Carol Lubahn | 'Nicest Guy Ever' Suspected of Killing Wife Who Wanted Larger House

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[00:01:12] This is True Crime Psychology and Personality, where we discuss the pathology behind some

[00:01:18] of the most horrific crimes and those who committed them from a scientifically informed

[00:01:23] perspective.

[00:01:24] I'm Dr. Todd Grande.

[00:01:27] I have a PhD in Counselor Education and Supervision, and I'm a licensed professional counselor

[00:01:32] of mental health.

[00:01:33] Dr. Todd Grande, that's my YouTube channel.

[00:01:37] Today's question is, can I analyze the case of Michael and Carol Lubon?

[00:01:42] First I'll look at the background of this case, move to the timeline of the crime, then

[00:01:46] offer my analysis.

[00:01:48] Michael and Carol Lubon met sometime around 1970 when they were attending North High School

[00:01:53] in Torrance, California.

[00:01:55] This coastal city is in Southwest Los Angeles County.

[00:01:59] Michael was 16 years old at the time and Carol was 15.

[00:02:03] They became romantically involved, and in 1971 they had a son named Michael Lubon Jr.

[00:02:10] After Carol finished high school in 1972, she and Michael married.

[00:02:14] About two years later, they had a daughter named Brandy.

[00:02:17] The family lived in a 700 square foot two bedroom house on Cranbrook Avenue in Torrance.

[00:02:24] Michael worked for a house painting business owned by Carol's father, Milton Meyer.

[00:02:29] Initially, Carol stayed home with the children, but eventually took a job with a tax preparation

[00:02:33] company because money was getting tight.

[00:02:37] Her plan wasn't to stay there forever.

[00:02:39] She studied architecture at El Camino College to support a career change someday.

[00:02:44] Michael and Carol argued from time to time.

[00:02:47] On two occasions, they separated temporarily.

[00:02:50] One topic the couple disagreed on was whether they should stay in their house.

[00:02:55] Carol wasn't happy because it was too small and only had one bathroom.

[00:03:00] Michael thought it was just fine.

[00:03:02] Now moving to the timeline of the crime.

[00:03:04] On April 7, 1981, Michael reported Carol missing to the Torrance Police Department.

[00:03:10] He said that he last saw her on March 30, 1981 at 10 p.m.

[00:03:15] When he woke up at 4.45 a.m., now on March 31, Carol was nowhere to be found.

[00:03:21] On April 5, Carol's 1979 Audi Fox was found at the Red Onion Restaurant in Redondo Beach.

[00:03:29] This prompted Michael to report Carol missing.

[00:03:32] Here is what the police found during the course of their investigation.

[00:03:36] Carol's vehicle was dusty as if it had been parked at the restaurant for a few days, but

[00:03:40] did not yield any clues about where she was.

[00:03:43] On March 29, two days before Carol disappeared, Michael and Carol had dinner at the residence

[00:03:48] of Carol's parents.

[00:03:50] The couple was not getting along too well that night.

[00:03:53] When they left the residence, Carol told Michael to ride in the backseat of the car.

[00:03:57] Both Carol's mother, Melba, and Carol's sister, Gail, talked to Carol on the phone

[00:04:02] the next day, March 30.

[00:04:04] Nothing seemed out of the ordinary.

[00:04:07] On March 31, Michael told family members that Carol was missing.

[00:04:11] When Michael was interviewed by the police on April 15, he mentioned a number of suspicious

[00:04:16] occurrences.

[00:04:18] For example, a piece of paper he placed on a dresser drawer to detect intrusion had been

[00:04:23] broken, like somebody had opened the drawer.

[00:04:27] One day when he returned home, he noticed some mail had been moved.

[00:04:31] And there had been about 15 telephone calls to the house where the caller disconnected

[00:04:37] after Michael answered.

[00:04:39] Michael was interviewed again on April 29.

[00:04:41] He told the police he thought Carol had been in their house because someone took money

[00:04:45] out of a secret hiding place, specifically under the butter dish in the refrigerator.

[00:04:51] Carol was the only other person who knew that money was there.

[00:04:55] Family members did not think Carol would ever abandon her family or leave without telling

[00:04:59] anyone.

[00:05:00] A wedding shower for Carol's sister, Terry, was scheduled for the same week that Carol

[00:05:05] disappeared.

[00:05:06] Carol was planning on attending the shower and was looking forward to assisting with

[00:05:10] planning the wedding.

[00:05:12] Carol's mother, Melba, felt as though Michael was being a little nonchalant about the disappearance,

[00:05:16] but he did seem to be sad.

[00:05:19] Ten-year-old Michael Jr. told the police that his mother would not have left voluntarily,

[00:05:23] especially without saying goodbye.

[00:05:26] He didn't notice any strange behavior from his mother around the time of her disappearance.

[00:05:31] He described his father as being resistant to feelings of anger, but when his father lost

[00:05:35] his temper, he would explode like a powder keg.

[00:05:39] On the night his mother disappeared, Michael Jr. was listening to music through his headphones

[00:05:43] between 9 and 10.30 p.m.

[00:05:46] He was in bed during this time.

[00:05:48] The way his bed was positioned, he was able to see his mother, Carol, exit her bedroom,

[00:05:53] shut the door behind her, and walk down the hall.

[00:05:56] She was walking quickly and appeared to be upset.

[00:06:00] Michael Jr. heard the front door of the house slam.

[00:06:04] After Carol's disappearance, his father would become uncomfortable whenever her name came

[00:06:08] up and immediately change the subject.

[00:06:10] Carol's seven-year-old daughter, Brandy, told the police that her mother was great

[00:06:14] and had no reason to believe that she would ever abandon the family.

[00:06:18] On the night of Carol's disappearance, Brandy went to bed sometime between 8 and 9 p.m.

[00:06:23] From the bedroom she shared with her brother, she heard her parents talking about selling

[00:06:28] the house.

[00:06:29] Later, she heard a car start.

[00:06:32] Unlike her brother, who believed that their father dodged discussions about Carol, Brandy

[00:06:37] felt as though her father answered any questions that she had related to the disappearance.

[00:06:43] Neighbors said that Carol frequently complained about how small her house was.

[00:06:47] They also said Michael never talked about missing Carol.

[00:06:51] The police discovered that Carol was having an affair with one of her college classmates

[00:06:55] at the time of her disappearance.

[00:06:57] She admitted to her affair partner that she lived in the same house as her husband, but

[00:07:02] lied and said they were separated.

[00:07:05] Carol frequently visited bars and restaurants and may have been engaging in multiple affairs.

[00:07:11] Many people spoke well of Michael.

[00:07:13] Carol did not receive the same adulation.

[00:07:16] The police came to believe that no foul play was involved.

[00:07:19] Carol must have left on her own.

[00:07:22] In June 1981, the case was moved to inactive status.

[00:07:27] In 1987, the police reopened the investigation into Carol's disappearance after noticing

[00:07:32] that she was still missing.

[00:07:34] They thought by this time she would have shown up somewhere.

[00:07:37] There had been no activity indicating that Carol was alive.

[00:07:41] For example, there was no evidence that she had ever secured employment or paid taxes.

[00:07:46] The police spoke to Michael again.

[00:07:47] This time he added a few details to his original story.

[00:07:51] He claimed that Carol struck their son two days before she disappeared, although their

[00:07:55] son told the police that this never happened.

[00:07:58] Michael also said that after he and his wife argued on the night of March 30, 1981, they

[00:08:04] went to bed together.

[00:08:06] In his original story, Michael said he went to bed alone.

[00:08:10] Later, he heard Carol's car start and she drove away.

[00:08:14] According to Michael, two weeks after Carol disappeared, cash, photographs of the children,

[00:08:19] and some of Carol's clothing went missing from the house.

[00:08:23] Investigators really didn't see anything suspicious about the small changes to Michael's

[00:08:26] story and the case once again went cold.

[00:08:30] By this point, Michael had moved on with his life.

[00:08:33] In February 1982, he started dating a woman named Carrie.

[00:08:37] They married in 1988 and went on to have two children.

[00:08:41] For some reason, Michael changed his last name to Clark, which had been his middle name.

[00:08:47] In 1997, Michael gave an interview to a local newspaper.

[00:08:51] He changed his story a little bit, saying that he heard the garage door go up on the

[00:08:55] morning Carol disappeared.

[00:08:57] In 2002, the police decided to take yet another look at Carol's disappearance.

[00:09:03] They noticed how Michael had made small changes in his story a few times, so they continued

[00:09:07] to investigate.

[00:09:09] They paid Michael a visit eight years later in 2010, so they weren't exactly moving at

[00:09:14] light speed.

[00:09:16] Michael agreed to talk to the police without a lawyer and offered a new story about what

[00:09:20] happened.

[00:09:21] He said that on March 30, 1981, Carol tried to force him to sign a real estate contract

[00:09:27] to sell their house.

[00:09:28] She said to him, you make my skin crawl.

[00:09:32] Michael last saw Carol when she was in the bathtub.

[00:09:36] At 1.30am, now on March 31, he saw Carol drive away in her car.

[00:09:42] Michael could not remember anything about putting tape on a dresser drawer, which is

[00:09:46] what he had said before, but he did remember using other detection devices involving baby

[00:09:50] powder and putting paper on a door.

[00:09:53] The state felt as though the inconsistent nature of Michael's story was enough to

[00:09:57] convict him of murder.

[00:09:59] On April 13, 2011, Michael was arrested and charged with second-degree murder.

[00:10:05] The state offered Michael a chance to plead guilty to voluntary manslaughter, but he turned

[00:10:09] down the offer.

[00:10:10] His trial started in October 2012.

[00:10:13] Ultimately, Michael was found guilty.

[00:10:16] Before he was sentenced, he confessed to killing Carol even though he had no agreement

[00:10:21] with the state.

[00:10:22] In January 2013, Michael was sentenced to 15 years to life in prison.

[00:10:28] In November 2021, at the request of the state, Michael's conviction was reduced from second-degree

[00:10:33] murder to voluntary manslaughter.

[00:10:36] He received a sentence of six years, which was the maximum available for that charge

[00:10:41] in 1981.

[00:10:42] Michael was immediately released because he had served more than six years.

[00:10:47] Now moving to my analysis.

[00:10:49] Here are my thoughts on a few areas that stood out to me in this case.

[00:10:52] Item number one.

[00:10:53] Let's take a look at the confession that Michael offered to the state before his sentencing.

[00:10:59] Michael said that on March 30, 1981, he argued with his wife and she left the house.

[00:11:05] At 1.30 a.m., now on March 31, she returned.

[00:11:10] At this time, Carol told Michael that she was taking another man to her sister's wedding.

[00:11:16] Michael took this to mean that Carol was leaving him and became upset.

[00:11:20] Carol tried to comfort him by telling him that he would find someone else.

[00:11:25] Upon hearing this, Michael pushed Carol away, which caused her to fall and slam her head

[00:11:31] into a table.

[00:11:32] She died immediately.

[00:11:34] Michael later changed that part of the story and said he punched Carol one time hard as

[00:11:38] opposed to pushing her.

[00:11:40] After realizing that she was dead, Michael panicked, mostly because of the murder part.

[00:11:45] He dropped Carol's car off at the Red Onion restaurant and disposed of her body in the ocean.

[00:11:51] Later, Michael said that he buried her body on land.

[00:11:54] So once again, there was a change to the story.

[00:11:57] It's difficult to know which parts of the story to believe and which parts to reject, but it

[00:12:02] seems clear that Michael was responsible for his wife's death.

[00:12:06] This brings me to item number two.

[00:12:08] When Michael was charged with murder, he had not yet confessed to the crime.

[00:12:12] There were a lot of reasons to believe he would be found not guilty.

[00:12:16] For example, there was no physical evidence that he committed a crime, no witnesses, no video.

[00:12:22] His son told the police that he saw his mother walking quickly and heard the front door slam

[00:12:26] and his daughter heard a car start.

[00:12:29] This supports the idea that Carol left on her own.

[00:12:33] There was no proof that Carol was actually dead.

[00:12:35] Considering how she was engaging in infidelity, maybe she ran off with a lover.

[00:12:40] The only evidence against Michael was the unlikelihood that Carol would abandon her family

[00:12:45] and how he changed details in his story.

[00:12:48] I believe there was reasonable doubt in this case.

[00:12:52] Michael was guilty in reality but should not have been convicted based on the evidence

[00:12:56] that was presented to the jury.

[00:12:58] Item number three.

[00:13:00] Pretty much everyone who knew Michael liked him.

[00:13:02] The state even conceded that Michael was a good guy.

[00:13:06] Several of Michael's acquaintances described him as honest, trustworthy, easygoing, nice,

[00:13:11] mellow, non-confrontational, even-tempered, friendly, kind, patient, giving, and funny.

[00:13:18] After Carol's disappearance, Michael continued to work with Carol's father, Milton.

[00:13:23] Even took over the business after Milton retired.

[00:13:27] Michael regularly spent time with Carol's family members, which included attending holiday

[00:13:31] parties and other family events.

[00:13:33] They considered him to be a member of their family.

[00:13:37] Even when he was on trial for Carol's murder, her family did not believe Michael was guilty.

[00:13:43] Nobody appeared to be angry or upset with Michael.

[00:13:46] His son said that he didn't want his father to go to prison, even if convicted.

[00:13:51] Item number four.

[00:13:52] What do I think happened in this case?

[00:13:54] This is just a theory, my opinion.

[00:13:56] Michael was a kind and laid-back individual, whereas Carol was cold, callous, self-centered,

[00:14:02] grandiose, and had a sense of entitlement.

[00:14:05] They had different feelings about their marriage.

[00:14:07] Michael was content, but Carol felt as though she had outgrown their relationship.

[00:14:12] She was having at least one affair and was ready to move on.

[00:14:16] Carol was looking for someone more mature who could provide her with the finer things

[00:14:20] in life, like a multi-bathroom residence.

[00:14:23] On the night of March 30, 1981, Carol pressured Michael to sign a document to list the house

[00:14:28] for sale.

[00:14:29] This was her first step to end the relationship.

[00:14:33] When he wouldn't budge, she returned to the house and tried to make Michael angry

[00:14:37] by revealing that she was having an affair.

[00:14:40] Michael's initial reaction was to have feelings of sadness.

[00:14:44] Carol's lack of empathy expressed itself clearly when she approached Michael and said

[00:14:48] he would find someone else.

[00:14:50] Carol had no idea how devastating that statement is to someone who has just been rejected by

[00:14:55] a spouse.

[00:14:56] She did not have the ability to understand how Michael felt.

[00:15:00] In a moment of rage, Michael attacked and killed Carol, but did not intend to cause her death.

[00:15:06] He managed to dispose of her body without being detected, but unwisely made statements

[00:15:11] to many people, including the police and the media.

[00:15:14] If he had simply remained silent, he never would have been arrested.

[00:15:18] There is the sense that Michael believed it was his destiny to be arrested.

[00:15:22] At one point he hinted to the police about cooperating with them, as if he intended to

[00:15:27] confess.

[00:15:28] I think Michael was trying to reconcile his generally pro-social nature with his awful

[00:15:33] crime.

[00:15:34] He really wanted to tell somebody what he did, but he was not interested in going to

[00:15:39] prison.

[00:15:40] Now moving to my final thoughts.

[00:15:42] As I mentioned, many people empathized with Michael and felt sorry for him.

[00:15:47] It's rare to hear someone speak of a killer so generously.

[00:15:50] I can imagine his supporters saying something like, well, Michael may have killed someone,

[00:15:55] but did I mention how he's a nice guy?

[00:15:57] Like really nice.

[00:15:58] In fact, he's so easy to get along with, let's not even worry about the homicide.

[00:16:04] Despite the level of compassion displayed toward Michael, I think it's important to remember

[00:16:07] that Carol never had a chance to offer her side of the story.

[00:16:11] She never had the opportunity to explain why she was frustrated in her marriage, why she

[00:16:16] had an affair, why she confronted Michael.

[00:16:19] It's also possible that Michael did actually plan to kill her, but again, without Carol's

[00:16:24] side of the story, there's no way to know what happened.

[00:16:27] Even though Michael was an affable guy, he killed someone without justification and repeatedly

[00:16:33] lied about it.

[00:16:34] A person can be likable and be a killer at the same time.

[00:16:47] This has been True Crime Psychology and Personality from Ars Langa Media.

[00:16:52] This content is for educational and entertainment purposes only.

[00:16:57] Ars Langa, Vida Brevis.

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