At first police thought a thief had murdered Army Specialist Anthony Riggs, who was shot in Detroit within days of his return from the gulf. But then the plot twisted when suspicion fell on Riggs' wife Toni and her brother Michael Cato, who were accused of killing Riggs to collect his $175,000 life insurance policy. Last week Judge Vesta Svenson dismissed the murder charge against Toni Riggs, ruling that Cato's confession could not be used as evidence against her because it violated her Sixth Amendment right to confront her accuser.

Riggs' freedom may be short-lived. She can be charged again if her brother testifies against her in his own trial, if new evidence is brought or if Judge Svenson's ruling is overturned. Says Wayne County prosecutor George Ward, who will appeal the ruling: "We think even without that confession there was sufficient circumstantial evidence to bind her over."