Dirty John: The Betty Broderick Story, the second season of the series, premiered on the USA Network on June 2, 2020, and is now available on Netflix. The season showcases the real-life story of Dan and Betty Broderick.
In a headline-making incident, Betty fatally shot Dan and his new wife, Linda Kolkena, while they were asleep.
The couple endured a highly publicized and acrimonious divorce lasting five years and had four children together: Kim, Lee, Daniel Jr., and Rhett.
In her 2015 memoir, Betty unveiled that the ending she had envisioned for her family was not what transpired. She expressed her disappointment, emphasizing that it was not the outcome she had hoped for.
“I hold an unwavering affection for my children from the beginning of the day till its end, and that sentiment remains unchanged. They were my priority, and I earnestly desired them to experience a joyful and contented childhood.”
During the couple’s 1989 divorce, Dan obtained full custody of all four children. Betty revealed in her memoir that she had been pregnant nine times throughout her 16-year marriage to Dan. She disclosed that her husband had prohibited her from using birth control.
As adults, Kimberly Broderick, Lee Broderick, Daniel Broderick IV, and Rhett Broderick, the couple’s children, have openly discussed their challenging upbringing. Betty’s daughters, Kim and Lee, testified during their mother’s criminal trial in 1991.
Sadly, the ongoing tension between their parents culminated in a tragic outcome. In 1989, Betty took the lives of her ex-husband, Dan, and his new wife, Linda Kolkena. Betty received a prison sentence and remains incarcerated to this day.
Since the murders occurred, the couple’s children have matured, gotten married, and maintained a close bond with one another.
Based on their Facebook profiles, it can be observed that Kim, Lee, and Rhett currently reside near each other in Idaho. However, they have different perspectives regarding their mother’s inheritance.
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The Broderick Children’s Growing Families Behind Prison Walls
After Betty’s imprisonment, three of her children started their own families. In 2009, Betty shared a family photo taken in prison with an L.A. Magazine reporter.
The picture included herself, her four children, and her two granddaughters, showcasing a family that has expanded over the years.
Kim, Dan, and Rhett, who are now married, have daughters of their own, whom Betty has never seen outside the confines of the prison walls.
An article in Inside Weddings covering Dan’s marriage omits any mention of his parents or their history.
However, it does include a remarkable statement about their influence on his life: “During his heartfelt speech, Dan took a moment of silence to honour all the loved ones who couldn’t be there.”
Heartwarming Sibling Bond: Kim’s Facebook Post Celebrates Unbreakable Connection
On National Siblings Day in 2020, Kim expressed her deep affection for her siblings through a heartfelt Facebook post: “My all-time favs. Couldn’t do life without you.”
Kim’s public Facebook page indicates that she resides near her beloved siblings, Lee and Rhett, in Idaho.
Rhett Broderick: A Familiar Tale of Tragedy and Warning Signs
Rhett, the youngest of the four Broderick children, learned about the death of his father and stepmother from a family friend.
For the Brodericks, being interviewed by Oprah is akin to a rite of passage. In 1992, Betty Broderick was interviewed by Oprah in prison, and later, Rhett, Betty’s youngest son, also spoke with her.
Rhett recalled that he wasn’t surprised by his mother’s drastic actions. “I just remember thinking, ‘Wow.’ It didn’t come as a shock. On multiple occasions, my brother and I went to my dad and expressed our desire to live with our mom. We told him that not having her kids was driving her crazy and that she could do something irrational if she didn’t have us,” Rhett said.
Rhett experienced multiple instances of being sent to live with family relatives or attending boot camps for troubled kids during childhood.
Following his mother’s arrest, Rhett, and Daniel relocated to Colorado to live with Kathy Broderick, the ex-wife of their uncle Larry Broderick.
Rhett informed Oprah that the subsequent years were turbulent as he moved between relatives and attended boot camps for troubled teens.
Betty Broderick’s Presence in Her Children’s Lives Behind Bars
When Betty received a 32-year-to-life sentence in a California prison in 1991, her youngest child was only 12. In a 1998 interview with the San Diego Reader, Betty revealed how she remained involved in her kids’ lives.
Kim released her book “Betty Broderick, My Mom: The Kim Broderick Story” in 2014, sharing her perspective on how she and her siblings navigated the aftermath.
In her book, Kim describes her visits to her mother in prison as “the worst heartache and sorrow imaginable,” second only to the pain of her father’s murder.
Children Divided: Betty Broderick’s Parole Hearing Reveals Family Conflict
In 2010, Betty’s children testified at her parole hearing and expressed differing opinions on whether she should be released.
During the parole hearing, Lee directly addressed the board, advocating for her mother’s freedom. She passionately expressed her belief that Betty should be able to spend her remaining years outside prison.
In a previous interview with Oprah, Rhett expressed a similar view. He said that keeping Betty in prison didn’t make sense because she wasn’t a danger to society. He emphasized that her actions had only harmed the two people who had died.
During the same period, Dan Broderick expressed his opposition to his mother’s release in an interview with CBS.
He strongly believed that his mother, despite being fundamentally good, had gone astray, and releasing her back into society could result in serious consequences. Additionally, according to NBC, Kim Broderick testified against her mother’s discharge during the proceedings.
Kim Broderick Testifies: Revealing Betty’s Deterioration During the Trial
Kim Broderick testified in her mother’s trial, shedding light on the extent of Betty’s decline throughout the lengthy five-year divorce process.
Kim recounted a particular incident where Betty burned Dan’s clothing in the yard, illustrating the situation’s intensity.
The divorce strained Kim’s bond with her mother, who allegedly exhibited careless and cruel behaviour towards her. Kim vividly remembers the day her mother was scheduled to visit her apartment but abruptly cancelled.
“Out of nowhere, I remembered her saying, ‘I just hate your guts,'” Kim recounted. “You betrayed me. You make me sick.”
Lee Testifies in Court about Betty’s Call After the Shooting
Lee, the second-oldest Broderick child, took the stand in court and provided testimony regarding the immediate aftermath of the shooting incident.
Lee was the first person her mother contacted after firing the gun at Dan’s home. According to reports, Betty told Lee on the call, “The bitch is dead.”
During Betty’s criminal trial in 1991, Lee testified following her sister, Kim. She vividly recalled the distressing phone call she received from her mother in November 1989. “She told me she was in trouble and needed help. She confessed to shooting my father,” Lee recounted during the trial.
Lee’s relationship with her father was tense. Reportedly, Dan changed his will before his demise, excluding his second daughter from inheriting any portion of his wealth.
However, the motive behind this decision was attributed to Lee’s academic challenges and drug involvement rather than her relationship with her mother.
Lee Advocates for Her Mother’s Release Despite Trial Involvement
Despite being involved in the trial, Lee actively advocated for her mother’s release in 2010. Expressing her longing for her late father, she assured the parole board that she would welcome her to live with her if her mother were released.
“She should be able to live her later life outside prison walls,” Lee emphasized, as The San Diego Union-Tribune reported.
Betty asserts that Lee bears the closest resemblance to her in terms of personality and traits.
Betty Broderick’s Unconventional Marriage Revealed in Memoir
According to Betty’s memoir, she became pregnant nine times during her 16-year-long marriage to Dan Broderick. As she reveals in her memoir, Dan opposed the use of birth control by her.
Ultimately, the couple bore four children. During Dan’s time in school on the East Coast, with degrees from Cornell Medical School and Harvard Law School, his daughters, Kimberly and Lee, were born. In California, their sons, Daniel and Rhett, were born.
Additionally, Betty experienced the loss of a son shortly after birth and underwent two miscarriages and two abortions. Following the birth of her fourth son, Betty underwent a tubal ligation to prevent future pregnancies.
Betty Remains Incarcerated for Life at California Institution for Women
Betty is alive and confined in the California Institution for Women in Chino. She will be imprisoned for the remainder of her life.
The California parole board, comprising only two members, decided in January 2017 to deny her release from prison.
Regarding the decision, District Attorney Richard Sachs stated, “Betty Broderick remains an unrepentant woman. She doesn’t feel sorry or comprehend the gravity of the killings.”
However, according to reports, Betty wrote a letter to the producer of the actual crime TV show, Murder Made Me Famous, seeking to feature the murder.
In the letter, she stated, “I have no one advocating for me. This case involved domestic abuse: a consistent pattern of coercive control that persisted throughout our marriage until the day I took their lives.”
She further said,
“I fulfilled all the requirements for parole. Now, I am nothing more than a political prisoner. They lack any valid justification to deny my parole.”
Betty Broderick has learned from her life that one harsh decision can make life hell for oneself and cause suffering for the people around them.
