Viswa Vanapalli
When Bill Stout was found dead in his bedroom, his partner, Anne, seemed to be devastated. But the mourning wife was arrested just days later when evidence pointed to her involvement. NBC News’ ‘Dateline: The Box’ delves into Bill Stout’s shocking murder and how the authorities followed the evidence that led to Anne. So, if you’re curious to find out what happened and where Anne might be today, we’ve got you covered.
Who is Anne Stout?
Anne Marie Stout was born in California, growing up in a household of seven. By the time she was four, her father was out of her life. Anne married Bill Stout sometime in the 1980s, and by then, she already had a son, Ben, from a previous relationship. Anne and Bill went on to have two sons of their own — Noah and Matthew, with one the younger one living with them in Montana at the time of the incident.
Sadly, Ben killed himself when he was 19 back in 2000, which caused a great rift in the couple’s relationship. For reasons unknown, Bill reportedly blamed Anne for it, and the two argued and fought a lot after that. Sometime in 2005, Bill traveled to Arkansas to attend a wedding where he had an affair with Barbara Miller, a former girlfriend. When Anne found out about it later, she confronted Bill, who agreed to end things with Barbara.
On June 10, 2007, Anne returned home from a shopping trip with their younger son only to find Bill dead from a gunshot wound. She told police that she left him sleeping in their bed and headed out with their son sometime after 8 am. Anne returned late in the afternoon, and the son corroborated her statements. However, the autopsy showed that Bill had died the previous night, bringing Anne’s version of events into question. Anne said that she was alone with Bill on June 9 and had made dinner for him. The couple had sex before going to sleep, but the authorities believed that Anne killed Bill after that.
The murder weapon was a gun that Bill reported stolen a few days prior. The holster was found in a laundry hamper in addition to a latex glove with gunshot residue on the outside and Anne’s DNA on the inside. The gun, with no fingerprints on it, was in the garage. On Anne’s nightstand, the authorities found what looked like instructions to fire a gun, but she claimed they were just steps to help her son do laundry. Anne’s computer history had searches for poisoning people, killing, and putting a person to sleep. Regarding that, Anne maintained it was Bill who searched them up.
The authorities also learned about Bill’s family and friends receiving several harassing emails and letters in 2005 and 2006, seemingly from Barbara. However, the investigation revealed they were all sent by Anne. The police found letters in her car similar to the ones from before. They only contained Anne’s DNA, fingerprints, and palm prints. A handwriting expert compared the writing on one of these letters to Anne’s and believed it was she who wrote the letter. Furthermore, the source of the email accounts sending the harassing emails was traced to Anne’s work computer, with some messages even being sent from the home computer.
Where is Anne Stout Today?
Anne Stout maintained that she had nothing to do with the murder and took the stand in her own defense in June 2008. She said, “My life was very happy with Bill. We had a good life together. We were making plans to possibly move up to Bigfork (Montana), making plans for vacation and building a new house.” Nevertheless, the overwhelming evidence meant the jury found her guilty of murder.
In September 2008, a judge sentenced Anne Marie Stout, then 43, to life in prison. Records indicate that she remains incarcerated at the Montana Women’s Prison in Billings, Yellowstone County. As per the show, Anne will be eligible for parole in 2038.
Read More: Where is Noah Stout Now?
