Episode 24: Betty Broderick

With the recent passing of Betty Broderick in jail, we go back and look at the whole story from start to finish and discuss, how far Betty was pushed and how much she had wrapped her life up in a man who eventually left her for a younger woman.

Transcript

SPEAKER_00 0:20

Hey, all you true crime divas and dudes. Welcome back to Deadly Divas, your favorite true crime podcast. I'm Tina, and thank you for joining us this week.

SPEAKER_01 0:31

And I'm Sarah, and if you're new here, welcome. This week's case is one of those that people have been debating for decades and still are.

SPEAKER_00 0:41

And what makes it even more relevant right now is that this story just reached its final chapter because today we're talking about Betty Broderick, who, after spending more than three decades in prison, recently passed away in May of 2026 at the age of 78.

SPEAKER_01 1:00

But even with her passing, the case didn't really close. Because people are still arguing about it just as intensely as ever. Was she a cold-blooded killer who planned and carried out a double murder? Or was she a woman who was psychologically and emotionally pushed past her breaking point after years of a collapsing marriage, legal warfare, and just personal devastation?

SPEAKER_00 1:27

And that's exactly what makes this story so complicated, because today's episode isn't just about the crime, it's about everything that led up to it. A marriage that started with promise, a slow unraveling filled with resentment and betrayal, a high conflict divorce that turned into a years-long war, and ultimately a breaking point that ended in tragedy.

SPEAKER_01 1:54

And when you look at the full picture, this isn't a quick escalation story. This is years of tension building behind closed doors in courtrooms in everyday life until everything finally just explodes in the most irreversible of ways.

SPEAKER_00 2:13

So today we're going to walk through the full story of Betty Broderick from the beginning of her marriage to the affair that changed everything, to the legal and emotional battles that followed, and finally to the night that made her one of the most infamous names in true crime history.

SPEAKER_01 2:32

And just a heads up, this one will give you a lot of different feelings, just to all the fields.

SPEAKER_00 2:39

Absolutely. So grab your coffee, grab your wine, and let's get into it. Our story begins in one of the wealthiest neighborhoods in San Diego, California, Marston Hills. And when I say wealthy, I mean the kind of neighborhood where everything is pristine. Massive homes, perfect landscaping, country club money, luxury cars in every driveway, quiet streets, private schools, and the kind of place where appearances matter a lot. And in the early morning hours of November 5th, 1989, that quiet, polished world exploded into violence. At around 5 a.m., multiple gunshots rang out inside the home of one of San Diego's most successful attorneys, Daniel Broderick. When police arrived, they immediately realized this was not a robbery. Nothing had been stolen. There was no forced entry. This was personal. Very personal. Upstairs in the master bedroom, police found 28-year-old Linda Kolkina Broderick dead in her bed. She had been shot multiple times. Beside the bed was Dan Broderick himself, still alive initially, bleeding heavily on the floor. Apparently, he'd attempted to crawl toward the phone after being shot, but the phone cord had been ripped from the wall, which is honestly one of the most savage details in this entire case, because whoever did this made sure that Dan could not call for help. And police very quickly figured out exactly who that person was, his ex-wife, Betty Broderick. And by this point, Betty and Dan's divorce had already become infamous around San Diego. People were obsessed with it. The newspapers covered it constantly, their friends took sides, and the courts were flooded with accusations, legal motions, custody disputes, and screaming fights. Everybody around them knew this situation had become deeply toxic. And honestly, a lot of people later admitted that they feared something like this might eventually happen. Because this wasn't just a divorce. This was psychological warfare and it had been escalating for years. So to understand how this case spiraled into murder, we have to go all the way back to the 1960s, before the mansions, before the affair, before the rage, and before those infamous gunshots. Back when Betty and Dan were just two young Catholic kids with huge dreams. Betty's full name was Elizabeth Ann Bishalia. She grew up in Eastchester, New York in a very traditional Catholic family. And by all accounts, Betty was beautiful, social, outgoing, funny, and charismatic. Meanwhile, Dan Brodrick was almost the complete opposite. People described him as awkward, very serious, kind of nerdy, but intensely ambitious. They met during a Notre Dame football weekend in the mid-1960s. Betty was only around 17 years old at this time. Dan was older and already completely focused on his future. And this is really important context because back then, especially in strict Catholic culture, women were heavily conditioned to believe that their greatest accomplishment in life would be supporting a successful husband. That was considered the dream. And Betty absolutely bought into that mindset. She believed in marriage, in sacrifice, and in building a family together. So when they got married in 1969, Betty basically devoted her entire life to helping Dan become successful. And when I say sacrifice, I mean real sacrifice. At first, Dan attended Cornell Medical School. Money was incredibly tight. The couple lived in tiny apartments and even in Dan's dorm room at school. At one point, one of their babies reportedly slept in a dresser drawer because they could not afford a crib. Yeah. And honestly, that detail becomes important later because Betty constantly returned to those memories emotionally. Because in her mind, she suffered alongside Dan while he built his future. While Dan studied nonstop, Betty worked as a teacher. She sold Avon, she sold Tupperware, she took odd jobs, she managed the home, she raised the children, she handled everything while Dan chased elite degrees. And then Dan suddenly decided that after Betty helped support him through medical school, he didn't even want to practice medicine. He wanted to become a lawyer instead. Which is honestly fucking insane. Like imagine financially and emotionally carrying somebody through medical school only to have them suddenly go, actually, never mind. I want to do law now.

SPEAKER_01 8:20

Imagine it was like your kid and you send them to college and you put them through, I mean, you'd be pissed. Oh, I'd be correct. And that's that's a person that you kind of have more of a responsibility to then she should have been his equal.

SPEAKER_00 8:36

Exactly, exactly. But that was clearly not the case. But she still stayed supportive. I mean, she was completely devoted to Dan and to this family.

SPEAKER_01 8:47

So as far as we know, she didn't have a problem in the switch medical to law.

SPEAKER_00 8:51

I mean, she may have, but ultimately she didn't really voice it or put up any fruit.

SPEAKER_01 8:57

She didn't voice it, but I wonder if that was like the first seed.

SPEAKER_00 9:00

Yeah, it it could have been. That was probably the first, like crack. Yeah. Uh but yeah, she continued to sacrifice because she believed that this was their future, not just his. But during these years, the pressure on Betty became enormous. She was exhausted, overwhelmed, isolated. And one of their children tragically died shortly after birth. After that devastating loss, Betty attempted suicide for the first time, which shows us that the emotional instability and cracks in her mental health existed long before the murders ever happened. Betty later described feeling trapped, cut off from the world, like she had completely lost herself inside the role of wife and mother. And honestly, that becomes one of the biggest psychological themes in this entire case because Betty's identity became completely wrapped up in being Mrs. Dan Broderick. So when the marriage began falling apart, it felt to Betty like she was disappearing too. So by the late 1970s, all those years of sacrifice finally paid off financially. The Brodericks moved to La Jolla, California, and Dan Broderick became extremely successful because his combination of medical knowledge and legal expertise made him incredibly valuable in medical malpractice law. A medical malpractice lawyer is someone that you would turn to if you've experienced medical negligence and want to bring a lawsuit against a doctor or a hospital or some other kind of healthcare provider. So, like for example, imagine a surgeon accidentally leaves a metal surgical tool inside a patient after closing them up. Right. And yeah, that sounds unbelievable and gruesome. No, it happens, but it happens. And we know that it happens because eventually Dan was earning about a million dollars a year handling exactly those kinds of cases. Wow. Which in the early 1980s was an insane amount of money. So suddenly their lives transformed completely. Luxury mansions, country clubs, fancy vacations, private schools, designer clothes, red corvettes, huge social circles. The Rogers became one of San Diego's elite power couples.

SPEAKER_01 11:32

So it does sound like having both degrees really did pay off for him because he had expert knowledge in both. Right.

SPEAKER_00 11:39

Yeah, definitely paid off financially. And from the outside, they looked like the perfect couple. But underneath all the wealth and status, the marriage was starting to rot because success changed Dan a lot. As he became wealthier and more powerful, Benny stopped representing ambition and sacrifice. Now she represented the struggle the years before success, the years when he wasn't rich yet. And eventually another woman entered the picture, Linda Kulkina. Linda was young, beautiful, blonde, a former flight attendant. And according to many people who knew them, Linda looked eerily similar to a younger Betty, which is honestly psychologically dark. And also a tale as old as time.

SPEAKER_01 12:33

Indeed, and she was probably as attracted to the money as she was him.

SPEAKER_00 12:38

Oh yeah, no doubt. So Dan hired Linda as his legal assistant in 1983. Of course he did. Despite reports that she had very little legal experience. Dan suddenly started spending more time at work. At work. Right. At work. So yeah, he was completely obsessing over his appearance during this time as well. He started driving flashy sports cars. Midlife crisis anyone. Mm-hmm. He actually started making disparaging comments to Betty about her age, her weight, and her appearance. What could she do about her age? Right? And this is, like you said, classic midlife crisis behavior. And then came the office party incident, which Betty later described as one of the first moments she knew something was wrong. Dan publicly commented on how beautiful Linda was, and Betty was stunned. Apparently, Dan had never openly admired another woman like that before. But the birthday incident was what truly shattered Betty emotionally. One day, Betty arrived at Dan's office carrying champagne and balloons for his birthday, trying to surprise him, trying to be sweet. She was trying to keep the romance alive after all these years of struggle, yeah. Right. So she gets there and the office is empty, but not really empty, because there were signs that a party had already happened. There was cake, alcohol, decorations, and it looks like Dan and Linda had already celebrated together without Betty. And when Dan came home, he didn't apologize. Instead, according to Betty, he denied everything. He told her that she was crazy, paranoid, imagining things. And this is where the psychological term gaslighting becomes really important in this story, because Betty felt like Dan was trying to make her doubt her own reality. And whether you think Betty was unstable already or not, that kind of emotional manipulation can seriously affect someone psychologically over time, especially someone who may already be struggling emotionally. And eventually, Betty snapped. At one point, she dragged Dan's expensive suits outside, poured gasoline on them, and lit them on fire in the family's barbecue grill. And yeah, honestly, that moment feels symbolic because from that point forward, the marriage became a war, not a relationship. So by 1985, the marriage completely collapsed. And what followed became one of the ugliest divorces California had ever seen. This wasn't just a separation, this was total psychological warfare. And honestly, Dan had a huge advantage immediately because he was an extremely powerful attorney in the area. He understood the legal system better than Betty ever could. Betty later compared the divorce to putting a housewife in the ring with Muhammad Ali. And honestly, that's kind of what it sounds like to me. Dan used the legal system constantly. Every loophole, every filing, every technicality, every delay, and every connection. And of course, he had a lot of them. He worked with those people every day.

SPEAKER_01 16:16

I was thinking I bet she had a hard time trying to find a lawyer because they all probably knew him. Exactly.

SPEAKER_00 16:21

Yeah. So she was she was screwed from the beginning. She never had a chance. Yeah, so she felt completely overwhelmed. And at one point, Dan reportedly manipulated property and debt situations in ways that made it seem like Betty actually owed him money. Oh my goodness. Despite his enormous wealth, which is fucking insane. But one of the cruelest details in this entire case involved Dan allegedly fining Betty for angry voicemail messages. Every time Betty left a vulgar or emotional message on his answering machine, Dan would reportedly deduct money from her support payments, which is fucking humiliating. And the harassment that between them became vicious. According to Betty, she started receiving advertisements in the mail for wrinkle cream and weight loss products, as if someone had intentionally wanted to remind her that she was aging. And then came one of the nastiest alleged moments of all. After Dan married Linda, Betty received one of their wedding photos with a note saying, Eat your heart out, bitch.

SPEAKER_01 17:35

Wow.

SPEAKER_00 17:36

Yeah. Now to be fair, there's debate about certain details in this case, but regardless, the emotional hostility between everyone involved was off the charts. And Betty's behavior became more and more erratic. She actually broke into their home, smashed things, spray painted graffiti, and at one point she took a pie Linda had baked and smeared it all over their bed and all over Dan's clothing.

SPEAKER_01 18:04

Do we know who sent the picture with the notes?

SPEAKER_00 18:08

Reportedly, it was Linda. And reportedly the ads for the wrinkle cream and the weight loss products and all that was also Linda, and Dan was also possibly involved. Because isn't that like poking the bear? It is. It's poking the bear. It's emotional torture, is what it is. Yeah, then came one of the most infamous moments of this entire saga. Betty drove her car through the front door of Dan's house, literally straight through it. And when police arrived, she was basically unapologetic because at this point Betty had become consumed by rage and obsession. And the scary part is that the more unstable Betty became, the more evidence Dan had to portray her as dangerous, which created this horrible cycle. Dan would provoke Betty, Betty would react and explode emotionally, and then Dan would use her explosions against her in court over and over again. And y'all, I found out something while researching this case that I never knew before, and it blew me away. There were also rumors swirling around the case that Dan may have once tried to hire someone to kill Betty during their brutal divorce battle. I had not heard that. That's crazy. Yeah. According to claims, a man allegedly came forward saying that Dan had asked what it would cost to get rid of Betty, though the story was never proven and no charges were ever filed. And he's a lawyer. Mm-hmm. The alleged testimony reportedly never made it fully into court, leaving the claim sitting in that murky gray area between courtroom fact and true crime legend. But still, for many people following the case, the rumor only added to the growing perception that the Broderick's marriage had become dangerously toxic long before the murders ever happened. And sadly, caught directly in the middle of all this chaos were the Broderick children. Always, yeah. Kim, Lee, Daniel, and Rhett. And honestly, these kids went through emotional hell. They were completely traumatized because they were constantly trapped between two parents who hated each other. Betty, desperate to regain control and leverage emotionally, sometimes dropped the children off at Dan's house unexpectedly because she believed he needed to understand how difficult parent parenting actually was. But that strategy backfired badly. Dan eventually gained full custody, and Betty increasingly began looking unstable in court.

SPEAKER_01 20:53

Also, I'm sure the kids are trying to like form a relationship with their new stepmom because they want a peaceful life, right?

SPEAKER_00 21:01

Yeah, I think that they were grasping at anything for any kind of stability and happiness and joy because it had to just be nightmarish day in and day out. But from everything that I've read, and this is something that we can discuss in the after show, neither Linda nor Dan seemed interested in the children. How did you bother with full custody to hurt Betty to hurt Betty? Yeah. That's so sick. It is. But Dan did eventually gain full custody of the children, and Betty just couldn't put up the fight anymore. Like he had all the resources. So nothing left to fight for with the kids gone. Yeah. And the children witnessed, you know, some of the most horrific stuff just the screaming fights, the property destruction, violence, the emotional chaos. And years later, their opinions about Betty became pretty divided. Kim, the oldest daughter, later revealed one of the most haunting details in this. Entire story. After the murders, Betty apparently attempted suicide, but failed because she'd already used all the bullets and the gun. Lee became one of Betty's strongest defenders over the years. At one point, she even offered to let Betty live with her if she were ever released from prison. Meanwhile, Daniel later argued that releasing Betty would be dangerous because he believed the angry Betty personality still existed. Rhett eventually supported Betty's release later in life and said he believed she was no longer a danger to society. And honestly, that split among the children says so much about how psychologically complicated this case really is, because even the people closest to Betty could not fully agree on who she really was.

SPEAKER_01 22:50

And I feel it's unfortunate that the kids weren't all on the same page because if they'd have stuck together, they would at least have had each other.

SPEAKER_00 22:58

Right, because they had no parents now. Oh, pretty much. And you know, I hope that they at least have relationships now. I'm not sure if they do or not. But reportedly they were all still visiting Betty. It's just the relationships varied from child to child.

SPEAKER_01 23:18

I mean, like their relationships with each other. It's just a shame that they weren't able to keep those stable by having different opinions about what happened. Yeah. Because all they had left was each other.

SPEAKER_00 23:30

Exactly. Yeah. So by 1989, the situation had become unbearable. The divorce had dragged on for years. The custody battles continued, the financial disputes continued, and the emotional warfare also continued. Betty's mental state was in shambles. Then on November 4, 1989, Betty reportedly received another legal notice from Dan's attorney. Another threat involving finances and access to the children. Another cold, legalistic reminder that Dan still controlled enormous parts of her life, and something inside Betty finally broke. That night, Betty took a key she'd stolen from one of her daughters and drove to Dan and Linda's home in Marston Hills. Dan knew that Betty was dangerous by this point. Friends had reportedly encouraged him to wear a bulletproof vest at his wedding to Linda. Security had been hired during parts of the divorce because people feared Betty might become violent. But inside his own bedroom, Dan apparently felt safe. Right? They did not even be wearing a bulletproof vest to bed. Well, they didn't even have a security system in their home, which is crazy because Lord knows they had the money. But if you really fear somebody and you think, oh, maybe I should wear a bulletproof vest to my wedding, A, you should definitely have a security system, especially if you're if you're fearing for your children. B, if you think this woman is really violent and a danger to you, why do you keep poking her? Right. That's what I'm saying. That doesn't make any sense to me. But anyway, so at around 5 a.m., Betty entered his house. She moved upstairs carrying a 38 caliber revolver. Dan and Linda were asleep in bed. And Betty opened fire fast, violently. Five shots. Linda was hit multiple times and died almost instantly. Dan was shot while attempting to dive away from the bed, but he didn't die immediately. According to reports, he crawled across the floor trying to reach the phone. And his alleged final words to Betty were, okay, okay, you got me. What? Which honestly is chilling. And and I could be wrong, but to me, these are the words of a man who knows he was getting what he had coming and accepted his fate. And I'm not saying that I believe he deserved to die because I don't. Murder is wrong, period. But I do think that his guilty conscience came through in his final words.

SPEAKER_01 26:33

But the only person that could possibly have reported those final words is Betty. And maybe that's what she wants people to think.

SPEAKER_00 26:42

Maybe. Maybe. I hadn't considered that. I don't I mean, I don't know why she would necessarily lie about that, because she admits to shooting them.

SPEAKER_01 26:51

Well, and it's almost like it justifies her shooting if she says, Oh, his last words were, okay, you've got me. Yeah. You know what I mean? Yeah. Who who else would have been able to report that? Yeah. That has to have come from her.

SPEAKER_00 27:05

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 27:06

And and I'm sure that that's what she hoped he said.

SPEAKER_00 27:09

That's what maybe she heard in my things that I think if she was gonna make something up, she would probably say something like, Oh, I'm sorry, or I don't which I don't know. We who knows? Who knows? Anyway, remember in the beginning when we mentioned the phone had been unplugged from the wall? Betty ripped the phone cord from the wall so that he could not call 911 and then she left. And according to later testimony, Betty eventually put the gun to her own head and pulled the trigger, but the gun was empty. She had used every bullet on Dan and Linda. So now we're moving on to the trial. The trials became a national obsession. People were completely divided over Betty. Some people viewed her as a monster. Others viewed her as a psychologically battered woman who had finally just snapped after years of emotional abuse and humiliation. The defense argued that Betty suffered from what was called battered woman syndrome, not from physical violence, but from years of psychological manipulation and emotional destruction. Meanwhile, prosecutors argued something very different. They said Betty was narcissistic, obsessive, controlling, and enraged that she had lost her wealthy lifestyle and status. The prosecution pointed to several things as evidence of premeditation the stolen key, the gun purchase, shooting lessons, driving to the house in the middle of the night. And I mean, yeah, those are pretty hard facts to overcome legally. The first trial actually ended in a hung jury because people just could not agree on this, which honestly perfectly reflects how divided the public still is about this case even today. But during the second trial in 1991, Betty Broderick was convicted of two counts of second degree murder. She was sentenced to 32 years to life in prison. And just like that, the glamorous La Jolla socialite became inmate Betty Broderick. Now, Betty spent decades in prison at the California Institution for Women, and over the years she became somewhat infamous, even behind bars. People called her Angry Betty. And what's fascinating is that Betty never fully accepted responsibility in the way parole boards wanted her to. She often framed herself as the true victim of the entire story. At one point, she reportedly said, I'm sorry they made me do this, which is honestly a wild statement. Because even decades later, Betty still seemed emotionally trapped inside the war with Dan, and she was denied parole multiple times, including in 2010 and 2017. Parole boards repeatedly argued that Betty still lacked accountability and remained emotionally volatile. Meanwhile, her children remained divided over whether she should ever be released. And then in May of 2026, Betty Broderick died at the age of 78 after spending more than three decades in prison. The once glamorous socialite who had ruled San Diego High Society died as a ward of the state. And there is something incredibly tragic about that entire arc. Not tragic in the sense that what she did was justified, but tragic in the sense that everybody lost in that situation. Dan lost his life, Linda lost her life, the children lost both parents in different ways, and Betty lost herself completely somewhere during those years of obsession and rage. And that's why the Betty Broderick case still fascinates people to this day, because it forces people to confront really uncomfortable questions. What happens when someone builds their entire identity around another person? What happens when resentment festers for years? What happens when emotional warfare goes completely unchecked? And how much psychological damage can someone endure before they finally snap? Now, obviously, nothing justifies murder, but at the same time, this case helped force public conversations about emotional abuse, gaslighting, psychological manipulation, and the devastating emotional fallout of high conflict divorces. I think that's why people are still debating Betty Broderick all these years later, because this case doesn't feel emotionally simple. It feels messy, human, toxic, complicated, heart-wrenching, and horrifying. So yeah, that is the story of Betty and Broderick. Final thoughts?

SPEAKER_01 32:19

I think that there's so much more awareness now of different types of abuse, especially in relationships, that it wouldn't have got to that point in this day and age, hopefully. That's such a good point. Yeah, and hopefully it's cases like this that helped that move forward. I mean, we'll talk in the after show about whether or not we believe, you know, that she was I I don't want to say justified because you can't justify murder, but I as to who was to blame here for what we'll talk about in the after show. But I do believe that in this day and age it wouldn't have got to that point. There would have been more recognition, more help for Betty. She would have been able to stop the harassment she was getting. Like there's much more awareness now.

SPEAKER_00 33:06

Yeah, and I generally I think things now are not quite so lopsided in favor of men. I mean, we have a very long way to go, you guys. Don't get this twisted. But a lot of women now know better. They've learned from these mistakes not to wrap your identity, your freedom, your finances in with another person, with a man, because if he gets tired of you and goes for a younger version of you and leaves you high and dry, and you have no money and no skills to make money, what are you gonna do?

SPEAKER_01 33:43

Which I think is the is the world that she grew up in. Right. That's how she was raised. That's not the world that we live in now.

SPEAKER_00 33:50

Right. And thank God. Thank God we've made at least that progress. But yeah, if you enjoyed today's episode, make sure to follow Deadly Divas wherever you get your podcasts and on social media. Leave us a review and share this episode with your fellow true crime divas and dudes. And we want to know your thoughts on Betty Broderick because we already know these opinions are going to be divided, and that's just fine. But do you think that she's just evil? Or do you think that years of psychological abuse pushed her past the breaking point? Let us know. Now, as always, thank you so much for listening and take care of yourselves in this crazy world. And we will see all of you subscribers in the after show and the rest of you for next week's case.

SPEAKER_01 34:41

All right. Yeah. Um, definitely if you want to hear these after shows, you basically get double the amount of episodes. You get to hear us talk about how we feel about each case, um, more of our opinions rather than just telling you the story and uh more tidbits that maybe we didn't make in.

SPEAKER_00 35:00

The four dollars a month, but we're biased, but you can also trust us.

SPEAKER_01 35:05

I mean, that's a dollar a week.

SPEAKER_00 35:06

Come on now. Much less than your Starbucks or whatever. Right. All right, guys, until next time, be divas.

SPEAKER_01 35:16

Not deadly, no matter how hard you're pushed by your ex-husband.

SPEAKER_00 35:20

Just leave him. Take half of what he's got and leave him. Bye. Bye.