when she got that. that she got married so soon, just 18, and right out of high school seemed reasonable at the time. at least to coco it did. living in utah? that kind of happens, huh? that was nothing new. i just figured, well, karin did it, too, you know? she and steve strom were in love, after all. i didn t know steve that well. he didn t talk, very quiet. this is karen s high school friend melody fairbourne. she really did love him, and enjoyed his company. but then it was about seven years in when the bad times started to outweigh the good. the problem said melody was steve who could be, she said, a mean drunk. when he would start drinking, he would start verbally degrading her. and there had been rumors of some physical abuse.
shocking. what is the relationship between ed owens and steve? they worked together. or at least they both worked at the same machine at e systems, an aerospace parts manufacturer. ed worked the swing shift and steve took over the machine on the graveyard shift. ed was new in town and steve befriended him. he didn t have any friends. steve was that kind of guy that would kind of take somebody under his wing because they had the same interests. they liked guns and hunting and four-wheeling and things like that. did he seem to like the guy? yeah. he thought he was pretty good. you know, a little different. a little different? yeah. he tied so hard to be your friend. and he just went at it the wrong way. so they kind of thought that was a little weird, you know. so social skills were a little defective somehow. yes. you just look at him and say, wow, is he playing with a full deck? still, something like a
that night? a couple of months after karen s death, steve was arrested and charged with his wife s murder. what did steve strom do? well, of course, he denied it. he denied being involved. he fought the case tooth and nail. and those investigators remained convinced that their man was steve. yes. but, as the trial approached back at the beginning of the 1980s, none of the evidence from that chaotic bedroom murder scene could be tested for dna. the technology just didn t exist then. what they had instead was a circumstantial case, the testimony of friends and family who would say that steve was sometimes verbally and possibly physically abusive. but kari nirvegs karin wanted out. there was black eyes and bruises that were witnessed by some of their co-workers and friends. but it wasn t enough. not much more than hearsay according to the assigned trial
dismissed the charges and released steve strom to go on about his life. strom lost his friends, his credibility, perhaps only this friend still believed in him. i mean, everybody was saying, you did it, you did it, you did it, you did it. you know? and they chased him. they followed him everywhere he went. cops? yep. i was with him. and that was that. nobody satisfied. certainly not karen s sister coco who believed in her heart, like so many others, that steve had gotten away with murder. and that, decided, coco could not stand. her big sister had been there for her growing up and now coco would do what she could to fight for justice. 27 years. 27 years and it never left your mind? how could it? it s shocking and it s your sister. somebody you love dearly. it s, like, you go and think about it and then you give up and then it s there again. you know, it never goes away.
in his 50s to let him know he had reopened karin s case. would steve provide a comparison sample of his own dna? i told steve that if he came up and provided those samples, it could do as much good eliminating him as a suspect as it could actually pointing the finger at him. he agreed and within 48 hours drove to utah from his current home in nevada and freely gave up a sample of his dna. but was he worried? oh, yes, he was said his friend dick cantonwine. he says, they re going to try to hang me again. they just were focused in on him from day one. and they just wouldn t let go. and in less than two weeks after benson supplied the samples, a result. and benson looked at the name and well, i was a little confused at first. confused? once benson absorbed the news,