AN American woman who married her brother’s killer after he served 32 years in prison has horrified This Morning viewers.
Crystal Straus married John Tiedjen at his home in Cleveland, Ohio at the weekend as he awaits a retrial over the death of Brian McGary in June 1989.
Tiedjen vows to prove his innocence after 32 years in prison.
Brian was Crystal’s half-brother and Tiedjen’s best friend.
He had lived with Tiedjen’s family since he was 15 and they were roommates.
Tiedjen was 25 when cops found Brian, then 18, dead in his bedroom.
He reportedly had a stab wound to his chest and a bullet hole was lodged between his eyes. Tiedjen believes it was suicide.
One viewer said: “‘Why do you believe him?’ The answer she wanted to give: ‘because I love him’.”
Another added: “What a weird strange interview. No, I meant what a weird, strange woman. If I had a brother then someone killed then no way would I marry him!”
Someone else said: “Why does #ThisMorning do these ridiculous stories.”
Detectives reportedly found Brian’s blood on the barrel of the gun and bullets in Tiedjen’s pockets.
Tiedjen reportedly told cops that he “couldn’t remember” what had happened on the night of Brian’s death.
He now claims there was “missing evidence”, telling This Morning: “I never would have been convicted if they had come out at the time.
“I didn’t do the crime. How do you end up in prison for something you didn’t do?”
Crystal added: “He obviously didn’t kill my brother, that’s why there’s a new trial.”
And talking about the reaction to their wedding at the weekend, she said: “Our family has mixed emotions on both sides. It is a hard thing to come to terms with. It is kind of mind-blowing for them.”
A clip of the ceremony was uploaded on Instagram and a lawyer appeared to preside over the nuptials.
Tiedjen proposed to Crystal on the phone on New Year’s Eve last year as the pair feared he wouldn’t be released from jail.
He was released from jail on bond and a retrial is due to be held this month after his legal team submitted previously unseen photos and police reports.
The wedding came years after Crystal appeared to forgive Tiedjen in a letter she sent to him.
He said: “I wrote her a letter back and said ‘I didn’t do it. Take a look at this stuff.
“I believe in God too, and I know things about it, but I didn’t do it.”
It’s reported that Crystal first wrote to John while she was making a trip to Lake Erie in 2016 but she didn’t know why she had sent the letter.
But, the two stayed in contact. She said: “We both had something in common, the loss of Brian. We started talking and it just sparked.”
Defense attorney Kimberly Kendall Corral claimed: “The judge decided had the evidence been available, the outcome of the trial would have been different.”
