KALAMAZOO, Mich. (Court TV) — A Michigan woman has been found guilty of all charges related to the death of her husband, who was beaten, set on fire, and run over with a van.
Linda Stermer appears in court Tuesday, April 8, 2025. (Court TV)
Linda Stermer was convicted of first-degree premeditated murder and first-degree felony murder. Her sentencing has been scheduled for May 19.
This was Stermer’s second trial. She was initially sentenced in 2010 to life without parole, but that conviction was overturned in 2018 after her attorneys successfully argued that she did not receive a fair trial.
According to prosecutors, Linda hit Todd Stermer with an object in his sleep on the night of Jan. 7, 2007, before setting the blaze at their Lawrence, Michigan, home. Todd managed to run out the front door with his upper body engulfed in flames before Linda allegedly ran him over.
According to documents obtained by Court TV, Todd was determined to have died from a combination of blunt-force injuries and thermal injuries. He had sustained four lacerations to the scalp and two rib fractures before being burned. Investigators concluded that Todd had been run over when they discovered his blood on the van’s bumper.
At her 2010 trial, Linda was convicted of first-degree premeditated murder and felony murder. However, she maintains she was in the basement doing laundry when the fire broke out.
DAILY TRIAL UPDATES
DAY 11 – 4/12/25
- A jury of 7 men and 5 women found Linda Stermer guilty of premeditated murder and felony murder after deliberating for about seven and half hours. In finding her guilty of both counts, the jury found that she not only plotted her husband’s death but deliberately set the fire that ultimately killed him.
- The judge ordered everyone in the gallery to remain in the courtroom while jurors were escorted out of the building, a request they made to avoid questions from the media.
Following the verdict’s announcement, the judge revoked Stermer’s bond, she was handcuffed and led out of the courtroom in tears. Her husband Arthur Breen, whom she married just weeks before the trial vowed to appeal. - Her daughter Ashley Gibson who stood by her mother while her brothers testified against her said her mother did not get a fair trial and vowed to continue supporting her in spite of the jury’s findings.
- Defense Attorney Wolf Mueller said he was surprised and deeply disappointed in the verdict. He said he did not believe the state had proven arson and reiterated that there was reasonable doubt as to his client’s guilt.
- Linda’s sons Trenton Stermer and Cory Pierce declined to be interviewed. Cory said he was grateful for the verdict and wished to thank the jury before he left the courthouse.
- Stermer is facing life without parole. The judge set sentencing for May 19.
DAY 10 – 4/11/25
DAY 9 – 4/10/25
- VIDEO: MI v. Linda Stermer Day 9 | Battered & Burned Murder Trial
- Defense rested after Linda Stermer acknowledged her constitutional rights and declined to testify in her own defense.
- Prosecutor Susan Zuiderveen closed for the state arguing that the defendant made multiple statements to investigators, neighbors and family members and her stories about the fire changed frequently becoming more elaborate over time.
- Zuiderveen argued the fire was intentionally set because investigators smelled gasoline on Todd Stermer and his clothes tested positive for the presence of the accelerant.
- Zuiderveen argued Linda’s actions reflected premeditation, she filled a gas can the morning of the fire, got her kids and her valuables out of the house, knocked her husband out with the frying pan and while he was incapacitated set up her alibi by leaving the house. The state claimed the fast-moving fire may have taken Linda by surprise. .
- The prosecutor argued that when Linda realized that her husband survived the fire she feared he would talk so she ran him over with the van and when that didn’t kill him immediately, she lay on top of him and put her hands over his mouth to silence him.
- Defense attorney Wolf Mueller made his case for reasonable doubt with the mantra, “no arson, no crime.” Mueller argued the state cannot prove that the fire was intentionally set, and its fire investigator Scott Leroy failed to conduct a proper investigation making his opinion unreliable.
- Mueller said Linda had no financial motive to kill her husband. She did not think she had insurance money coming to her because they had let their homeowner’s police lapse.
- Mueller reminded jurors that Todd Stermer died from thermal burns, and not from the impact of the van. He noted that the van did not cause his death nor did it cause the fire. He explained that Linda was not setting up her alibi by ‘escaping in the van’ as the prosecutor suggested but was trying to get help. She had not shoes, or coat when she fled.
- Mueller played the 911 call again in which Linda could be heard wailing in the background. He suggested that Connie Calhoun, the neighbor who made the call was panicked even though it was not her house burning, or her husband dying. He suggested that Linda’s wailing reflected the extent of trauma she suffered that day.
- WATCH: Building Inspector Testifies Stermer Home Was at Risk For Fire
DAY 8 – 4/9/25
- VIDEO: MI v. Linda Stermer Day 8 | Battered & Burned Murder Trial
- Defense fire investigator Robert Trenkle said the inadequacy of the state’s investigation, coupled with the total destruction of the house, leaves him with no choice but to conclude the cause of the fire was “undetermined.”
- Trenkle said he had “little to no confidence” in state fire investigator Scott Leroy’s opinion that the fire was intentionally set in the living room based on:
- Leroy’s failure to excavate (sift through debris in) the basement, including portions of the living room that collapsed into the basement
- Leroy’s failure to document other areas he excavated in writing or through photographs
- Leroy’s failure to consider alternate or opposing hypotheses (which goes against industry standards/scientific methods)
- Leroy’s failure to try to disprove his hypothesis (which goes against industry standards/scientific methods)
- Lack of supporting evidence for gasoline as an accelerant
- Lack of supporting evidence for the wide area of origin Leroy delineated, which goes against scientific methods indicating an area of origin should be as small as possible
- Trenkle said Leroy disregarded scientific methods by relying on the presence of gasoline on Todd’s sweatpants to conclude gasoline was in the house without considering other explanations for how gasoline could have been transferred onto the pants (neighbors and first responders moved Todd in a boat around the property before Leroy arrived; the pants were placed in a bag with other clothing items)
- Trenkle said a more likely explanation for the fire’s origin was the chimney chase, based on photos of the charred fireplace and witness statements that flames were coming from the back of the roof.
- Defense showed two demonstrative videos of Trenkle setting fire with a match to polyester sweatpants (similar to the ones Todd was wearing) to suggest the pants would have melted if they were doused in gasoline:
- Pants without gasoline – The pants briefly caught fire, a hole was burned into them, then the flame disappeared
- Pants doused with gasoline – Went up in flames quickly, then melted
- Mariusz Ziejewski, PH.D. Professor, North Dakota University, Biomechanics specialty: Analyzed the victim’s injuries and determined the lacerations to Todd Stermer’s head were consistent with a single event coming into contact with the undercarriage of the van.
- Injuries are consistent with his head being on level with the van’s bumper when impact occurred.
- Estimates the van was traveling at a speed of 5 miles/p/hr or less when Stermer was struck – agrees that the injuries were non-fatal.
- On cross, he agreed that it’s possible that the injuries to Todd’s head were caused by blunt force (frying pan), but opined that it was speculative.
- Gregory Stormzand, retired MSP Fire Investigator
- Assisted Scott Leroy in the investigation of the fire at Stermer home
- Does not recall participating in any type of excavation at the Stermer home.
- If he had he may have written a supplemental report, or the lead investigator would have included his findings in his report.
DAY 7 – 4/8/25
- VIDEO: MI v. Linda Stermer Day 7 | Battered & Burned Murder Trial
- Linda and Todd Stermer’s son, Trenton Stermer, described a volatile home with talk of separation and divorce before the fire.
- Trenton said that he wanted to say goodbye to his father the morning of the fire, when Linda sent him and his brothers to the movies, but Linda stopped him, pulling his arm and then pushing him out the door.
- Trenton said that when he questioned Linda after she had told him multiple versions of what happened, she became angry and attacked him, giving him a bloody nose and ordering his older brother, Trevor, to beat him up.
- Trenton claimed he had been coached for what to say to police and insurance investigators about his parents’ relationship and what happened the day of the fire.
- When asked if his mother every made any comments about his father before the fire, Trenton said that his mother once told him, “Wouldn’t it be better if he was dead?”
- The defense requested a mistrial, saying they were not told that Trenton would be testifying to the comment. The judge denied the motion for a mistrial but told the jury to disregard the comment and it was stricken from the record.
- WATCH: Linda Stermer’s Son Makes ‘Explosive’ & ‘Detrimental’ Statement At Trial
- Trevor Stermer, Linda and Todd Stermer’s elder son, testified that he had heard his parents fighting over finances and Linda’s alleged infidelity.
- As Trevor described the day of the fire and returning to find the house in flames, Linda could be seen wiping away tears.
- Trevor said that any time he asked about the fire Linda would become upset and would be hysterical and crying until he dropped the issue. He corroborated Trenton’s report of being attacked after accusing Linda of changing her story. Trevor said Linda asked him to silence his brother if he heard him make further accusations.
- Trevor denied hating his mother, saying that he doesn’t hold hate in his heart. He said he was “horrified” by his mother.
- WATCH: Son Says Linda Stermer Told Him to ‘Silence’ Brother Over Accusations
- Prosecutors rested their case-in-chief.
- The defense called insurance adjuster Len McHugh to the stand, who was assigned as the adjuster for State Farm after the fire at the Stermers’ home.
- McHugh said that most of his conversations with Linda centered on the items that were in the rooms and destroyed by the fire. He described her as calm and cooperative when talking about the fire, and only showed emotion when asked about hitting Todd with the van.
- Cassandra Grigg, a family friend, said that when she was at the Stermer home approximately four weeks before the fire, she did not see working smoke detectors but rather saw holes and hanging wires.
- Arson investigator Robert Trenkle testified to the investigation into the fire and said that there was insubstantial documentation for the excavation of the home.
DAY 6 – 4/4/25
- VIDEO: MI v. Linda Stermer Day 6 | Battered & Burned Murder Trial
- Steve Willison, an attorney for the Stermers’ insurance company, returned to the stand. He testified that Linda told him she had been frustrated with Todd and said Linda appeared to take every opportunity to make Todd the bad guy.
- Willison said that Linda said Todd was addicted to Vicodin and marijuana and accused him of domestic violence. While Linda said that Todd was having affairs she denied ever being unfaithful.
- Willison highlighted a number of discrepancies between the versions of the stories Linda told him.
- WATCH: Insurance Lawyer Diagrams Linda Stermer’s Account of House Fire
- Willison said that in a second interview, Linda’s account of Todd forcing himself on her was “less rapey” and more just a “desire for sex.”
- Brad Stermer, Todd’s older brother, said Linda told the family that Todd dismantled the smoke alarms in the house. That surprised Brad, who had laid the wiring for the alarms and saw them at Christmas a few weeks earlier.
- Brad testified that he felt Linda’s 30-plus horses were a strain on the family’s resources and represented Linda’s disregard for the family and that she wasn’t “pulling her weight.”
- Chris Williams, a coworker from Linda’s trucking company, took the stand to testify that he had an affair with Linda beginning in 2006 and ending a week or two after the fire.
- Williams said that Linda got his phone number from a coworker and began “blowing up” his phone and popping up at the store to see him.
- Williams said Linda told him briefly about the fire, and the two ended their relationship at the advice of her attorney. At some point, Williams said Linda brought him to the house to see the ruins.
- WATCH: Linda Stermer’s Lover Says She Was Angry With Todd About Trading Van
- Katherine Fox, a friend of Linda’s, testified that she knew about Linda’s affair with Williams and had heard Linda’s claims that Todd was abusive.
- Fox said that Linda previously talked about ways to get rid of her husband — including poisoning him, shooting him or running him over with a car.
- When Fox asked Linda about the fire, Linda refused to talk about it per her attorney’s advice, but admitted to hitting Todd with her vehicle because it was smokey and she didn’t see him while trying to go for help.
- Fox said that the two stopped being friends after Linda borrowed money from her and refused to pay it back.
- WATCH: Friend: Linda Stermer Talked About Ways To Get Rid Of Todd
- Attorneys read the transcript for the former testimony of inmate Dardita Gordon, who is deceased.
- Gordon said Linda initially denied killing her husband but later admitted to her that she gave him medication, hit him with an object and started the fire.
- Cory Lee Pierce, the Stermers’ nephew whom they raised as a son, said that the couple had been fighting after Todd accused Linda of cheating. Pierce said that Linda then sent him and his brothers out of the house to the movies to not hear them fight, but said the couple was splitting up and one would be moving out.
DAY 5 – 4/3/25
- VIDEO: MI v. Linda Stermer Day 5 | Battered & Burned Murder Trial
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Retired Michigan State Fire Investigator Scott Leroy defended his opinion that the fire started in the Stermer living room, where Todd Stermer was when he started yelling “fire” (according to Linda), based largely on the presence of gasoline on Todd’s sweatpants and the burn pattern on his body. Leroy admitted to things he would have differently given his 18 years of experience since the Stermer investigation, but said he’d reach the same conclusion.
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Connie Deloach, the gas station cashier who waited on Linda Stermer hours before the fire, said she saw Linda insert the gas nozzle into the rear window of her Blazer, but did not see where the gas went. Deloach said she didn’t think anything of it at the time because customers sometimes purchased gas in cans.
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Steve Willison, attorney for the Stermers’ insurance company, started reading from the transcript of his interview with Linda, in which he asked about marital discord and she accused her husband of abuse.
DAY 4 – 4/2/25
- VIDEO: MI v. Linda Stermer Day 4 | Battered & Burned Murder Trial
- Connie Calhoun, who was detained for failing to show up for her testimony last week, was called to the stand to testify about what Linda told her happened after the fire broke out at the Stermer house.
- Calhoun had difficulty recalling many details and needed to be prompted with a review of her previous testimony. Calhoun said that Linda told her she was in the basement doing laundry when she heard Todd scream. She also testified that in another conversation with Linda, the defendant told her she had hit Todd with the van.
- Calhoun became emotional at times and testified that the incident was so traumatic, she tried to block it out.
- Scott Leroy, retired Fire Investigator with the Michigan State Police, photographed the scene — including Todd as he appeared at the scene. He said he collected the victim’s clothing because he detected the odor of a liquid accelerant on Todd’s sweatpants. The items that Scott was wearing were eventually tested and results indicated positive for gasoline.
- Leroy described his methodology for determining cause and origin of the fire. His practice was to examine the least burned area first then move on the most burned areas. He showed jurors a series of photos that he took of the house displaying photo after photo of burned parts of the house. He told jurors that the flooring separating the main floor from basement had burned away and collapsed. His testimony resumes Thursday.
DAY 3 – 4/1/25
- VIDEO: MI v. Linda Stermer Day 3 | Battered & Burned Murder Trial
- Insurance company fire investigator James Shinsky read aloud parts of his interview with Linda Stermer, a wide-ranging discussion about her plans to leave her husband, the events leading up to the fire, her mixed accounts of what she saw of the fire, and possible causes of the fire. Linda suggested Todd set the fire in an effort to kill them both.
- On cross, the defense pressed Shinsky to explain why the Stermers’ marital issues and finances were relevant to his investigation in what seemed like an attempt to suggest Shinsky was trying to build an arson case around Linda Stermer.
- Dep. Don Goulooze introduced crime scene diagrams that showed the victim’s body within tire tracks. On cross, Goulooze agreed that the diagrams may not accurately reflect the location of Todd Stermer’s body when the car struck him.
- Michigan State Police forensic biologist David Hayhurst identified pictures of reddish-brown stains on the front and undercarriage of the Stermers’ vehicle, including a spare tire. Four of the stains tested positive for blood.
- On cross, Hayhurst agreed the locations of stains suggests the truck was moving forward when it struck the source of the stains.
- Retired MSP serologist Anne Hunt said four of six stains found on the car were consistent with Todd Stermer’s known DNA sample.
- MSP trace evidence and fire debris analyst Troy Ernst identified the presence of gasoline on several pieces of clothing collected from Linda and Todd Stermer.
DAY 2 – 3/28/25
- VIDEO: MI v. Linda Stermer Day 2 | Battered & Burned Murder Trial
- Neighbors Kim and Ken Thompson were asked to watch the van when they went to the Stermer house to see if they could help in any way. When they noticed blood on the driver’s side fender, Kim Thompson thought, ‘something’s not right.’
- Kim Thompson testified Linda told her different things about what had happened:
- She had given Todd Benadryl because he had a cold and he was sleeping so he could not get out
- She was doing laundry and heard something, then saw the fire and escaped through the basement walkout to go get help
- Todd was smoking pot and lit himself on fire
- She saw Todd outside when she was going to get help
- Linda never mentions that she struck Todd with the van.
- WATCH: Witness: Linda Stermer Also Said Todd Caught on Fire While ‘Smoking Pot’
- Ken Thompson testified that Linda appeared incoherent and was crying. When he asked Linda multiple times where the children were, she did not respond and when he was going to go inside the house to check, she told him that the children were not in the house.
- Dr. Michael Markey the forensic pathologist who performed the autopsy on Todd Stermer testified that the cause of death were thermal burns and smoke inhalation on cross he said that head injuries and lacerations to his arm and back are consistent with being struck by the van but in his opinion those injuries did not contribute to his death. He ruled the manner of death to be undetermined (not homicide).
- Amy Darling, an investigator with the Medical Examiner’s office, went to the scene and secured the body for autopsy. Todd Stermer was pronounced dead at the scene. She noted the smell of accelerant on the body.
- A judge ordered Connie Calhoun to remain in jail or post a $1K bond after she failed to respond to a subpoena to testify in Linda Stermer’s murder trial. Calhoun, the girlfriend of Stermer neighbor Michael Metheny, called 911 the night of the fire.
DAY 1- 3/27/25
- VIDEO: MI v. Linda Stermer Day 1 | Battered & Burned Murder Trial
- Prosecutor Susan Zuiderveen opens for the state vowing to prove that Linda Stermer killed her husband with premeditation, deliberately set the fire that killed him, then lied to hide her infidelity and cover her tracks.
- Defense attorney Ronald Kelly conceded the Stermers’ marriage was in trouble but that the fire that destroyed their family home was accidental and that the investigation that followed was spurred by an insurance company looking to scapegoat their client to avoid paying the claim.
- Sandra Stermer, the defendant’s mother-in-law took the stand to testify that in the aftermath of the fire that killed her son, Linda told her three different ways she escaped from her burning home, when she pressed her for ‘what happened,’ Linda became so hysterical that she stopped asking.
- Neighbors testified about seeing the billowing smoke coming from the Stermer house, went to assist and found Todd Stermer lying on the ground face up, naked, barely breathing and so badly burned that his ears and face were mutilated.
- Michael Metheny who lived on the property next to the Stermer’s house drove to their home, and observed Linda maneuver her van from the front to the back of the house – the defense claims she was trying to get help and Todd accidentally fell under the vehicle but the State suggests she hit him on purpose.
- Metheny testified the scene was chaotic, when he arrived, he repeatedly asked Linda about the children and Todd, she did not answer at first but then told him, ‘There he is.’ He did not initially observe that Todd was lying on the ground nearly naked, prompting him to retrieve some clothes for him from his truck.
- Testimony from first responders and neighbors suggests Linda told conflicting stories about when and where she saw Todd during the fire and how she got out of the house. But defense attorneys suggest the inconsistent statements are the result of the chaos around the scene.
- To emphasize the trauma that Linda suffered the defense played the 911 call that Connie Calhoun, Metheny’s girlfriend made to 911. During the call Linda appears to be hysterical, she is heard wailing and ‘freaking out’ in the background.
