New London, CT: Charles Buck Goes On Trial In Killing Of His Wife, Leslie, In 2002

By ALAINE GRIFFIN, agriffin@courant.com
Story posted 2010.08.28 at 10:56 PM EDT
NEW LONDON-- — Hearing impaired, legally blind and pushing a walker at 92, Catherine Edmonston endured dramatic testimony in the weeklong 2004 trial of the man who kidnapped and beat her daughter, Leslie Buck.
During breaks in testimony outside the courtroom, Edmonston often would show people a photo of Buck, 57, a popular schoolteacher in Stonington who was found dead in her Mystic home two days after the May 2, 2002, abduction.
Now Edmonston is 98, and her son, Richard, said she is too frail to travel from Massachusetts to Connecticut for another court case, the one they have been waiting for: the murder trial of her son-in-law, Charles Buck. Police say Charles Buck, 65, killed his wife so he could marry his younger barmaid mistress.
But Richard Edmonston and Leslie Buck's friends plan to attend the latest chapter in a soap opera-like crime story that has kept the historic seaport community of Mystic talking for eight years — and family members hoping for some resolution. The trial begins with jury selection Sept. 7 in Superior Court in New London.
"This trial is long overdue," Richard Edmonston said.
Police always believed Buck was a suspect in the death of his wife, a second-grade teacher at Deans Mill School.
But it would take years of investigation before they would finally point a finger at Buck, who, like his wife, was well known around town. He served as a volunteer firefighter and president of the tax district, and he ran his own electrical business. Many people who knew Buck as a solid citizen were unaware of what police now claim: that he was leading another life as an unfaithful husband.
Two 911 Calls
The Bucks' seemingly tranquil life was rocked on May 2, 2002, when police received a frantic emergency 911 call.
"This person, a friend of my husband's, was in the garage," a breathless Leslie Buck said. "I think he had a stun gun. He grabbed me by the neck. He kept pulling me. He pushed me down. He tied my hands and feet when he took me to his house."
She escaped, bruised and wounded. Russell Kirby, a handyman who did work for Charles Buck, is serving a 21-year prison sentence for the attack and abduction.
Two days later, there was another call to police from the Buck home. This time, Leslie Buck was dead.
Charles Buck called police to the couple's home in the picturesque Mason's Island section on May 4, 2002, saying he had found his wife dead at the bottom of a flight of stairs.
Police interviewed Buck, sought the help of famous forensic expert Henry Lee and waited for word from the state medical examiner's office. Was Leslie Buck pushed down the stairs? Were the wounds she suffered in the kidnapping cause her to fall?
The state medical examiner said Buck died of head injuries but could not determine whether her death was a homicide or in any way connected to the kidnapping.
Police continued their investigation of Charles Buck, searching his home and business and interviewing friends about his personal life.
While police remained mum publicly about what they found, lawyers representing the estate of Leslie Buck went public with what they learned about Charles Buck. In May 2005, the lawyers filed a wrongful death lawsuit against Buck, claiming that an extramarital affair with another woman drove Buck to kill his wife.
In January 2009, police arrested Buck and charged him with murder. Buck didn't know his mistress, Carol Perez, was cooperating with police and agreed to have her conversations with Buck recorded. Investigators also sought the help of a forensic expert and dissected interviews Buck gave to police. Police said a pattern of inconsistencies in those stories led to his arrest.
"Sugar Daddy"
During a probable-cause hearing last year in which a judge ruled that prosecutors had enough evidence to try Buck for his wife's slaying, prosecutors presented a scandalous story about Buck's alleged motive. They said that while Buck was married, he began having an affair with Perez, who worked at a Mystic lounge Buck frequented.

Investigators said Buck showered Perez with gifts, including two cars, a $235,000 house, Victoria's Secret lingerie, toys for her children, and a $15,000, 2 1/2-carat diamond ring. Employees at the bar said Perez referred to Buck as "Sugar Daddy," according to court testimony.
When asked about Perez, Buck said that he and she were acquaintances and that he counseled Perez about some trouble she was having with her boyfriend. He initially told police he loaned Perez $1,000, but when pressed, he admitted he bought her many items and gave her more than $1,000.
Police also said Buck misled police about his whereabouts the day Leslie Buck was found dead.
Police have theorized that Leslie Buck might have been struck with a wire bar. They could find nothing on the staircase that would cause the cut she had on her head, and they found little blood and no signs of forced entry into the house.
Hubert Santos, an attorney for Buck, did not return calls for comment. But in the past, Santos has questioned the evidence police claim to have against Buck and their portrayal of Buck as an unfaithful spouse. During the probable-cause hearing, Santos called his client a loving husband and pointed to testimony by Perez in which she said her relationship with Buck was never physical.
Santos said Leslie Buck had a heart problem that could have been exacerbated when she was assaulted during the kidnapping. He theorized that she became dizzy and fell down the stairs.
If that were the case, police have said, why did Leslie Buck have a wound on her head that could not have been caused in a fall? Investigators are convinced a weapon was moved from the crime scene.
For now, former Stonington Police Chief David Erskine said, the detectives who worked for years on the case will have to see how the evidence holds up in court.
"They've waited a long time for this trial," Erskine said. "They never gave up on what they believed. We just have to see what's going to happen."
Courant researcher Tina Bachetti contributed to this story.
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