Jason Sandford
Jason Sandford is a reporter, writer, blogger and photographer interested in all things Asheville.
I had a reader requesting more information about former WLOSer Karen Coulon. I briefly mentioned her in an earlier post, but I can expound a little bit. As far as where she is now, I don’t know. Last I heard, rumor had it she was in nursing school somewhere. If anyone has more info, you can post a comment or e-mail me at [email protected]. Karen, if you’re out there, let us know how you’re doing.
Could this be you, Karen? I found this, from the Web site of what appears to be a high school in California. I don’t remember exactly what she looked like, and it has been 15 years or so, but this very well could be her.
To recap the story: in the early 1990s, Coulon went on trial for felony arson after she was charged with setting her boyfriend’s house on fire. It was a sensational case because Coulon was a hit on the local TV news. Bright and energetic, she seemed to have everything going for her.
But off camera, Coulon was apparently quite the jealous lover. She was dating an Asheville lawyer, and when she got wind that he might have been screwing around on her, she went ballistic. She tossed some charcoal on a bed with some of his other belongings and threw a match on it.
At the 1991 trial, Coulon put on one of the best acting performances ever, and if she never won an Emmy for her work at WLOS, she sure as hell should have won for her trial.
She faced some serious jail time being charged with a felony. But Coulon adopted a demure demeanor, dressed in dowdy, Dunkle-like old lady outfits and played all sweet and nice. It came out at trial that she was about 10 years older than she was actually claiming to be around town, but that was a mild revelation compared to the trial’s end.
Coulon’s attorney, always thinking, didn’t hesitate to put his client on the stand. Knowing that she was so likable, he put her up there and let her do the rest. Her defense was basically – yeah, I did it, but I didn’t mean to do it. And don’t you like me?
The jury answered with a resounding yes, acquitting her of all charges.
Another sideline many may have forgotten – the black community in Ashvegas was outraged at the verdict, because at the same time, a black Ashvegas man stood trial on exactly the same charges as Coulon – felony arson. Despite some flimsy evidence, he was found guilty and sent away for some 30 to 40 years.
Black residents protested, held community meetings and cried foul. Nobody listened. It was a sad end to one of the highest profile cases ever to hit Ashvegas.
CORRECTION: Karen Coulan is currently working at Jackson MS. University Medical Center as a Registered Nurse. Letting someone with this type of behaviour background work in a place such as a UMC? HR not doing their job?? Was a background check done? Are they even aware of her background behavior? This could be the real life Annie Wilks as in the movie "Misery." Patients BEWARE!
OK here is the scoop! Karen can be found at Jackson MS. State Hospital where she is courrently working as a nurse.Word has it that she has somewhat of a temperment. Lets hope her co-workers know of her capabilities.
Burn, Baby Burn
by Rick Phillips
copyright by Rick Phillips
Let me sing you a song about a good gal gone wrong
When a man tried to mess with her head.
He chose to cheat, and she singed his sheets,
and burnt half his house down instead.
Well, she could be seen on channel thirteen;
she knew how to smile for the lens.
But deep in her heart she was comin’ apart;
her true love said, "Let’s just be friends!".
Now this fella she craved just couldn’t behave,
and I don’t know if I blame him or not.
But when she felt spurned the poor guy soon learned
not to play games with a woman so "hot".
Chorus:
Burn, baby burn!
The hot coals of love turned red.
She didn’t mean to burn the house she said,
…just the bed.
Well her day in court had come
and the jury was "hung";
(and that’s the way she liked it!).
All they could see was her face on TV;
and they let her go free.
Now, the lesson, to me,
is not hard to see—
don’t let a pretty girl down too fast.
The next time if you’re not so lucky,
she just might barbecue your ass!
Burn, baby burn.
The hot coals of love turned red.
She didn’t mean to burn the house she said;
…just the bed.
Burn, baby burn!
…
(Soon to be released on Dry Ridge Records)
I rode the Smoky Mountain Railroad from Dillsboro to Nantahala after the Karen Coulon trial and guess who the conductor was? you got it Dear ole piss in the bed,then set it on fire Karen Coulon.And thats the truth.
Really, Where is karen now? I miss her
Really, Where is karen now? I miss her
Thanks, Sandy. Sadly, it’s also true, but after several months of therapy and a couple of drum circles praying for world peace up at Pack Square and a ride in the Nude Bike Ride I’m feelin’ a lot better.
Could someone from WLOS go to the archives and post a picture of Karen from her heyday so we could compare pictures? If that is her I wonder what she is teaching? Fire safety?
And Bulldog, that is a wild story.
Caldwell and Coulon? Did I read that right? Wonder if she taught Ol’ Bob how to get the campfire going.
Hard to tell. There is a resemblance, but I’d bet she’s more likely the bus garage secretary in Michigan than the teacher in California.
My favorite result from the Google search is http://www.seed2money.com/Jane's_page.html which has an endorsement she did in the 1980s for some cookbook.
Last we heard over here, she had gone to nursing school at Southwest Community College and later got a job at the Great Smoky Mountains Railroad. That’s been a few years, though, and I don’t think anybody (other than Caldwell, maybe, and he ain’t talking) has heard from her since.
w-loser, do you think the photo i found and posted here is Karen?
Now that’s a great story, ‘Dawg. Love that action!
So Karen got a little carried away with the lighter fluid, and smoked her boyfriend’s shorts. That’s not the worst she could have done. My old friend Bubba broke up with a girl over in North Asheville once and she lined the walkway to his apartment with funeral wreaths. She went out one night and stole them from a cemetery. A few days later Bubba heard this awful buzzing in his mailbox and found an aging cow tongue covered with flies when he opened the door. He later found out this North Asheville debutante and her sister, who owned horses by the way, had filled up the sister’s ex-boyfriend’s car with horse manure – shoveled the sumbitch full all the way to the dashboard. So that’s why Bubba don’t date no former Junior Leaguers anymore.
I don’t recall anybody in management wanting to keep her, although I’m sure they double checked her contract to make sure they could legally be rid of her after that messed up verdict. And we had dropped PM Magazine by then; Karen anchored the morning and noon news.
The picture does indeed resemble her, with appropriate aging.But I have never met her, so I don’t know for sure. She should have done some jail time, not 30-40 years, though, and paid retribution to her ex-boyfriend, whether he was a creep or not. And according to one article I remember, she also had a history of stalking boyfriends. If this is true,there is something pathological here with her easily being able to establich rapport with people. I would be curious to know what her background was.
Another request, if Karen’s lawyer ex-boyfriend was indeed cheating, did this incident cure him?
Another amazing thing about the case was that WLOS wanted to keep her despite the charges and wanted to have it shoved under the rug. With the way the jury was, she could have gone back to PM magazine without any drop in the ratings.