S14 E4 - A Fatal Diagnosis - The Poisoning Case of William Vanderhoof

In December 1883, William Vanderhoof died after years of unexplained illness in Berrien County, Michigan.

His wife, Elizabeth, was accused of poisoning him with arsenic.

A jury convicted her of murder.

But William's attending physician believed he was suffering from heart disease, and the medical evidence was far from straightforward.

In 1888, the Michigan Supreme Court overturned Elizabeth's conviction, criticizing the handling of expert testimony and the jury's instructions.

Then, in April 1889, prosecutors abandoned the murder case entirely.

#MaliceInTheMitten #MichiganTrueCrime #HistoricalTrueCrime #WilliamVanderhoof #TrueCrimePodcast

Written, recorded, edited & Produced by Tracy Preston

Original music created exclusively for Malice in the Mitten by Tracy Preston

Original artwork by Todd Preston