Kathleen Jourdan Was Forced to Kill Her Husband After Years of Abuse — Where Is She Now? (EXCLUSIVE CLIP)

According to the American Psychiatric Association (via the U.S. Dept. of Justice), a battered woman is "virtually held hostage in a violent household by a man who isolates and terrorizes her, convincing her that if she leaves he will track her down and kill her." The reason why the DOJ has chosen to acknowledge this form of trauma is because battered woman syndrome is occasionally used as a legal defense by a woman who has murdered her spouse.

For Kathleen Jourdan, battered woman syndrome was definitely utilized in her murder trial. In June 2020, she shot and killed her husband Joshua Jourdan as they were driving along Interstate 80 in Nebraska. During her trial, Kathleen went into detail about years of abuse she endured while married to Joshua. Where is Kathleen Jourdan now? Here's what we know.

In March 2022, a jury found Kathleen not guilty of second-degree murder as well as use of a deadly weapon to commit a felony, per KETV Omaha. Brian Copley, Kathleen's attorney, told Oxygen.com that they were of course pleased with the verdict. "Kathleen suffered years and years of abuse and she did what was necessary to protect herself on June 17, 2020. We are glad the jury agreed and we appreciate their time and effort in reaching a just verdict."

While being cross examined by Dawson County Attorney Elizabeth Waterman, Kathleen said she regretted killing her husband but was "relieved the abuse is over … (that I’m) done with this bad life." As far as what was in store for Kathleen, Copley told Oxygen.com that she was focused on her two children. Her plan was to further pursue the "medical career she started before that fateful day." At the time of the incident, Kathleen was part of the University of Nebraska Medical Center’s Family Medicine Residency Program.

An upcoming episode of Oxygen's Kill or Be Killed examines Kathleen's story. In an exclusive clip obtained by Distractify, her lawyers explain how crucial it was that they make her jury understand that Kathleen was a victim of abuse. Brian Davis, Kathleen's other attorney, explained that a "battered person's brain and decision-making change over time." He likens this situation to living with a mountain lion. The prey learns to pick up on cues that suggest an attack is near.

Davis's argument for self-defense was rooted in the idea that over time, Kathleen recognized when Joshua was going to snap. We then hear Kathleen's voice as she revisits a harrowing moment from 2017 when the family was living in Georgia. "He threw his plate across the room and said, 'I'm going upstairs,'" explained Kathleen. As she followed him, things took a terrifying turn.

In front of their sons, who are 2 and 4 years old, Joshua hit Kathleen in the face. She immediately put them into their room and called the police. Unfortunately he had several guns in the house which gave Kathleen pause. Sadly this is one of the more tame stories Kathleen divulged to her attorneys and then later during the trial.

For more on her story, tune into Kill or Be Killed Saturday March 16 at 9 p.m. EST on Oxygen.