EDITORIAL

Murder. Mystery. Scandal. Intrigue.

The Bechler murder trial has all the ingredients necessary for a

made-for-TV movie.

The characters: the wife, a strong, successful older woman; the

husband, a handsome scoundrel in love with the good life; and a vixen of

a girlfriend who enters the picture a short time after the wife

mysteriously drowns.

Eric Bechler, who was at 29 a widower, has been charged with killing

his wife Pegye during a 1997 boating trip to celebrate their fifth

anniversary. To the outside observer, it might have seemed at the time

that the couple, parents of three children and business partners in a

thriving company, had much to celebrate.

Prosecutors have alleged, however, that Bechler plotted the fatal trip

and was attempting to cash in on his wife’s multimillion-dollar life

insurance policy.

Bechler has maintained his innocence, saying that Pegye, 38, was wiped

out of the boat by a wave into a deep-sea death. The prosecution contends

that the victim, a triathlete, could not have simply fallen into the

ocean without first being knocked unconscious.

The case is filled with twists that read like a noir detective novel.

Neither a murder weapon nor Pegye’s body has been found. A 15-hour Coast

Guard search uncovered nothing, and at the time, authorities said the

July 1997 drowning looked like an accident.

More than two years passed before police arrested Bechler. But when

Orange County Sheriff’s deputies did take him into custody, they used the

suspect’s own words against him. A surreptitious tape-recording of

Bechler reportedly discussing the details of his wife’s death was

provided by his own girlfriend, Tina New.

New, an aspiring actress with a Web site, has a scandal of her own.

She has filed a $10-million civil suit against former professional

basketball star Dennis Rodman, alleging that he raped her at his West

Newport Beach home. Rodman has denied the charge.

Regardless of her own legal battles, New apparently remains the star

prosecution witness -- unless defense attorneys can block the taped

conversation between her and Bechler from being entered into evidence.

This is a case that demonstrates the phrase “truth is stranger than

fiction.” And that fact hasn’t escaped the media and those following the

trial; with the opening statements scheduled to begin soon, there is sure

to be a feeding frenzy.

Although the case is fit for an over-the-top screenplay, those

involved should not forget that this is real life. The characters are

real people.

And somewhere, underneath the outlandish details, lies the truth about

a tragedy that we hope will not be lost.