Court rejects appeal of woman in murder-for-hire case

HARTFORD, Conn. (AP) — A court has rejected the appeal of a Connecticut woman convicted in a 1994 murder-for-hire case that landed her in prison for life and was depicted in books and TV shows.

Three judges on the Connecticut Appellate Court disagreed with Beth Carpenter’s argument that her trial lawyer made mistakes, including not securing a plea deal and not having an expert witness examine her before the trial.

Carpenter intends to appeal the ruling to the Connecticut Supreme Court, according to her attorney.

Carpenter, now 53, was convicted of murder and conspiracy in 2002 for plotting with her lover and boss, Haiman Clein, to kill her brother-in-law, Anson “Buzz” Clinton.

Carpenter and her parents believed Clinton, a onetime exotic dancer, was abusing his 3-year-old stepdaughter, who was Carpenter’s niece.

Clinton was shot to death in 1994 in East Lyme. Carpenter, a former lawyer and Ledyard resident, fled to Ireland after the killing and was arrested there in 1997.

At least two books have been written about the case, “Murder: A Family Affair” by Ernest Dorling, and “Lethal Guardian” by M. William Phelps. It also has been the subject of several television true-crime shows.