Snapped 1x2

Celeste Beard Johnson

Virginia Larzelere was well off, even by coastal Florida’s relatively high standards. Her husband Norman was a successful Daytona Beach dentist, and Virginia enjoyed a beautiful home, expensive cars, a yacht and an airplane. But the good times came to an abrupt end on March 8, 1991, when a masked gunman broke into Norman’s office and killed him with a shotgun blast to the chest. In the murder investigation that ensued, police quickly discovered that the Larzelere family was anything but ordinary. It appeared that the couple financed their lavish lifestyle by funneling narcotics through Norman’s dental practice, and both engaged in numerous extramarital affairs. Digging deeper, the cops also uncovered a two-million dollar life insurance policy that Virginia had taken out on her husband. Then, the Larzelere’s live-in help, Steve Heidel, came forward with the exact location of the murder weapon. Heidel told police that Virginia and her son, Jason, had asked him to dispose of the weapon following the shooting. On May 5, 1991, both Virginia and Jason were charged with first-degree murder in the death of Norman Larzelere. At her trial, prosecutors described Virginia as an opportunist looking to cash in on her husband’s hefty life insurance policy. The defense, however, argued that Steve Heidel was the actual mastermind behind the murder. In the end, the jury sided with prosecutors and sentenced Virginia to death. In a separate trial seven months later, Jason Larzelere was acquitted on all charges.