Deadly Women Episode on Bernadette and Kirsten

Tune in the Friday night for an episode of Deadly Women on the Investigation Discovery Channel. They will show the case of Kirsten Costas.

Photo of Kirsten Costas

Here is the only known photo of Kirsten Costas

Bernadette Protti Movie

There was a movie based on this case that came out in the nineties. The name of it is Death of a Cheerleader aka A Friend to Die For. There was also a documentary called Landscape Suicide.


Click here to go to the movie page

Photo of Bernadette Protti

Bernadette Protti headed to court

Other Bernadette Protti Links

Here are a few other important links on the case. I am not sure why I posted these on three separate blogs, but oh well here they are.


The Movie: this link will take you to the movie page that was made back in the nineties. This movie is by far one of the most favorite movies shown on Lifetime today.

Bernadette Protti Found: This is a brief blog that I did when I was trying to find out the new identity of Bernadette Protti.

Kirsten Costas Teen Murder Case

Bernadette Protti Trial Notes

by Traciy Curry-Reyes 

Mid March of 1985 Courthouse in Martinez

During opening statements, Prosecuting Attorney John Oda, went over the details of the crime scene and the injuries that Kirsten Costas sustained. She sustained five stab wounds. Three of those stab wounds hit vital organs, which caused her death. The jurors had the opportunity to listen to Bernadette Protti's taped confession. In the tapes, Bernadette, speaking in a very shy- soft voice, stated that she was horrified by what happened, and that she had no idea what she was doing. She described how the argument ensued between the two of them...that Kirsten started putting her down, and that she threatened to tell everyone that she was weird. Then all of a sudden Bernadette felt enraged, and that everything that happened after that just seemed like a dream. Jurors also heard Bernadette talk about feelings of jealousy and inadequacy. (When the tape played in the courtroom, you could hear a pin drop.)  The prosecution emphasized in their opening and closing statements that this crime was intentional due to the fact that Bernadette was jealous of Kirsten Costas. That it was Bernadette's plan to murder Kirsten when she lured her from her home. He stated that her callousness could be seen in the way that her behavior did not change after the crime. For example, the very next day she took a walk with her mom, and she cleaned the knife and returned it to its original location. Later she went to summer school, and then she returned to school in the fall as if nothing had happened. The defense did not agree. They stated that even though Bernadette had gone through the motions of living a seemingly normal life after the murder, her life was anything but normal. They talked about her personal anguish, and how so many times she attempted to reach out and tell someone about what happened. She also joined a Catholic church. Her public defender wanted to show the jury that this was not premeditated murder.

The Courtroom Atmosphere

There were so many people that attended the trial that people, including some friends and family members, had to be asked to leave the courtroom. In the courtroom there was Berndatte's family and supporters on one side and family and supporters of Kirsten Costas on the other side.  Bernadette Protti cried through most of the trial. Her family, who was sitting very close to her, often consoled her during the proceedings.

At Bernadette's sentencing, Kirsten Costas' mother pleaded with the court for justice. While she asked the court to prosecute Bernadette to the fullest extent of the law, Bernadette sat quietly listening with her head down. She was convicted of second degree murder. Once the sentence was handed down, the town was outraged that she had such a light sentence. Kirsten Costas' parents sued Bernadette Protti and her parents. They sought punitive damages.

 Even though most people in the city of Orinda wanted to see Bernadette prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law, there were, believe it or not, supporters for Bernadette. There were a few people who felt that it was the atmosphere in Orinda that led to Bernadette's feelings of inadequacy. Classmates of Bernadette and Kirsten agreed that everything you saw in the movie regarding the city's attitude and materialistic nature was completely true. In fact, Randall Sullivan, did some in depth research on this very subject. It was his article that was used as a basis in making the movie. This case made national attention. It was covered heavily in California by the local media in Orinda and San Francisco. People's Magazine and Ladies Home Journal wrote about the murder too. There was also a documentary that featured Kirsten's story. (will post the article dates and the name of the documentary soon)

More photos of Bernadette Protti, Kirsten Costas Murdered

I received these today. One is of her at trial, and the other, I believe is a school photo. I am totally shocked to see Bernadette more clearly. The only photos that I have seen are the same old ones that make her look totally different; then I realized the pictures that we all had seen showed a puffy faced Bernadette, but puffy from crying. I received some more trial notes concerning her demeanor which describe her as crying constantly throughout the 3 day trial.