Episode 47: The drowning death of Sarah Widmer

On August 11, 2008, Ryan Widmer called 911 to report that his wife Sarah had possibly drowned in their bathtub. Ryan said he drained the tub and remove his wife from it.

The paramedics tried to save Sarah Widmer, but she was beyond help. The coroner ruled her death as a drowning. But did her husband drown her or did she suffer from an unknown medical condition that caused her death?

The police quickly assumed Ryan had murdered his wife. He was arrested and indicted quickly. At the time, many armchair detectives and the media portrayed Ryan Widmer as a killer. But did he really kill his wife as the police claimed? Is it possible that this young woman could have had a seizure before drowning? Most people think it’s impossible. But when you look into Sarah’s past, you begin to realize it was a possibility. She had previously fallen asleep in the bathtub. Co workers said she would take breaks and sleep in her car.

For this episode, I spoke to former Cincinnati Enquirer reporter Janice Hisle. She covered all three of Ryan Widmer's trials and wrote a book about this case. If you would like to know more about this story, please visit Amazon.com and purchase Janice’s book. Or you can purchase it directly from her and receive an autographed copy. She is also open to listening to theories about this case. For more information about Janet Hisle, please visit her FB page titled SUBMERGED: Ryan Widmer, his drowned bride and the justice system or visit her website titled www.thesubmergedbook.com.

*Video courtesy of WCPO 9 (www.wcpo.com)

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