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“48 HOURS” INVESTIGATES A TEXAS-SIZED CASE OF LOVE, INFIDELITY, RAGE AND POSSIBLY MURDER IN “DRIVEN TO EXTREMES,” SATURDAY, OCT. 15
(L-R) Frances Hall, Bill Hall and Bonnie Contreras
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Peter Van Sant and 48 HOURS investigate a Texas-sized case of love, infidelity, rage and possibly murder in “Driven to Extremes,” to be broadcast Oct. 15 (10:00 PM) on the CBS Television Network.
The only thing for certain in this case is that on Oct. 13, 2013, millionaire trucking magnate Bill Hall Jr. died when his motorcycle collided with the Cadillac Escalade driven by his estranged wife, Frances Hall. Exactly what happened leading up to that moment is what’s up for debate. Was it an accident, or did Frances Hall intentionally kill him after being driven into a jealous rage by menacing texts sent by his mistress, Bonnie Contreras?
That fateful day, Frances Hall was driving in the opposite direction when she saw Bill on his Harley Davidson and Contreras in a Range Rover owned by the Halls. Frances Hall pulled a quick U-turn. She floored it and allegedly gave chase, reaching 90 miles per hour, reportedly to confront Contreras. Contreras claims Hall rammed the Range Rover multiple times. Bill Hall was not wearing a helmet. He ended up dead. Contreras says Frances Hall intentionally ran him down.
“It was an accident,” Frances says. “I would have never in a million years hurt my husband.”
“You have this toxic love triangle,” says Leigh Cutter, Frances Hall’s attorney. “You have this multimillionaire husband and wife, and you have this mistress trying to wedge her way between them.”
“Frances Hall took a two-ton death tank to what should have been a fistfight,” says prosecutor Stephanie Paulissen. “She was out for blood.”
Says Cutter: “I don’t think anyone imagined by the end of the day that there would be a dead body and someone in handcuffs.”
Frances Hall says she loves Bill with all of her heart. “I will never love another like I loved this man,” she tells Van Sant.
What really happened at high speed on a Texas highway? And what will a jury believe?
Van Sant and 48 HOURS interview prosecutors, defense attorneys, members of Hall’s family and more to tell the story.
48 HOURS: “Driven to Extremes” is the second part of a Saturday night double feature. At 9:00 PM, Erin Moriarty returns to the investigation of the case against Ashton Sachs in “Shadow of Death.” Police say Sachs snuck into his family’s upscale California home, shot his parents Andra and Brad Sachs dead and paralyzed a younger brother.
It’s a case 48 HOURS has been covering for two years. Police initially thought the wealthy couple was killed after a business deal went bad. Ashton, then 19 years old, gave an emotional eulogy at his parent’s funeral. However, a month after the shooting, Ashton Sachs was charged with murder. Family members told 48 HOURS that Ashton was obsessed with violent video games and fascinated with the notorious Menendez murders of 1989.
Yet, what seemed like an open-and-shut case is anything but. Moriarty has the latest stunning new twist in the Sachs case.
48 HOURS: “Shadow of Death” is produced by Chuck Stevenson, Alec Sirken, Greg Fisher and Judy Rybak. Anthony Venditti is the field producer. Michelle Fanucci is the development producer. George Baluzy, Michael Baluzy, Michael Vele, Michelle Harris and Diana Modica are the editors. Peter Schweitzer is the senior producer. Susan Zirinsky is the senior executive producer.
48 HOURS: “Driven to Extremes” is produced by Paul LaRosa, Ryan Smith, Claire St. Amant, Jonathan Leach, Josh Gelman and Jamie Stolz. Stephanie Slifer is the associate producer. George Baluzy, Marcus Balsam, Grayce Arlotta-Berner, Ken Blum, Jud Johnston and Marlon Disla are the editors. Patti Aronofsky is the senior producer. Susan Zirinsky is the senior executive producer.
Follow 48 HOURS on Twitter and Facebook, Instagram and CBSNews.com. Listen to 48 HOURS podcasts at Play.it.
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Richard Huff 212-975-3328 huffr@cbsnews.com
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Richard Huff
212-975-3328 HuffR@cbsnews.com