Who was Bill Stout and how did he die? NBC Dateline set to explore Montana murder by gunshot

Dateline will have Keith Morrison report on the Montana murder case surrounding Bill Stout's death on Saturday, June 4, 2022, at 9:00 p.m. ET, exclusively on NBC.

On a Sunday evening in June 2010, Noah Stout returned to the family's Montana home with his mother Anne Marie Stout after a shopping trip only to discover his father Bill Stout's dead body in bed.

Reports state that Bill died of a single gunshot wound to the head with a pistol that he owned. It was later revealed that he had filed a report informing the Ravalli County Sheriff of his missing pistol, ammunition, and holster ten days prior to his death. Although the authorities confirmed that no gun was found at the crime scene, the investigation led the police to find the murder weapon in Bill's motorcycle saddlebag alongside a rubber glove with his wife's DNA.

The 2007 murder trial saw Anne Marie Stout, the victim's wife, being found guilty of shooting him in the head while he was asleep. After a long and controversial trial, she was convicted for murdering Stout. She was sentenced to life in prison in September 2008.

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More about Bill Stout and his tragic death

Bill Stout was a Montana resident, living in a rural area near Darby with his two teen sons and wife Anne Marie Stout. Everything seemed fine within the family until June 2007 when Bill's dead body was discovered by his wife and younger son after they returned home from a Missoula shopping trip.

Reports state that Anne and Bill had been alone at home on the evening of June 9 until their younger son came back at midnight. Anne Marrie claimed that Bill had plans to go horseback riding with a friend the following day. She also stated that she had spent the entire night with her husband in their bedroom and that Bill had felt unwell the following morning. She informed the authorities about the call she had received from Bill's friend regarding their plans, and her subsequent cancelation of the arrangement on his behalf.

However, the couple's younger son claimed that he had not seen his father that evening upon returning home or the following morning before leaving for the shopping trip.

Reportedly, the investigation revealed that Bill had been shot in the head with a pistol he owned (which had gone missing 10 days prior to the murder) on the night of June 9, 2007. Evidence found in the house led the authorities to believe that Anne Marie was responsible for murdering her husband.

Stout's DNA inside the rubber gloves that she allegedly used while murdering Bill, a note on how to use a gun, and internet history revealing her research into killing someone made her the prime suspect in the murder case. She even testified saying that those had been Bill's searches, implying suicide. It was ruled in court that she committed the murder of her husband due to vengeance after she had found out about his ongoing affair. It was also attempt on her part to claim his insurance money worth $500,000.

Bill Stout's wife, Anne Marie Stout, was found guilty of his murder in 2008 (Image via Oxygen)

Despite Stout's attempts to mislead authorities and point towards Miller (the woman with whom Bill was having an affair) as a possible suspect, the police managed to link the former to all the evidence they found. On June 26, 2007, she was charged with deliberate homicide. After a controversial three-week-trial in September the following year, she was found guilty of murdering Bill Stout and sentenced to life in prison.

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Catch Keith Morrison reporting on Bill Stout's murder case this Saturday, June 4, 2022, on NBC's Dateline.