Guilty: Madison County woman convicted in poisoning death of husband

HUNTSVILLE, Ala. (WAFF) - On Thursday, a Madison County jury returned a guilty verdict for Nikki Cappello for the murder of her husband.

She was convicted of poisoning her husband, Jim Cappello, with insulin that eventually killed him. Jim’s family burst into tears of joy when they heard the guilty verdict on Thursday. Ecstatic is how Jim’s father described how he felt.

The family said Jim’s daughter Ryleigh knows why they were at the trial on Thursday but they were going to tell her the outcome in person. The family said Ryleigh is told all related information through therapists and doctors to protect her mental health.

Prosecutor, Tim Douthit says the defense’s argument just wasn’t strong enough.

“The defense has based its whole case that without a medical cause of death you can’t prove a murder has been committed,” said Douthit. “That is not the law in the state of Alabama.”

Prosecutors had a jam-packed witness list over the four-day trial, which led to some eye-opening testimony. Some of the witnesses included Jim’s former co-workers, his sister, and Nikki’s best friend.

However, it was the video shown in the courtroom that gave us a better idea of how Jim’s body was found.

At the request of Jim’s sister and others, officers were conducting a welfare check. During it, the officers say Nikki only wanted them to search certain parts of the house. But, it wasn’t what officers saw, but what they smelled, that led them to get a search warrant. Officers later found Jim’s body in the garage.

The defense decided not to make comment on the verdict.

Sentencing for Cappello is scheduled for July 8 at 10:30 a.m.

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