The Keller woman dubbed the “black widow” worked at a strip club while awaiting sentencing in the murder of her husband and never visited a doctor during the time she claimed she was pregnant with twins, her probation officer testified in a bond hearing Thursday.
Michele Williams’ claim she was pregnant led the judge in her case last year to postpone her sentencing and allow her to remain free on bond, but Thursday’s testimony raised questions about whether she was ever pregnant. She had claimed she had miscarried in January.
Williams had previously claimed not to be involved with the death of her husband, Gregory Williams, but eventually took a plea deal with the Tarrant County District Attorney's office and pleaded guilty to knowingly discharging a firearm at her husband — a deadly conduct charge — and also pleaded guilty to tampering with evidence by moving and cleaning her husband's body.
At the time of that agreement, Williams was scheduled to be formally sentenced on April 21, 2014. The significant delay was attributed to Williams being pregnant with twins, which lead Deputy Chief District Attorney Jack Strickland to recommended her sentence be postponed until after the babies were born so that taxpayers would not have to pay for costly, high-risk prenatal care and so the children would not be stigmatized by birth under the authority of a penitentiary.
However, in January 2014, Williams was returned to custody "after it was determined that her medical condition no longer existed" and her bond was deemed insufficient. Sentencing was then moved to Monday, Feb. 10, 2014. Attorneys would not elaborate on the circumstances of Williams' "medical condition" at the time.
During a bond reduction hearing for Williams on Thursday, the probation officer who monitored Williams while she was out on bond testified that after reviewing GPS data from Williams' ankle monitor from the end of August 2013 through January 2014, Williams didn't appear to have visited a doctor's office.
The probation officer also testified that while free on bond, "Williams said she worked at a sports bar, where she was paid cash under the table, as well as a waitress at a gentleman's club."
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Williams' son, who also testified during the hearing, said that he knew of one time when she had removed the monitor from her ankle and put it in her purse.
The testimony came in an unannounced hearing Thursday. The Tarrant County district attorney's office released a written statement Friday summarizing what happened.
Williams' bond previously was $75,000 on the deadly conduct charge and $20,000 on tampering. During the bond hearing Friday, with the plea deal off the table, Williams' bond on her murder charge was set at $500,000.
Tarrant County district attorney officials said they would release no further comment on the hearing because it is now pending a jury trial.
Williams’ new attorney, A. Clay Graham, did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
