JACKSONVILLE, Fla. -- July 20th, 2002. It was the happiest day of Christine Cowan's life.
She married the man of her dreams, a fellow educator, a good man who knew how to make her laugh. "He had a funny sense of humor. I fell in love with his eyes and he was such a gentleman to me," Cowan said.
Christine and Bob Cowan were just like any other couple. They bought a home, had friends, traveled, and wanted to start a family. But Christine's world was about to come crashing down.
12 weeks pregnant, Christine learned her husband had been arrested for downloading child pornography.
"It was a blur. I remember being at work and the detective breaking the news and there was some part of me that thought this has to be a sick joke. I was devastated."
Bob Cowan, a middle school guidance counselor and former primary school principal had images of videos of children being raped on his laptop computer.
It took three months before Christine could face her husband through the jailhouse glass.
"When I saw him after Thanksgiving he said 'I love you' and I said I can't say it, I don't know who you are," said Christine. "He said he didn't want to spend the rest of his life in here and I said I pray you do."
Paige Kelton writes:When I first spoke with Christine I was struck by her strength. Don't get me wrong, there was sadness, heartbreak and misery in every word she spoke, but it seemed an inner strength was giving her the strength to speak the words. Talking about the man she loved and the hideous crime he committed was deeply personal.
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In October, Bob Cowan stood trial in Federal court. He took the stand in his own defense, insisiting he had downloaded the images and videos by mistake. But prosecutors revealed a damning piece of evidence: a simple word document containing a kind of secret code, special internet search words that could only lead to one thing.
A jury convicted Bob Cowan on seven counts.
Today, Christine relieves every moment of their marriage in her mind, replaying events, looking for clues that could have revealed the monster she married.
"I deal with guilt constantly. Is there something I missed, why didn't I see it?"
Now this young, single mom is left to build her life alone, burdened with a single question. Who is the real Bob Cowan?
"There are times I miss the man I married, but that's not who he is. There are times I wonder if he was portraying someone he thought I wanted. I don't know, I wonder now."
Christine has since divorced her husband. His sentencing is set for January, but we've learned Cowan has appealed to the judge to have his conviction thrown out. Christine hopes her story will give other women courage and hope.
Courage to get through the worst life can throw at you, and the hope for a better life ahead.
