And did Edmund really deserve his just rewards in Try to Catch Me? After all, there was never any conclusive proof he DID kill his wife. It really COULD have been a terrible freakish accident. However Abigail had made up her mind, brooding and dwelling on her niece's death, and in the very first scene it was obvious he was going to die, deserved or not.

Perhaps you’re correct, but remember when Columbo went to Edmund’s apartment and couldn’t find a single photo of his dead wife? It’s conjecture, kind of like when Hayden Danziger told Columbo, “Lt, I thinking that falls in the area of speculation”