She Couldn't Afford Divorce — So She Chose Murder

At 1 a.m. on Aug. 31, 2022, a frantic 911 call sent Kansas City police rushing to a home on Gillespie Place. Inside, they found 42-year-old Melanie Biggins performing CPR on her husband, Etienne L. McEwan, who lay in bed in a pool of his own blood. She spun a dramatic story — an intruder had broken in, fired a single shot, and vanished into the night. But investigators saw through the act. No forced entry. No missing valuables. And the so-called "home invader" conveniently ignored the one person who could identify them — Biggins herself.

A Killer's Alibi Unravels

Biggins claimed she woke up to a gunshot and saw McEwan bleeding from a wound beneath his chin. She insisted she had no idea who pulled the trigger. Yet when officers searched the house, they found a pillow and blanket on the floor — both with bullet holes and telltale gunpowder burns. Even more damning, a .38 Special handgun sat tucked under a bunk bed in another room.

At first, Biggins told police the only firearm in the house was her husband's rifle. When confronted with evidence of the .38 Special, she backtracked, admitting she had purchased it at a pawn shop in July 2022, just weeks before the shooting.

Her daughters, ages 10 and 11, shattered what remained of her story. The girls told police they heard the gunshot, went downstairs, and found their mother sitting on the couch, looking "as if she had seen a ghost," as reported by Law and Crime. When they went back upstairs and turned on the bedroom lamp, they saw their father covered in blood.

A Deadly Alternative to Divorce

With her web of lies collapsing, Biggins admitted to what investigators had already suspected. She had been having an affair for the last year and a half. She wanted out of her nine-year marriage. Divorce, she claimed, wasn't an option — she couldn't afford it.

So instead of hiring a lawyer, she bought a gun.

The Deal That Sparked Outrage

Biggins initially faced first-degree murder and armed criminal action charges, which could have put her behind bars for life. But in a plea deal, prosecutors allowed her to plead guilty to voluntary manslaughter. Her sentence? A mere 10 years.

For many, the punishment didn't match the crime. A man lost his life. Two children lost their father. And the person responsible would spend only a decade in prison before walking free.

A Final Price Tag

Biggins' crime exposed how financial struggles, infidelity, and desperation can turn an ordinary domestic dispute into a crime scene.

She thought divorce was too expensive. Now, she'll pay in years instead of dollars.

References: She Didn't Want to Pay for a Divorce. So She Shot Her Husband in His Sleep and Blamed a Home Invasion | KC woman who claimed someone broke in and shot her husband charged with his murder | Wife who said divorce was 'not an option' killed sleeping husband with .38 special before kids blow up her home invasion story