Nancy Crampton Brophy: Novelist Accused of Killing Spouse Wrote Guide to Murdering Husbands

An Oregon romance novelist accused of gunning down her husband previously wrote a handy how-to guide on how to murder your spouse. Nancy Crampton Brophy, 63, is accused of shooting her husband in Portland. The accusation has given a fresh perspective to her 2011 essay titled “How to Murder Your Husband,” in which she ponders several methods including guns, knives, poison, and even hiring a hitman. “As a romantic suspense writer, I spend a lot of time thinking about murder and, consequently, about police procedure,” Brophy wrote in 2011. “After all, if the murder is supposed to set me free, I certainly don’t want to spend any time in jail.” Brophy also published a book three years ago called The Wrong Husband. Police booked her in the Multnomah County Detention Center last week after they say she fatally shot Daniel Brophy, her husband of 27 years.