A WOMAN THOUGHT SHE FOUND A SAFE PLACE TO GET HELP FOR ADDICTION, BUT SHE DIDN'T KNOW SHE'D FALL IN LOVE - AND SHE DIDN'T KNOW HE WOULD KILL HER

"48 HOURS: THE SOBER TRUTH"

Saturday, Jan. 2, 2016

Karla Mendez Brada, struggling with addiction, sought help in an Alcoholics Anonymous program in California. She never could have imagined that through that recovery process she would fall in love with the man who would kill her.

Maureen Maher and 48 HOURS investigate the death of Brada and how attending meetings that would change her life ultimately led to the end of her life, in an encore of "The Sober Truth," to be broadcast Saturday, Jan. 2 (10:00 PM, ET/PT) on the CBS Television Network.

Maher also examines how judges around the country sentence some criminals to attend Alcoholics Anonymous meetings, and that AA's own non-disclosure guidelines put them side-by-side to those who are vulnerable in recovery.

Brada was found bruised and battered in her bedroom on Sept. 1, 2011, after her boyfriend, Eric Earle, called police to say he found her dead. Earle, who had a criminal past, told police he didn't know what happened, but said the bruises could have been from a fall he said she took overnight while carrying laundry down a staircase. Police didn't buy his story.

The path to Brada's death began a few years earlier. Brada battled an addiction to alcohol and prescription pills, which she hid from her family until 2008, when she crashed her car while driving under the influence of alcohol. She voluntarily entered rehab. After getting clean, Brada got her life back together and bought a condo in Santa Clarita, Calif. Soon, however, there were signs she was in trouble. She then voluntarily entered rehab again, where she was bussed daily to meetings of Narcotics Anonymous and Alcoholics Anonymous at a place called "The Recovery Room."

Earle was in a sober living facility that required him to attend AA meetings. Soon Brada crossed paths with Earle. They fell in love and he moved in with her.

The investigation into what happened to Brada would expose Earle's history and the risks of a recovery system that mixes convicted criminals in with the general population.

Brada's family believes the murder was preventable, had she only known the background of other folks in the program.

AA has been giving emotional support to people battling alcoholism since 1935 - and around the world people find comfort and support at AA meetings. In an e-mail to 48 HOURS, AA leadership said that "members share as much or as little as they wish about their past with other AA members." The organization added, "there are no rules or policies regarding such things."

48 HOURS: "The Sober Truth" is produced by James Stolz. Gayane Keshishyan is the development producer. Lauren Clark is the field producer. Gregory F. McLaughlin and Mike Baluzy are the editors. Peter Schweitzer is the senior producer. Susan Zirinsky is the senior executive producer.

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