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Updated March 16, 2006, 12:17 p.m. ET

Girlfriends: Doctor talked incessantly about killing his business rival
Bradley Schwartz
Ophthamologist Bradely Schwartz is accused of hiring a hit man to murder his rival doctor.

TUCSON, Ariz. — When it came to women, it seems accused killer Dr. Bradley Schwartz moved quickly.

He met Lilliana Bibb on the online dating site Match.com in 2004. Within a week, the two were in bed together. She claims that after three weeks, he asked her to help him find a hit man. And soon after that, the relationship was over.

With Lisa Goldberg, the two were sleeping together just as quickly. By the third date, Schwartz professed his love, and there was talk of engagement rings. But by the fifth date, she was his alibi after his former business partner Dr. Brian Stidham was murdered.

With the Tucson cops asking her to wear hidden microphones every time she met Schwartz, their relationship went downhill from there.


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On Wednesday, Goldberg and Bibb were the first of several of Schwartz's former love interests to testify about his actions in the months leading up to, and the night of, Stidham's brutal slaying.

Schwartz remained stoic during the testimony, and when the two women identified their former lover Wednesday as the man in the brown suit across the courtroom from them, he showed no emotion.

Prosecutors say the 41-year-old pediatric ophthalmologist hired Ronald "Bruce" Bigger, a former patient and small-time criminal, to kill Stidham — also a pediatric ophthalmologist and Schwartz's former partner — and to make it look like a carjacking.

Stidham's body was discovered on Oct. 5, 2004, in the parking lot outside his office. The 37-year-old father of three was stabbed more than 15 times and his 1992 Lexus was found miles away from the scene.

Key to the prosecution's case is the testimony of Schwartz's numerous former girlfriends, who are expected to speak about the defendant's obsession with harming Stidham, whom he allegedly blamed for a drop in business after Stidham opened up his own practice while Schwartz was in drug rehab.

Both Schwartz and Bigger are charged with first-degree murder and first-degree conspiracy to commit murder, though they are being tried separately.

Bibb, who dated Schwartz several months before Stidham's murder, told jurors that her former boyfriend spoke constantly about ways to hurt his rival doctor.

"He wanted to have his eyes poked out or his fingers broken, so he couldn't perform surgery," Bibb said. "He also said he wanted him six feet under. He felt that Dr. Stidham stole his practice."

Bibb said Schwartz once drove her to Stidham's offices to show her how he had cased the area.

"He drove me down there and told me that there were no cameras outside any of the buildings surrounding the medical plaza," she told jurors.

When Schwartz kept asking her to find a hit man, Bibb said she began to lose interest — but led the doctor on anyway to get Schwartz to pay her $350 rent that month.

"I didn't want to stop dating him before I got something out of him," she testified.

Goldberg offered the most detailed testimony yet about Schwartz's behavior on the night of Stidham's murder. While the two were eating at a tiny storefront Thai restaurant, Bigger was across town killing Schwartz's rival, prosecutors say.

Goldberg said Schwartz received three calls during the dinner and then told her "a friend from rehab with car issues" was going to join them. The friend turned out to be Bigger.

Those phone calls, investigators say, were made from a convenience store near Stidham's office and from a cab driver's cellphone while Bigger was on the way to the restaurant.

Bigger's only car issue seemed to be that he didn't have one, and he made for a very odd third wheel to the diner date, Goldberg said.

"[Bigger] appeared to be on drugs," she told jurors. "His eyes were huge. He was agitated, fidgety."

Because Goldberg and Schwartz were at the end of their meal, Bigger ordered a beer, picked at their leftovers, and repeatedly apologized for his dirty fingernails, Goldberg testified.

Several days later, Goldberg learned from Schwartz that Stidham was killed that night.

"I felt he did it," Goldberg said. "But he said that he had nothing to gain from that and that I was his alibi."

Soon after, Goldberg was asked by police to wear a microphone and to try and get the defendant to speak about the murder. She refused and eventually told Schwartz about the investigation.

Goldberg agreed to testify only after a promise of immunity from prosecution.

On cross-examination, both Goldberg and Bibb admitted that Schwartz always denied any involvement with Stidham's murder and said that they never believed the charming doctor would ever follow through with his threats.

"I didn't take him seriously. I didn't think someone would actually do that," Bibb said.

Court TV Extra is streaming the trial live on the Web.

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Eye Doctor Murder Trial
Ariz. v. Schwartz


Watch the trial


May 3, 2006:
Defendant found guilty

April 27, 2006:
Jury deliberates

April 13, 2006:
Medical examiner admits error

April 5, 2006:
DNA not a definitive link, expert testifies

April 3, 2006:
Defense attacks state's timeline

March 28, 2006:
Possible DNA link on car radio?

March 23, 2006:
Jurors visit crime scene

March 22, 2006:
Defense calls for mistrial

March 17, 2006:
Claim: Man asked lover's husband to attack rival

March 16, 2006:
Doctor talked about killing rival, say witnesses

March 10, 2006:
Jury gets lesson in 'whacking'

March 9, 2006:
Doctor killed in car, witness says

March 8, 2006:
Opening statements

Case background




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