"If you're attempting suicide by swallowing it, there's no guarantee that you'll die. Same goes for someone trying to murder another person that way. If I do swallow cocaine, and you ask me how long it will take for me to absorb it, to get high from it, I would certainly tell you within an hour, and you're more likely to have a stroke at the peak."
Rikki Eftenoff
Five-year-old Rikki Eftenoff drew this of her mother on October 1, 1999, one week after Judi died. At the time, she told a counselor, "That's the blood . . . she got it on her eye."
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County Attorney Rick Romley didn't say much publicly about the case against Brian Eftenoff during a press conference to announce the Ahwatukee man's arrest.
One story about the arrest referred to Judi's "battered and heavily drugged body." Another claimed the prosecution case "rests on the testimony of the Eftenoffs' two children."
In truth, the murder case against Brian comes down to three components -- what the coroners found during Judi's autopsy, anecdotal evidence of prior domestic abuse, and Rikki Eftenoff's statements.
Beyond that, of course, is the "X" factor of Brian himself. The best chance prosecutors may have is if he testifies, something his psyche may not allow him to avoid, no matter the perils of a damaging cross-examination. An unconvincing performance might give jurors pause, even though the case against him is so shaky.
"I'd love to tell the jurors how much I loved my wife, because I did," Brian says. "I just want to get out of jail and try to see what I can do to get my life back."
If he does walk, that won't be easy.
The Eftenoffs' home is for sale, Brian's business is defunct, and he hasn't seen his children in months. Also, most people in the community believe he's a murderer, and will continue to believe that, whatever the jury says.
Judi's gravestone in Tempe refers to her simply as a "Loving daughter, wife and mother. Our memories of you will fill our hearts with love."
Brian also had the mortuary inscribe a message on his half of the stone: "Brian Thomas Eftenoff. 1959-. Loving husband, father. Our love climbed the highest mountains, swam the wildest rivers and ignored the loudest snoring."
The Eftenoff children continue to live in Indiana with their Aunt Charlisa and her husband. A custody battle with Judi's family looms if Brian does get convicted. Charlisa Eftenoff-Fox says she's started a project with Rikki, who's nearing her 7th birthday.
"I'm asking her to draw pictures of her favorite memories of her mom," Eftenoff-Fox says. "We'll write some stuff in, then I'll put the book away. That way, she can look at it when she's older."
Read Part 1 of this series:
'Til Death Do Us Part
