I want to say this because I know there are people in Corsicana who have, like me, allowed ourselves to ignore the evidence.

When your own son looks you in the face and says, who kills Shelley?

And I said, I don't know. I don't want to know. Don't bring it up. This isn't the time.

He said, well, I've always thought you knew. When your own son thinks that?

Oh, Lord. What do you think the rest of the community thinks?

I think that the town has just allowed it just to go away because it's just easy.

I think that people in his little town were just

able to put it out of their mind and go on. Then if you think about the realtors in town, the bankers in town,

the lawyers in town, the doctors in town, you know, and in a very small community, each one of those people are connected.

Where does that connection sever? And somebody say, well, you know, if you're still friends with this guy that I think he killed his wife, well, I'm not going to be friends with you anymore.

Women deserve to have the truth

told about their story, and Shelley deserves that. This is Cheryl Pruitt, formerly Cheryl Pruitt

Shelton. At the time of Shelley Watkins' death, Cheryl was married to Lynn Shelton, a name you

might recall from Chapter 8.

Lynn was one of the three trustees for the trust.

Jerry Mack was compelled to establish for his daughters as settlement for the wrongful death

lawsuit brought against him by Shelley's mother and sister.

Lynn was not only Jerry Mack Watkins' chief right-hand man, the operations

manager for Watkins' construction. He was also one of Jerry Mack's oldest, closest friends.

Cheryl and Lynn's wedding was in 1973, with Jerry Mack as his best man. Gary Schlimmer was a groomsman,

Lewis Palos, an usher.

This placed Cheryl right in the middle

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