Betty Broderick, who murdered her ex husband and his new wife, dies in prison

Betty Broderick, widely known for murdering her husband and his new wife in 1989, has died while serving a life sentence. She was 78.

Broderick, whose real name is Elizabeth A. Broderick, died on Friday, May 8, at 3:00 a.m. local time, the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation (CDCR) said in a statement shared with PEOPLE.

Three weeks before her death, Broderick was moved from the California Institution for Women to an outside medical center "for a higher level of care," the CDCR said. The details of her health condition are unclear.

The CDCR has also stated that the San Bernardino County Coroner will officially rule on her cause of death at a later time, though a medical doctor has determined her initial cause of death as natural.

Broderick was transferred to the California Institution for Women on February 26, 1992 and before that, she was held in San Diego County after being convicted of second-degree murder with an enhancement for use of a firearm.

She was serving a life sentence with the possibility of parole when she died, the CDCR said.

Broderick gained national notoriety after killing her husband, Dan Broderick, and his new wife, Linda Kolkena, on November 5, 1989.

Betty and Dan wed in 1969 and shared four children.

In the early 1980s, Dan began an affair with Kolkena, a former flight attendant whom he had hired to work as his legal assistant while he was going through marital woes with Betty.

Though he denied the affair following Betty's suspicions, Dan eventually left Betty and filed for divorce in 1985.

After the two battled the sale of their family home and custody of their four children, Dan had been granted custody while Betty was given visitation rights.

Their court dispute often included their children, which drove Betty into a depressive state of mind.

Dan and Kolkena married in 1989 and later that same year, Betty shot and killed the couple in their bed.