absolutely. the seconds or taking away. it was all or nothing. this is an important criminal. this is a soccer mom. hands. put your hands in the air. it was held. it was hell. hello and welcome to dateline, memorial day weekend in the town of east lake ohio is blissfully traditional. barbecues, boating, parades. but in 2011 there was something evil lurking beneath the service and it began with a startling 9-1-1 call. the caller had a hot tip about an active murder for hire plot. but that was hardly the only surprising news that he had to share. here is the eastlake conspiracy! along the shores of majestic, lake erie. not far from cleveland. lies a little known city near east lake ohio. it s a suburb. decent size yards. and gorgeous waterfront views. it s a kind of place that folks settled to raise a family. quiet, and safe. you never hear about murder stuff like that. but that wholesome image was about to be shattered. basically, the gist o
ohio with the kids. but david says that the problems with his ex got worse. especially sick between chrissy and her daughter s. so he and lonnie decided to fight for primary custody. i told her that there was a highly likelihood that i was going to get the girls. now david was left to wonder, was the murder for hire some custody revenge? with the clock ticking, there was no time to process. they needed david to do something crazy. stage his own death. the detective gets on the phone and his words were that i need you to take pictures of yourself. pictures that the police plan to photoshop to make it look that david had been shot in the head. he wants you to pretend that you are dead? right. i m thinking to myself. i can t make this believable. how do i act dead? i m not sure what i would look like dead? we needed to expose certain parts of his head to place the gunshot wound on it.
wife. it was a small wedding. intimate wedding. they had been married less than a year. but lonnie already felt like she had met her soulmate. and we had a really nice connection. it was a second marriage for both lonnie and david. and the each had kids. david, for girls. lonnie, a son and daughter. where you both in the six children club. not always easy, but a lot of fun? yeah. i ll tell you. super fun. i loved having kids. lonnie described her love with david as wonderful. but said she never could ve imagined the challenges that they would face together as a couple. how did you make david? we met at a work function. they both worked in the automotive industry and were attending a conference in las vegas with a neutral friend suggested they meet. there was an interesting connect. it was a bit shocking.
when you talk with each one of the girls, their mother s lonnie. after the trial, david had christie s protect parental rights terminated. lonnie you go on to adopt these girls. and welcome them into your heart with open arms. yeah, i mean. i always actually wanted a lot of kids. and here i get to have four more. david and lonnie say this chapter of their lives may not have been possible without pat. i think the best way that i can show thanks to patrick s to show how our family has risen far above this. from a moment in time that he had control of. i have seen the beauty of these two people. especially lonnie. she adopted those girls. good people.
prison after serving five years. chrissy declined our request for an interview. but in a statement that unexpectedly read like a confession, she wrote in part, i was very wrong in my actions and i am paying dearly. anyone who has been through a divorce that never ends can understand that i was at the end of my rope. she was sentenced to ten years. for approaching release date seem to weigh on david and lonnie. my hope is that the prison system has done its job. and she will try to be real acclimated into a normal life. lonnie, you are getting upset just talking about it. yeah. i don t think that she has learned anything. from this experience. kristie was released from prison in 2021. lonnie and david aren t dwelling on this chapter of their past. they know the challenges that they face are unusual, but they use their story to cancel other couples facing obstacles. and they said that they are stronger today as a couple and as a family.