I'm Chanley Painter and this is the Fox True Crime Podcast.

In September 2022, a California man named Michael Harding was in the middle of a contentious divorce.

He was lured to a vacant home in rural Kentucky under the guise of an HVAC repair call.

Prosecutors say waiting for him was an alleged hitman hired by his estranged wife, Julie Harding, a California Highway Patrol captain,

who authorities believe wanted him dead as the couple fought over money and property.

Investigators say Thomas O'Donnell used a prepaid burner phone to set up the meeting before Michael Harding was shot four times,

kicking off a multi-state murder-for-hire case built on DNA, phone data, and ammunition evidence despite investigators

never recovering the murder weapon. After just two hours of deliberations, a Kentucky jury

found O'Donnell guilty of murder, rejecting the defense's claim that an unknown third man

was the real killer. But the defense argued Julie is the only one who really knows what happened, but she died by suicide months after the murder. Joining me today to discuss the case, the quick verdict, and the twist inside this murder for hire plot is veteran true crime journalist Ted

Rollins.

Ted Rollins, thank you for joining us to talk about this case.

Thank you for having me.

It's a fascinating case with players that just you don't think are going to be involved

in a true crime story.

Right. Specifically the wife.

Yeah.

So talk to us about Julie Harding, her estranged husband Michael, and then how Thomas

O'Donnell became involved in all this plot scheme.

Yeah.

I mean, at the core of this, this is about a CHP captain of 22 plus years at California Highway Patrol. So you have this law enforcement,

not just officers, she's risen in the ranks to the role of captain and was in charge of one of

...