ABC-TV is doing a documentary on men who have two families and who want to get out of this dilemma. The network is offering a stipend and therapy for the man who is selected. If you are in this situation and need help, contact Susan Peabody at [email protected]
Often two family men are addicted to both relationships and just can't choose between them. They just can't seem to help themselves.
Let me help you get in touch with recovery resources in exchange for your story. For more information, call 510-778-8880.
For Canadian residents, please watch the VIVA channel this Friday, October 22, 2010 for a new program called The Devil You Know.
This particular episode will deal with serial bigamist, Oliver Killeen, who is alive and well and living in Toronto. His next court date will be November 17. It will be a preliminary trial to assess if they have enough evidence to go to trial.
Contact your local cable provider if you are not sure if you can get the VIVA channel.
It is not being aired in the US yet.
My mother Barbara and I were both interviewed in the episode, and I would love to hear opinions.
Ed Hicks (Charles Edward), the man responsible for this blog will be the subject in the re-airing of Very Bad Men-The Man Who Married Too Much, next week on the Investigation Discovery Channel.
Hicks who recently was released from jail on a parole violation is now in Florida where he was in Key Largo and is now prowling around in the St. Petersburg area.
Hicks was given the largest sentence for felony bigamy in the state of Virginia. He received five years, but four were suspended. He received another four years for breaking his parole and three were suspended. Hicks has seven known marriages, four of which overlap.
Be sure to watch. The schedule is:
Wednesday, 9/15/10 at 10:30 PM
Thursday, 9/16/10 at 1:30 AM
Saturday, 9/18/10 at 4:30 PM
All times are EST.
For more information on HIcks, check out the Ed Hicks sections on the left and read the article on Lovefraud.com.
Donna Andersen author of Lovefraud.com and the new book Love Fraud will appear on the Investigation Discovery Channel's first segment of "Who the Bleep Did I Marry?". Set your DVRs for Wednesday, August 25 at 10 PM; this is the same day her book will be release to the public.
Donna is swept off her feet by a
charming Australian entrepreneur, James Alwyn Montgomery. After a three-day romance, the two
marry within six months and she is the happiest she's ever been. Until
her husbands' webs of lies, deceit, and unfaithfulness surface.
My name is Nichole Bardin and I am currently working at a media production company located in Silver Spring, MD called Sirens Media. Sirens is known for producing many high-end hit reality TV shows (check us out http://www.sirensmediajustice.com/ )
Recently they have given me the task of tracking down some interesting personalities that fit the criteria of a new project we are working on. Right now I am just doing some research but, I would love the opportunity to speak with someone on your end. Maybe, one of you might be able to point me in the right direction? :)
I just received this today. If you are a male victim of bigamy, please consider contacting this man who will be doing a documentary for The Learning Channel.
Hi Sandra-
My name is San Heng, and I'm a producer with Half Yard
Productions. I'm working on a special documentary for TLC and I'm
looking to speak to men whose wives have been married to other men
during their marriage. Please contact me at 212-627-1662 ext 238 or
email me at [email protected]
Thank you for your help, San -- San Heng Director/Producer C: 917-757-4500 W: 212-627-1662 ext 238
Jill Coit might have spent years
manipulating others, but she failed Friday to sway 12 people from
putting her behind bars for life. A Grand County District
Court jury found Coit, 51, guilty of first-degree murder and conspiracy
to commit first-degree murder for the Oct. 21, 1993, slaying of
Steamboat Springs hardware store owner Gerald Boggs, her eighth
husband.
Jurors, after five hours of deliberations, also found
co-defendant Michael Backus of Greeley guilty of first-degree murder
and conspiracy for helping kill Boggs before the start of trial in his
lawsuit alleging fraud and bigamy by Coit.
Authorities never
found a handgun used to shoot Boggs, who also was hit with a stun gun
inside his home. Instead, prosecutors relied on other evidence,
including statements by Jill Coit's son, Seth, that she had plotted
Boggs' death for months. Seth Coit, who was given immunity from
prosecution in exchange for his testimony, testified his mother called
him the afternoon of the murder and said, ''Hey Baby, it's over and
it's messy.''
Jill Coit, who has been married 11 times to nine men, proclaimed her innocence. In
a rambling statement before the verdict, the woman dubbed the ''Black
Widow'' by private investigators again claimed she hadn't received a
fair trial because she knew the presiding judge.
Judge Richard
Doucette, who said earlier that he'd never met Coit before the start of
her six-week trial, set her sentencing for May 1 in Steamboat Springs.
She faces life imprisonment. ''We won't ever have Gerry back, but we got justice,'' said Harold Boggs, the victim's father.
Backus, 49, who was Coit's boyfriend, will be sentenced May 23.
Backus'
attorney, Leonard Davies, laid the groundwork throughout the trial for
an appeal because he argued his client deserved a separate trial. ''She manipulated him (Backus) like she did all 10 or 11 other men,'' said Boggs' brother, Doug.
Gerald
Boggs married Jill Coit in April 1991, but the marriage was annulled in
December 1991 because she was still married to her seventh husband.
But by that time, Doug Boggs and his wife, Jan, already had come to fear Jill Coit. Breaking
nearly two years of silence about the case, Doug Boggs said Friday that
his brother pressed a civil lawsuit against Coit because he wanted to
expose her history of bigamous marriages and false claims of pregnancy.
Doug Boggs said his brother was devastated when Coit falsely
claimed to be pregnant and vowed to prevent her from using the ploy
against someone else.
''My brother gave his life so that this
would never happen to another family,'' he said. ''Jill Coit picked the
wrong town, the wrong man and the wrong family. Gerry knew the only way
it could be stopped was by giving his life.''
Gerald Boggs
spent more than $ 100,000 preparing for his civil suit against Coit,
said Doug Boggs, who attended the trial despite recent back surgery. "'She ruined Gerry, and he was never the same,'' Jan Boggs said.
The
Boggs family worried about Coit after she purportedly threatened to
''get'' them during a 1992 deposition for the civil case. From the day of his brother's death until Coit's arrest in November 1993, Doug Boggs said his entire family was on edge.
''We'd
never locked our house. We were never gun people,'' he said. ''We
locked our house after that. We got guns. We had people stay with us .
. . My parents and my family lived in fear.''
Coit's attorney,
Joseph Saint-Veltri, left the courtroom in Hot Sulphur Springs - where
the case was moved because of pretrial publicity - without comment.
Davies argued in closing statements that 27 witnesses in the case presented testimony against Coit, but not against Backus. Backus, Davies said, ''was in a romantic relationship with a person who fooled a lot of people.''
"The death of 52-year-old Gerald Boggs appeared to be a "normal"
murder case, if there is such a thing. But as the evidence was
unearthed and the suspects investigated, police and prosecutors in
Steamboat Springs, Colorado realized they were dealing with an unusual
killer indeed.
AMERICAN JUSTICE® reveals that Boggs' former wife,
to whom he was married for just a week, quickly became the prime
suspect. Jill Coit had been married ten times, sometimes committing
bigamy (she was already married when she wed Boggs) and several of her
former husbands had died under mysterious circumstances. SERIAL WIFE
traces every step of the investigation, trial and appeal, speaking with
attorneys for both sides and the reporters who covered the case to tell
the definitive story of "Colorado's Black Widow."
A documentary is
scheduled to air this week on Charles Edward Hicks, a 63-year-old
former Chesapeake man convicted last year of bigamy.
Hicks' seven
known marriages are the subject of the film, called "Very Bad Men: The
Man Who Married Too Much." The documentary is to air at 10 p.m. Friday
on the "We" cable channel.
Last year, Judge
S. Bernard Goodwyn sentenced Hicks to five years in prison, with four
years suspended. It was the stiffest sentence ever given to a bigamist
in Virginia. Hicks was convicted of bigamy for relationships with his
fifth and sixth wives, Rose Marie Sewell and Julie Flint.
Hicks married
Flint in 1997 while still married to Sewell. Hicks and Flint lived in
the Deep Creek section of Chesapeake when they were married.
He was the
subject of at least two "Dr. Phil" television episodes last year.
Hicks' seventh wife, Sandra Phipps, praised the documentary.
"This show is
very different from the 'Dr. Phil' show, as it shows an in-depth view
of Ed Hicks, serial bigamist, and how we brought him to justice," she
said.
The film features
interviews with people connected to the case, including Sandra Phipps, Julie
Flint, Chesapeake Assistant Commonwealth's Attorney Derek Wagner,
who prosecuted the case, and Tom Jackman, the Washington Post reporter who exposed Hicks.
Even as Hicks
faced prosecution in Chesapeake, he was proposing to an eighth woman in
North Carolina. Authorities apprehended him after a woman watching one
of the episodes of "Dr. Phil" recognized him as her sister's boyfriend.
Predators. Swindlers. Bigamists Masters of Fraud. The men who prey on friends and complete strangers alike. Very Bad Men is a seven-part, true crime series that exposes some of the most notorious cons on record.
Very Bad Men, first shown in Canada on Global TV and filmed by Make Believe Media is now showing on cable's WEtv each Friday evening, with repeats early Saturday morning.
Meet the men who took what they wanted at any cost. The Don Juan of Con--bigamist William Michael Barber, The Sweetheart Swindler, The Man Who Married Too Much--bigamist Ed Hicks, The Messiah of Death, The Sweetheart Swindler, etc.
These men and their crimes fall across the spectrum - fraud, bigamy, larceny, crimes of passion,
and murder.
Their methods, the tricks of their trade and the horrendous
impact on their victims' lives - it's detailed in every episode -
leaving little doubt that these are definitely some Very Bad Men.
The story of serial bigamist Ed Hicks airs Friday, May 18 at 10 PM. As many of you know, I was married to serial bigamist Ed Hicks, and as a result of my personal experience with bigamy, I began this blog in September 2005. Working together with the wife before me, Julie, we ensured that Ed Hicks was slapped with the toughest sentence
ever handed a serial bigamist in the state of Virginia.
Predators. Swindlers. Masters of Fraud. The men who prey on friends and complete strangers alike. Very Bad Men is a seven-part, true crime series that exposes some of the most notorious cons on record, including serial bigamist Ed Hicks and the Don Juan of Con William Michael Barber.
These men and their crimes fall across the spectrum - fraud, bigamy, larceny, crimes of passion ,
and murder. Their methods, the tricks of their trade and the horrendous
impact on their victims' lives - it's detailed in every episode -
leaving little doubt that these are definitely some Very Bad Men.
Read more in the synopsis of each episode. The series is currently running on Global's Mystery channel, and makes its premier on Global, October 14 with The Don Juan of Con (William Michael Barber). The Ed Hicks' story, The Man Who Married Too Much, airs on October 10 on Mystery, November 11and December 22 on Global.
Michael William Barber is a serial bigamist and conman who is
believed to have married at least 12 women, cheating many out of their
life savings.
Police say he used at least 20 different aliases
including William Barber, Chris Barber, and Chris James, and had five
different social security numbers.
Barber swept women off their feet and
then he cleaned out their savings accounts, lied to them, cheated on
them, and even allegedly abused some. He told one wife he was a surgeon
on sabbatical, he told one he was a former professional football
player, he told another he was a Vietnam vet, and yet another he was a
bio-terrorism expert. He told people he was shot in Vietnam. He said
John Ashcroft was a good friend of his. He even told one wife he had
leukemia. Nothing he said was true.
Donna Layne Roberts, who began the petition for the National Marriage Database, will appear with two of Barber's other wives, a former business associate and his wife, as well as Barber's sister.
Tonight, ABC-TV's 20/20 aired a follow up to their April 2005 show on Eric Cooper, the 30-year old convicted bigamist con man who was married or engaged to at least ten women in a ten-year period. The con man fathered four children and left a trail of destruction and heartbreak. Cooper was sentenced this past week to 15 years in prison for tampering with a government document.
Many of his wives joined forces to bring Cooper to justice and prevent him from doing this to another woman. They refer to themselves the "Ex-Wives Club".
Cooper claimed to me a former Navy SEAL, a Navy pilot, and a graduate of the Naval Academy. He used at least three aliases.
Be sure to watch the video and see Cooper attired in an orange jumpsuit as he tells his version of the story Don Dahler of 20/20.
Tune in to Dr. Phil on Friday, August 11 for a show on con men...and bigamists. This is a re-run of the original show that aired on December 12, 2005.
As a result of the original airing, serial bigamist Ed Hicks was arrested in North Carolina immediately after the show aired when a viewer recognized him as the man who had just proposed to her sister. Hicks was sentenced for felony bigamy in May and received a five-year prison sentence; four years were suspended.
Read a synopsis of the show. View a video preview at Dr. Phil.com. And post a message on Dr. Phil's message board.
Check the Local Listings for the time and channel in your area.
Airs: Tuesday, August 8, 2006 at 8am and 2 pm. Investigative Reports™ - Intimate Deception
explores this cruel and all-too-common crime with three cases. In one,
a handsome model married four women at the same time, however he reaped
little financial gain. Another man married three women in less than a
year while still married to a fourth. Another bigamist, now in prison,
was never prosecuted for bigamy but for fraud. He confesses to the
camera that his crimes were for neither love nor pleasure, but only for
money. One woman claimed he stole $26,000 from her after a six-week
relationship. The investigation features interviews with the bigamist convicted of fraud, seven victims, a police psychologist, police officials and a convicted bigamist.
Bigamists are devious con-artists
who wield the powerful weapon of love to become intimately involved
with their victims only to leave them in emotional and financial ruin.
Bigamy is a felony in most states,
but it's up to the courts to decide what price must be paid. Law
enforcement officials agree that bigamists are hard-core criminals
without feeling for their victims. More often than not, they fail to
punish the offenders appropriately, and in many cases, those who do go
to jail do so for other crimes. It happens with such frequency yet it’s
an often-overlooked crime. Using trust and love as weapons,
perpetrators leave behind a trail of shattered lives and lost dreams.
Bigamist William Barber's "down and out" appearance may not make him look like a
Casanova con man now, but before the law caught up with him, he left a
trail of 12 wives heartbroken and financially damaged.
Shortly after his conviction, Inside Edition's April Woodard brought
together three of Barber's ex-wives for the first time to talk about
the man they all once loved.
His latest wife, Joyce Reynolds, is convinced of one thing Barber will never learn
his lesson. "He's gonna find another woman, and he's gonna do the same
thing all over again, I have no doubt," she told Inside Edition. Reynolds helped put Barber behind bars after she discovered that he was
still married to another woman, Donna Layne Roberts. Roberts says
Barber left her with nothing but an empty bank account.
In all, there may have been up to 12 wives as Barber spanned the
country using 20 false names, four birthdays and several social security
numbers.
Read the entire story on Inside Edition. The show aired April 18.
On Thursday, December 15, Ed Hicks’ latest victim, Barbara Hembree appeared on ABC’s Good Morning America with her sister, Linda Hembree.
Linda recognized Ed Hicks during Dr. Phil’s Monday show, Conned by a Con Artist when Ed Hicks' mask of sanity was removed in front of 10 million viewers. Linda called Barbara and then Linda called the police. Ed Hicks was arrested shortly thereafter on a fugitive warrant for the felony of bigamy. Ed Hicks currently sits in a jail cell in Mecklenberg County North Carolina where he is fighting extradition to Chesapeake, Virginia.
Ed Hicks proposed marriage to Barbara Hembree just two weeks ago. At the time, she declined the proposal, but she was thinking about it. He is still married to Sandra Hicks and an annulment between Ed Hicks and Julie Flint-Hicks was just finalized in late October. Sandra Hicks has filed for an annulment or a divorce, depending on the decision of a Fairfax County Virginia judge. Her civil case against Ed Hicks has been continued to March 2006.
Tune in to Dr. Phil on Monday, December 12 for a show on con men...and bigamists. Ed Hicks will be featured as well as another con man currently in prison.
Read a synopsis of the show. View a video preview at Dr. Phil.com. And post a message on Dr. Phil's message board.
Check the Local Listings for the time and channel in your area.
On Sunday October 30th 2005 at 10:30 PM Oxygen's Relentless will feature the story that was popular in the Atlanta, Georgia area. Gwendolyn Robinson, a divorced mother of two, she was retired from twenty years in the Air Force and had a master's degree in criminal justice. But she was swept off her feet by charming young minister Anthony Owens who, after a whirlwind romance, asked her father for her hand in marriage.
Soon after, a female pastor warned Gwen that she had seen Anthony introduce other women as his "wife" and warned Gwen that Anthony would steal from her. While playing the role of dutiful pastor's wife, Gwen switched into detective mode and found that her husband was an eight-time bigamist. She compiled a comprehensive history of his bigamy and swindling that resulted in an annulment for her and jail time for Anthony.
DATELINE NBC SUNDAY, OCTOBER 16, 2005 - 7:00 PM ET Be sure to watch or set your DVD's to record as Keith Morrison reports on a serial groom who left a trail of ex-wives scattered across the country...No it is not Ed Hicks in this report.
Check out Tune In often for postings about bigamists and their stories on upcoming TV shows.
Anthony Glenn Owens was married to eight women at the same time. Read about his courageous wife, Gwen Robinson, who was able to investigate and find all Owens' wives. Through Gwen's efforts, Anthony Glenn Williams received a six years sentence, with two years to be served in jail.
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