The Long Investigation of Thomas Randolph, Accused of Killing Multiple Wives

The story of Thomas Randolph, a man accused of orchestrating the deaths of multiple wives, is the subject of the Netflix documentary "The Widower: ‘Til Death Do Us Part." The film, directed by Chris Smith, relies heavily on the work of veteran Dateline NBC producer Dan Slepian and Las Vegas detective Dean O’Kelley, who embarked on a 15-year journey to uncover the truth.

The investigation began in earnest on May 8, 2008, after Randolph called 9-1-1 to report that his sixth wife, Sharon Causse, had been shot dead in their home. Randolph told dispatchers he had been in the car listening to the radio while Causse went inside. He claimed that after hearing gunshots, he entered the house, encountered an intruder, and fatally shot the man. However, inconsistencies in the crime scene—such as the location of bullet casings and the ski mask—prompted O'Kelley to look closer.

Slepian, alerted to the case by a colleague of O'Kelley's, began documenting the unfolding investigation. What initially appeared to be a single murder case soon revealed itself to be a pattern of suspicious deaths spanning decades and multiple states. Randolph, who had been a paralegal, became known as "The Black Widower" as the investigation unearthed a history of life insurance payouts following the deaths of several of his previous wives under questionable circumstances.

Unearthing a Pattern of Suspicious Deaths

As Slepian and O'Kelley delved deeper into the Causse murder, they discovered that Randolph had become the beneficiary of Causse's will and had taken out a significant life insurance policy on her just months into their marriage. Further inquiries led them to interview the family of the alleged intruder, Mike Miller. Miller's brothers indicated that Randolph had hired Miller as a handyman and that Randolph had even inquired if Miller would be interested in killing his wife.

The investigation then expanded to Randolph's previous marriages. His first wife, Kathy, shared that Randolph had taken out a life insurance policy on her and had allegedly attempted to solicit someone to kill her, though she divorced him before any harm befell her.

In 1983, Randolph married his second wife, Becky Gault. Three years later, she died of a gunshot wound to the head, initially ruled a suicide. By 1988, her death was reclassified, and Randolph was put on trial for murder after collecting a $500,000 life insurance payout. His friend and handyman, Eric Tarantino, testified that Randolph had hired him to kill Gault. Despite this, Randolph was acquitted, though he was later convicted of witness tampering for attempting to pay an undercover officer to kill Tarantino.

Randolph's subsequent marriages also ended under troubling circumstances. Gaynal Allmon divorced him before any tragedy struck, but Francis Randolph died following a surgery that Randolph himself had arranged. Randolph collected on her life insurance and then sued the hospital for wrongful death.

The Legal Battles

Randolph was arrested in January 2009. The lengthy investigation, which involved Slepian embedding with investigators across multiple states, compiled enough evidence to put Randolph on trial. Slepian noted that many witnesses were eager to cooperate, believing Randolph was guilty.

Over the next several years, Randolph repeatedly delayed his 2008 murder trial, replacing lawyers and attempting to exclude evidence from previous cases. Slepian described Randolph as viewing the legal process as a game, using his charm to manipulate the narrative. Slepian theorized that Randolph may have killed Miller to eliminate loose ends.

In June 2017, Randolph was convicted of conspiracy to commit murder and two counts of first-degree murder, and sentenced to death. However, three years later, the Nevada Supreme Court overturned the conviction and death sentence, ruling that evidence from the Gault case should not have been admitted. Slepian suggested Randolph had strategically delayed the trial, possibly waiting for witnesses to die.

During a retrial in 2023, O’Kelley’s testimony, detailing inconsistencies in the Causse case, along with Randolph’s own recorded reenactment video from the night of the murders, led to a conviction. Randolph, now 71, was sentenced to 60 years to life in prison. He has had multiple appeals denied, and continues to maintain his innocence.

Slepian, who has continued to communicate with Randolph, reflected on the case's impact on the justice system, noting how Randolph manipulated the bureaucracy. He emphasized the importance of his objective approach and the archival footage in documenting Randolph's actions over time.