called his colleagues in nearby, I think it's Geary County, to let them know of the connection.

The tip prompted investigators to look into both Tom and Lorna, where they learned that not only had Tom recently received a payout from his wife's insurance and cashed a check of $5 ,000, but Lorna had also recently taken out a policy on her husband not long before he was murdered.

murdered ah weird strange so crazy yeah so after just a few days of investigation detectives traced the five thousand dollars to danny carter and he and daryl were immediately arrested in connection with the shooting danny told police that he indeed received the money from lorna anderson as a payout for the murder of her husband but he said the man to whom he sent the money had never contacted them to arrange the hit but still the carter brothers were charged with conspiracy to commit murder damn on november 18th while they were being held in jail daryl contacted their lawyer and told him pretty

much flat out that reverend tom bird was absolutely involved in the deaths of both sandy and marty they were just like uh let's spill the tea since we're already getting in trouble anyway they're like we're not getting yeah we're not going down for this at least alone so realizing Realizing the very serious nature of the trouble that he was in, Danny Carter told police about his role in the crime, specifically noting that while he did act as a go -between for Lorna and the hitman that was supposed to be hired, he never committed an act of violence.

And he also explained that as far as he knew, the person to whom he sent the money had never followed through.

So, if Martin Anderson was murdered, and he was, it wasn't by anybody that Danny Carter knew.

Interesting. Because he was like the guy in Mississippi never answered.

So, I don't know what happened here.

So I'm not sure. The intention was there.

We did not do it. Right.

Based on what Danny Carter told them, the detectives were still missing a lot of pieces to the puzzle and actually at this point really only knew one thing for certain.

Lorna Anderson had conspired with the Carter brothers in an attempt to have her husband murdered.

This is brutal. It's crazy.

A week later, on November 23rd, she was arrested.

And on November 30th, she was charged with conspiracy to commit first -degree murder.

In his statement to the press, chief investigator al busky or busky excuse me told reporters anderson conspired with carter to have martin anderson done away with five thousand dollars changed hands and mr carter's function was to find someone to take care of marty that's what mr carter alleges so i just kind of like telling everybody what's going on lorna at this point was held without bond and continued to assert her innocence in the entire scheme she was like i have no idea what these people are talking about but and at the same time she was pretty much refusing to talk to investigators but it

didn't matter because a lot of other people were willing to be way more forthcoming they're like don't worry we got you yeah by the first week of december detectives had managed to track down gregory curry the man to whom danny carter had given money given the money to murder martin so after wow yeah so many people to keep track of yeah after being extradited from ohio back to kansas and now charged as a co -conspirator alongside lorna and danny wow Gregory Curry accepted a deal from the prosecutor where he pleaded guilty to a charge of criminal solicitation in exchange for a lesser penalty.

He was not compelled to assist the prosecution in the case against Lorna, but there was an implicit understanding that he could be called as a witness for the prosecution.

Oh, wow. But he didn't shoot Martin.

Wow. Okay. Okay. What's happening?

He collected the money, but he never followed through.

So that's why he only got the charge for criminal solicitation.

okay during this period now the rumors of an affair between tom and lorna were going everywhere persisting throughout emporia but shockingly few if any actually believed that tom bird was involved in these crimes honestly that doesn't shock me whenever it's it shocks whenever it involves it just shocks me it's shocking in my core of my being but you're like but on the outside i'm like this is always what happens is everyone just goes no way no way it's bonkers not with a job like that and it's like that's wild that we are just like no he likes god his occupation is too wild for that and it's just

like what like no no that's just his job like that's just his job right like why are we not we're like we're like so you know this guy over here who's you know So a janitor, he's more likely to do it because he's not working in a church. It doesn't make any sense.

No, it's all bad. And there are plenty of honorable jobs in the world.

I would say that like teachers have honorable jobs.

Nurses do. That's the thing.

They kill people sometimes.

Janitors. Janitors.

Like everybody. Everybody's job is great.

Anybody in any job could end up – mothers kill their children.

Yeah. Like let's – But pastors do not kill.

But pastors don't kill anyone.

And it's like what?

Like since when? It's wild.

wild we've been proven time and time again that they are real people like anyone else and they can be evil pastors they're just like us they're just like evil people sometimes sometimes sometimes they're right exactly we get the both we get the human we get the get bad and what is it the facts of life you know don't you don't get that stuck in my head love that love that choice so much anyway so at first anyway shockingly few believed but that changed on december 1st when daryl Daryl Carter's girlfriend, another character here.

Another person coming in here.

Her name was Jennifer Peterson.

She got a call from Tom Bird saying that he needed to speak with Daryl as soon as possible.

Uh -oh. Fearing for his safety, Daryl informed his lawyer of Tom's request, and together they went to the KBI.

Jesus Christ. I didn't even move.

Did you see that? No. I just saw it when it landed.

I didn't even move.

He didn't even move.

Sorry. So fearing for his safety, Daryl informed his lawyer of Tom's request, and together they went to the KBI.

And sensing an opportunity to fill in some of the missing pieces in the story, KBI agents convinced Daryl to arrange the meeting with Tom and record the conversation.

They were like, Oh, you are definitely going to go see him.

If he needs to talk to you this urgently, let's fucking go.

Go talk to him. So Daryl was like, Okay.

Awesome. Sounds good.

Terrifying. And on December 10th, the two men met in a local parking lot where Daryl secretly recorded the conversation and where tom bird acknowledged the original meeting in the church wherein he daryl and lorna all spoke of killing sandy and martin my goodness the recording of the conversation went a long way to confirming what investigators had already come to suspect that martin's murder was the result of an affair between tom and lorna but while the tape was an important piece of the story they still needed more evidence if they were going to arrest tom because it wasn't like a smoking gun

no so they spoke to the babysitter who was watching the bird children the night of sandy's murder oh my goodness that upsets me contrary to tom's claims of having gone for a jog the night of the murder and returning home still in his jogging clothes the babysitter told police uh -uh he came home a little after midnight and he was quote wearing dress slacks a shirt and tie but he said that he had gone for a jog to think about his sermon and then he came back and was still wearing his jogging clothes and she's like no he's like no no no no no no i like that this babysitter was like no no no so they

kept talking to different people it took nearly four months but finally on march 21st 1984 tom bird was arrested and charged with criminal solicitation to commit first degree murder thank goodness but also who did this The question, to be quite honest, really doesn't get answered.

That's upsetting. Yeah.

I think people have their own opinions and I have mine that I might not tell you.

And you can have yours.

Exactly. Okay. In 1920, a broke immigrant in Boston became one of America's richest, most infamous men practically overnight.

He swindled the modern equivalent of a quarter billion dollars and etched his name into history as the mastermind behind one of the most notorious scams ever, the Ponzi scheme.

Game, hosted by Maya Lau and featuring award -winning comedian and actor Sebastian Maniscalco.

This is Easy Money, The Charles Ponzi Story, an Apple Original Podcast produced by Atwill Media.

Follow and listen on Apple Podcasts.

So, he was arrested.

And at the time, Lorna, who had been free on bond, was re -arrested.

And after dropping the previous charges against her, they were like, Like, oh, let's get rid of those.

It's okay, Lorna. It's not okay, though, because we're charging you with far more serious things like aiding and abetting first -degree murder.

And we're going to hit you also with two counts of conspiracy to commit first -degree murder in the shooting death of your husband.

Good. So, welcome back.

Welcome back, Lorna.

On May 31st, a preliminary hearing was held during which Daryl and Daniel Carter testified that Tom Byrd had solicited both men to help kill Martin Anderson.

Daryl told the jury, Tom Bird told me at the time he loved Lorna Anderson and that he was doing this to help her because he loved her.

Additional evidence at the hearing included the 45 -minute recorded conversation between Daryl and Tom that happened in December of the previous year.

And based on the evidence presented by the prosecution, Judge William Dick ordered Tom bound over for trial and the date was set for July 1st, 1984.

Let's go. So many trials are about to happen.

in a way that is satisfactory it kind of does man okay man um and just so many trials are about to happen so just strap in so tom's trial for the charge of criminal solicitation began in august of 1984 during which one witness after another testified about tom's relationship with lorna they were like we are ready to talk they were so good at hiding it except not at all the jury also We also heard critical testimony from Daryl and Daniel Carter and Gregory Curry, who was the one that had been hired but never followed through.

Oh, yes, yes, yes. Just want to keep you updated on everybody.

Thank you. No, I appreciate it because I was like, who's Greg?

Exactly. Now I'm like, I got it.

So they all told of their role in the conspiracy to kill Martin Anderson.

Although authorities at the time acknowledged that the plot to kill Martin Anderson was never carried out with Greg shooting the man, Tom was still found guilty and sentenced to two and a half to seven years in prison.

two and a half to seven years yeah that's it but don't worry i told you there were more trials a toddler to a second grader amount of time yeah okay because it's only conspiracy to i mean i don't mean only but in the eyes of the law the eyes of the law it's only conspiracy to commit which again seems like that needs an overhaul a little bit well and also this guy did end up dead yeah so like the conspiracy kind of went into practice here right i don't know and i still don't want anyone who conspired to commit murder to get out of prison to be my pastor and to do it again like you're gonna serve

seven years you could come out i mean you could fucking conspire in yeah you're conspiring i'm saying it's what you do it wants a conspirator always a conspiracy i've always saved that conspiracy i've always saved that i just said you know what i always have saved that too but as Tom began serving his sentence for the solicitation charge the investigation into Sandy's death had finally gained some traction thank goodness because two people were killed yeah and in October of 1984 they actually had her body exhumed and a second autopsy was performed by Dr. William Eckert a certified forensic pathologist

hell yeah I know let's let's get in there with this forensic pathologist I think he may have been involved in other cases that we've talked about because his name is very familiar yeah it is but my memory is so bad retweet and we've done so many cases at this point though but in addition to injured the injuries noted in the previous autopsy which were consistent with the accident egbert noted a number of other significant blunt force injuries that could not be accounted for by an accident by a car accident and injuries to the wrists and arms oh that's awful according to his final report the The latter injuries were consistent

with defensive injuries, as injuries caused when a person has his arms outstretched in an effort to ward off blows in the attack.

Oh, that's so awful.

Of course it is. Like, that's the mother of his child, of his children.

Yeah. And, like, it doesn't even sound, like, it sounds like their marriage was not good.

No. Not at all. It's not like, you know, like, it's like...

You took vows at one point.

Like, that's just, like, you just have, like, a shitty marriage, and this is the path of take?

Like, wow. It's so diabolical.

It's just really upsetting.

And it's even sadder to think that in both of these cases, specifically because we're talking about Sandy right now, he asked her out on a date while their marriage wasn't doing so well to celebrate an achievement that she had just made.

And that must have made her feel so seen and happy.

And like maybe things are going to turn around.

Maybe we got through it.

Maybe we're going to come out the other side.

And then the night ends like with this.

And it's like him standing over you, presumably murdering you.

like oh yeah like that's horrific and then on the other side of things martin anderson just thought he was going for a drive with his family his entire family uniform yeah just happy to be out for a drive you would assume hopefully or just you know driving with your four i think like don't they have four kids four kids yeah like oh and then you think like oh no my wife is sick um and then oh crap like let me go help her lose the fix find the keys the keys that she lost and And then that, boom, you're done.

And you just wonder how much the kids saw.

I know. And it's like I didn't really look too much into that because I'm like, you said they were young.

So it's like that's a whole other set of traumas that you have put on your children for your own selfish reasons.

And it's like, damn.

You didn't take into consideration that, you know, maybe I won't get away with this.

And then my kids don't have parents.

Any parents. Like then I am leaving my kids.

And it's just like, you could put that kind of trauma on them for your own selfish needs.

Like, you know what I mean?

Absolutely. That's so much trauma on kids.

Like, I can't even fathom that.

And it's just not considering them.

No, it's not. And that's your number one job is to consider them at all times in all decisions.

Oh, man. It's just really upsetting.

But yeah, it could have ended in so many different ways.

It really could have. But back to Dr. William Eckert's findings here.

So, he found all these defensive wounds.

And similarly, he theorized that the wounds to Sandy's head and shoulders, quote, could have been caused by an instrument such as the branch of a tree, a baseball bat, a pool cue, or a tire iron.

Holy shit. These were—she was beaten intensely.

Oh, my God. Finally, he noted a lack of injuries one would expect of somebody who had been forcibly ejected from a vehicle.

In his opinion, the injuries believed to have been caused by the accident could have just as likely been caused by a fall from a significant height.

Wow. Like, these were intense injuries.

Yeah. And they were not just car accident injuries.

Wow. That's interesting.

It is. In February 1985, investigators went back to Lorna, who had ended her relationship with Tom and was now dating a new man.

oh wow wow all for naught wow yeah is it and isn't that always the way he goes to jail and it's like wow thought you guys were you guys were so in love that you conspired to commit murder wow okay yeah okay got it so wow so the police tracked her down and she gave a statement to police alleging that tom had told her on the night of sandy's death and this is her statement she alleged that on the night of sandy's death he had driven sandy out to rocky ford bridge and as they walked out onto the bridge tom struck sandy with a tire iron which is exactly what the doctor said exactly what he said he's

believing sandy to be unconscious he tried to throw her over the side but she held on to the railing and he kicked her until she fell oh my god so she put up a fight which explains the defensive wounds.

That's horrific. Yep.

And it gets worse. After moving Sandy's body into the position it was discovered in the water Tom drove the car which accounts for the seat being pushed back as it was over the edge of the embankment there and jumped out before it went off the bridge.

Wow. Once he staged the scene he ran back to the church ditching his clothes along the way and changed into the suit that he was wearing when he and Sandy left the house that night and that's why why he did not return home in jogging clothes like the babysitter said i am and also you beat your wife to death or excuse me you beat your wife up to the point of death she's still holding on for dear life and you kick her until she is completely dead and falls down and then you drive the car that you presumably like presumably was your family car off the side of an embankment and then you go to church. I

have no words. You go back to church. No words.

After all of that. Truly no words.

After all of that. And this is after you, like you said, have been like, we're gonna have a date night.

Yeah, to celebrate you and what you have achieved.

Wow, Oh, that like, oh, poor, oh man, Sandy, damn.

Yeah. So, based on the second autopsy and Lorna's statement of what allegedly happened, a grand jury indicted Tom yet again, this time with the first degree murder of his wife, Sandy.

And the trial began in July of 1985.

At trial, Lyon County District Attorney Rod Simmons told the jury that Tom, quote, had murdered his wife out of love for Lorna Anderson, which was supported by the evidence and the testimony heard from the carter brothers the bird's babysitter and several of sandy's friends who testified that she had discovered his affair not long before her death most significant were the results of that second autopsy and the circumstances of the scene which supported the prosecution's theory that sandra bird had been killed on the bridge before being thrown into the ravine which explained why her blood had

been found on the trees leading down to the embankment and i also believe on the guardrail this all makes so much more sense now know exactly and shout out to officer john rule for immediately recognizing those shout out it's a good john if he another good john if he didn't become like an actual homicide investigator after that my goodness i hope john rule like i hope i hope you're still ruling john rule right so the defense on the other hand of course argued that the prosecution's case was full of inconsistency inconsistencies and relied heavily on hearsay except for that uh whole forensic pathologist

And you know, the blood on everything above where her body was found.

Got it. But cool. Defense Attorney Robert Heck told the jury no one saw a damn thing, adding that his client had spent the night looking for his wife.

Okay. Yeah, totally.

Okay. Also, nobody saw a damn thing, including that.

No one saw him looking for his wife.

Yeah, no one saw that.

So, objection, hearsay.

The babysitter saw him in different clothes.

Yeah, so nice try. After a brief investigation, the jury returned with a guilty verdict, and tom burned was adam jesus christ tom bird was sentenced to life in prison for the murder of his wife sandy bird and he was already serving that two to seven year stint oh i like i like life better than two to seven years life is much better much better now it was lorna anderson's statement to police that led to tom's arrest and eventual conviction for murder but it's unlikely that she expected at any point to find herself in the same position probably not by the fall of 1988 though she was facing very

serious charges and a strong case against her for the murder of her husband so she took a deal and she agreed to plead guilty to one count of second degree murder in exchange for a 20 -year sentence in her statement given to investigators lorna identified tom as the shooter in martin's murder i wondered if that was as possible leading to additional murder charges being brought against tom but in march of 1990 a jury acquitted tom of the charges related to martin's death and that's why i say we don't know who shot martin okay he was acquitted yep so tom ended up appealing his conviction to the state

supreme court in 1986 at the one where he received life for the murder of sandy but the verdict and the sentence were upheld since then he is said to have been a model prisoner and he got remarried in the late 80s oh my he continues to assert his innocence and claims that while he and lorna were sexually intimate on three or four occasions i don't need to know how many my bro my guy it doesn't matter to me they never had a relationship oh sexual relations are a relationship also excuse me pastor that that doesn't constitute a relationship i thought that was like a big thing nope okay nope exactly

um and he said that he He never agreed to participate in any murders.

Except aren't you on like, you know, recording saying that you talked about it at least?

Talked about it. You at least talked about it.

Yep. That's pretty fucked up.

Which is participating in.

That's participating in talking about it.

So there's that. But he says of Lorna, she was emotionally attached to me.

And on my end, there was a need to be needed.

I like the idea of being needed.

So I unprofessionally let it happen.

It was more emotional than physical.

Thank you, Tom. Thank you, Tom, for your time.

Yeah. There are many people, though, who believe that Tom was convicted on circumstantial evidence and questionable testimony from people with faulty memories.

Are the people in the room with us right now?

Like, who is that? He ended up being released from prison.

He got parole. He was released in 2004 and his supervision period ended in 2006.

Okay. And he's gone on to lead a quiet life.

Wow. But he was convicted for murdering his wife.

He certainly was. But not for shooting Martin Anderson.

He was acquitted of that.

I want to be very clear.

Interesting. Lorna served nearly her entire sentence and was released on parole in 2007 with her supervision period officially ending in 2014.

And from everything I could find, also has gone on to live a quiet life.

But apparently they both live in Kansas.

I am shook by that.

And wow. Didn't think it was going to end like that.

I just feel really bad for Sandy and Martin and those fucking kids.

I feel so bad for both sets of these kids.

I know. Because I can't imagine what they've gone through.

I hope that, yeah. Wonderful lives.

and I hope they've gone on to just be happy and healthy and got whatever they needed yeah because it breaks my fucking heart to know what they all just went that was a lot of kids to have involved in all that seven kids four of which at least were there when their father was killed yeah like that's really upsetting and then like just to think of I mean both those murders were horrific and brutal so brutal like Martin was shot in the the head three times nearby his children and his i can be shot in the chest once he ended up being shot four times yeah and it's like and then sandy was thrown off

an embankment yeah she was beaten and thrown off an embankment like that's unthinkable truly it's unthinkable truly and the fact that we really never will know like the fact that we don't know concretely who shot martin and anderson is the biggest thing for me because i'm like i gotta know who that was yeah and i like his kids deserve to know absolutely his parents his family and i'm sure everybody has their own opinions but none of us know for certain yeah because it's like which is like incredibly frustrating and i can't imagine if that was my loved one thank goodness for john rule yeah in this situation and for dr

eckert yep like coming in after you know we got we had a coroner the first time around the fact that this could have been a forensic pathologist the second time around and look what you got yeah and just the fact that this could have gone so differently sandy's death could if if john rule hadn't had his suspicions and you know looked around at certain things yes a couple other people hadn't had stuck with it she could she could have never got justice she still would have been listed as dying from an accident yeah when we know that that's not the case damn yeah that's a horrifying case i know in every

way and i feel really bad for those people that had to deal with it because holy shit they do too so treat people nicely yeah and don't cheat on your spouse just be honest yeah just honesty is the best policy and uh with that being said we hope you keep listening and we hope you keep it weird not so weird as any of this because we'll disown you absolutely not elena nash bye If you like Morbid, you can listen early and ad -free right now by joining Wondery Plus in the Wondery app or on Apple Podcasts.

Prime members can listen ad -free on Amazon Music.

Before you go, tell us about yourself by filling out a short survey at wondery .com slash survey.

Hear that? That's the sound of Cinnamon Toast Crunch telling us it's crunch time, as we gear up for another year of Serial Training Camp.

Last year, a dynamic brother duo competed and won the right to make their very own cereal.

They named it the Kelsey Mix.

This summer, the energy is being brought straight from the end zone to the breakfast aisle with three cereal -loving wide receivers, Justin Jefferson, Aman Ra St. Brown, and Jamar Chase.

You can find these football stars on limited edition cereal boxes of Cinnamon Toast Crunch, Lucky Charms, Honey Nut Cheerios, and Reese's Puffs cereal starting in August. And don't miss out on Justin Jefferson's Jetta's Mix, a fruity fusion of frosted lemon Cheerios and cinnamon toast crunch strawberry for a limited time only.

Be sure to score them all where every bite tastes like a touchdown.

[캔자스의 비극적인 치정 사건: 톰 버드와 로나 앤더슨의 불륜과 살인 공모]-[Episode 531: Tom Bird and Lorna Anderson Eldridge]

📋 Summary

캔자스의 비극: 목사의 불륜과 두 번의 살인 사건

1. 완벽해 보였던 가정의 이면

2. 불륜의 시작과 '사랑의 사각형'

3. 살인 계획: 보험금과 청부 살인

4. 샌디의 죽음과 경찰의 의구심

5. 마틴 앤더슨의 살해와 사건의 전말

6. 결말

🎯Key Sentences

📝Key Phrases

📖 Transcript