Tag: Americas

SALT LAKE CITY (TCN) — The last surviving victim of a murder-suicide involving a mother and her four children died over the weekend after suffering traumatic brain injuries.

Olivia Blackmer’s family announced on GoFundMe that the 7-year-old died Saturday, Feb. 15, at a hospital in Salt Lake City after her mother, Tranyelle Harshman, fatally shot herself and her kids. Blackmer underwent brain surgery and other procedures in the days preceding her death.

The family wrote in an update, “She fought so so hard up til the last minute! Her body and her brain had been through too much, medication helped but we reached a point where medical options were exhausted and her body only continued to get worse. She kept fighting through it all though until her heart stopped.”

On Feb. 10 at 1:30 p.m., the Big Horn County Sheriff’s Office Public Safety Communications Center received a call from a woman who said her daughters had been shot, and that two were in their cribs and the other two would be in a bedroom downstairs. The caller told the dispatcher she “could be found in her upstairs bedroom and that she was going to do the same to herself.”

The sheriff’s office wrote in a news release that the dispatcher “pleaded with the female caller over the phone for the female caller to remain on the line until responding units arrived,” but the caller “stated multiple times that she could not do that and that it was too late.”

The line ultimately went dead.

Several law enforcement units responded to the home and entered, where they found a 2-year-old and 9-year-old deceased with gunshot wounds to the head and another 2-year-old and 7-year-old, Blackmer, still alive but with shots to the head. The 2-year-old died at the scene from her injuries. Officials located the caller, Harshman, with “signs of life” and began rendering aid.

Paramedics transported Blackmer and Harshman to nearby hospitals. Blackmer was air lifted to another hospital for advanced care, then taken to Salt Lake City. Harshman died from her injuries.

Harshman’s husband, Cliff Harshman, told Cowboy State Daily that Tranyelle Harshman was coping with postpartum depression, post-traumatic stress disorder, and depression.

He shared, “My wife was not a monster.”

Cliff Harshman said Tranyelle Harshman’s actions were “so out of character” because they had been getting her help, “and along the way, something didn’t work.”

Cliff Harshman was the father of the two younger kids, while Quinn Blackmer was Olivia Blackmer and 9-year-old Brailey Blackmer’s father. Harshman’s daughters were identified as Brooke and Jordan.

The four kids were reportedly home from school that day because they had the flu.

Cliff Harshman told Cowboy State Daily, “As angry as I may be with her, I still love her — and I still lost her as well.”

MORE:

• Help Olivia Fight After Tragic Loss – GoFundMe
• Tragic Shooting Incident – Big Horn County Sheriff’s Office
• Husband Of Woman In Byron Murder-Suicide Says She Was Depressed, Struggling – Cowboy State Daily
• Wyoming mother allegedly shot her 4 daughters, called 911, and then shot herself – TCN

Source: True Crime Daily

SULLIVAN COUNTY, Tenn. (TCN) — A judge sentenced a 23-year-old woman to life in prison after she was convicted of killing her toddler daughter, leaving her body in a trash can, and covering her remains with foil.

Sullivan County court records show a jury convicted Megan Boswell of three counts of first-degree murder, two counts of aggravated child abuse, one count of tampering with evidence, 11 counts of false reports to officer, one count of abuse of corpse, and one count of refuse/neglect to comply death under suspicious circumstances in connection with the death of 15-month-old Evelyn Boswell. WJHL-TV reports Boswell was sentenced to life with the possibility of parole for the murder charges, but she will be sentenced in May for the others.

Evelyn Boswell was reported missing to the Sullivan County Sheriff’s Office on Feb. 18, 2020, but family members said she had not been seen since Dec. 26, 2019. The Tennessee Bureau of Investigation (TBI) issued an Amber Alert the next day. On March 6, 2020, TBI detectives executed a warrant at one of Boswell’s family’s properties and discovered the girl’s remains.

TBI Agent Brian Fraley testified at a hearing in September 2022 about how Megan Boswell’s father reached out to the agency and requested they search a shed on his property. WJHL reports Fraley said the father “believed it may have been valuable for us to look in it,” and when they did, they discovered the toddler’s remains in a trash can behind a playhouse.

Evelyn Boswell was placed in a trash bags and blankets underneath additional layers of bags.

The Tennessee Lookout reports forensic pathologist Dr. Darinka Mileusnic-Polchan described Evelyn Boswell as being “tightly wound” in a blanket and wrapped in aluminum foil. Mileusnic-Polchan said Evelyn Boswell was “sort of compressed in the can” and her facial features were “pretty much flattened.”

Boswell reportedly claimed she was co-sleeping with her daughter and her boyfriend, and when they woke up, Evelyn Boswell was unresponsive.

The girl’s cause of death was listed as asphyxiation.

TBI Director David Rausch said in a statement following Boswell’s verdict, “Five years ago, we began working alongside the Sullivan County Sheriff’s Office, the FBI, and the Office of the 2nd Judicial District Attorney General to pursue justice for Baby Evelyn. Today, justice was finally served. Every single person who worked on this case should be commended. It was both challenging and heartbreaking, but they never wavered from their mission to ensure the person responsible for Evelyn’s death was held accountable.”

MORE:

• State of Tennessee vs Megan Boswell
• Jury hands Megan Boswell life sentence after guilty verdict – WJHL
• Missing toddler was reportedly wrapped in blanket and tinfoil, placed upside-down in trash can, 9/27/2022 – TCN
• Mom pleads not guilty to killing daughter who was suffocated by foil, placed upside-down in trash, 6/21/2024 – TCN
• AMBER Alert: Evelyn Mae Boswell, 2/22/2020 – Tennessee Bureau of Investigation
• TBI agent describes finding Evelyn Boswell’s body, 9/23/2022 – WJHL
• Testimony reveals Sullivan County toddler died after being placed in trash can, 9/23/2022 – Tennessee Lookout

Source: True Crime Daily

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Source: True Crime Daily

This Week on True Crime News The Podcast: An argument between socialite Penelope McGee and her politically prominent ex-husband, Andrew Savitz, ended with Savitz dropping dead and McGee charged with manslaughter. McGee was ultimately found not guilty, but that leaves one major question: who should be accountable for the man’s untimely death?

Luis Bolaños joins host Ana Garcia.

YouTube: Socialite acquitted in ex-husband’s death after fatal argument

Source: True Crime Daily

CANANAIGUA, N.Y. (TCN) — Five people have been arrested and charged with murder for allegedly subjecting a missing 24-year-old trans man to ongoing physical abuse for several months and disposing of his body in a field.

According to New York State Police, Sam Nordquist traveled to New York from his home state of Minnesota in September 2024 and last spoke with his family in January. They reported him missing to New York State Police Troop E on Feb. 9 after asking troopers to conduct a welfare check at a lodge where Nordquist had been staying with some of the suspects.

Investigators discovered Nordquist’s remains in a field in another county and later arrested Precious Arzuaga, Jennifer Quijano, Kyle Sage, Patrick Goodwin, and Emily Motyka on charges of second-degree murder — depraved indifference.

In a press conference, Kelly Swift, captain of the Bureau of Criminal Investigation of Troop E, said investigators executed a search warrant at the lodge and uncovered a “deeply disturbing pattern of abuse that ultimately resulted in Sam’s tragic death.”

Swift said Nordquist “endured prolonged physical and psychological abuse at the hands of multiple individuals” between December and February. She described it as “repeated acts of violence and torture.”

Swift called this case “one of the most horrific crimes I’ve ever investigated.”

Ontario County District Attorney James Ritts also spoke at the press conference and said, “The facts and circumstances of this case are beyond depraved. This is by far the worst homicide investigation that our office has ever been a part of.”

He added, “No human being should have to endure what Sam endured.”

Swift said investigators “haven’t ruled out” whether Nordquist’s death was a hate crime.

The five suspects are in custody and are being held without bail.

MORE:

• New York State Police Seek Public Assistance in Locating Missing Person – New York State Police
• NYSP Missing Person Press Conference – WHEC-TV

Source: True Crime Daily

MEMPHIS, Tenn. (TCN) — A 25-year-old man who is already serving over 100 years in prison for killing his girlfriend and who compared himself to horror movie character Michael Myers has been sentenced to another century behind bars for killing three others.

The Shelby County District Attorney’s Office announced Friday, Feb. 14, that a judge sentenced Joshua Dotson to 159 years after he pleaded guilty to three counts of first-degree murders for the deaths of Divieon Parker, Renita Bennett, and Reginald Anderson. He also entered the plea for three counts of reckless endangerment with a deadly weapon. In October, he was sentenced to 102 years for killing girlfriend Jamesha Covson and her unborn child.

In total, Dotson has been sentenced to 261 years in prison for the murders.

During his trial for Covson’s killing, Dotson reportedly called himself a “serial killer” and said he was like Michael Myers from the “Halloween” horror movie franchise.

According to the Memphis Police Department, on June 12, 2020, officers went to a home on the 1200 block of Quinn Avenue for a shooting call and found 19-year-old Covson suffering from gunshot wounds. Paramedics transported her to a hospital, where she and her unborn child died. Police said Covson and Dotson got into an argument, and Dotson fired at the home as he was leaving. Dotson fled the scene following the incident.

Police linked him to the shooting deaths of Parker on Nov. 19, 2019, and Bennett and Anderson on May 24, 2020.

Dotson was later captured in Nashville by the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation.

Shelby County prosecutor Regina Lucreziano said following the Feb. 14 sentencing, “After five years, we are pleased to finally have justice for Dotson’s multiple victims. His sentences, both from the guilty verdict after a trial and these two pleas today, amount to 261 years in prison. While no amount of time in prison will bring the victims back to their loved ones, we are content that he will never be a threat to our community again.”

MORE:

• Self-Proclaimed ‘Serial Killer’ Joshua Dotson Sentenced to Additional 159 Years for Triple Homicide: Total Sentence Now 261 Years for Five Murders – Shelby County District Attorney’s Office
• Self-Proclaimed ‘Serial Killer’ Sentenced to 102 Years for Double Murder of Former Girlfriend and Her Unborn Child, 10/31/2024 – Shelby County District Attorney’s Office
• Homicide Suspect Wanted, 6/12/2020 – Memphis Police Department
• Most Wanted Alert, 6/17/2020 – Tennessee Bureau of Investigation

Source: True Crime Daily

In this episode of True Crime News Presents: American Hustlers: How did Kaushal go from nearly broke to Armani suits, private limos, and a suite at the Four Seasons where the staff referred to him as “your Highness”? A prison interview from Danny gives Kim and Julie a clue – maybe the answer is in Hawaii. It’s there that Kaushal befriends Keiko, a Japanese businesswoman and mother of two on vacation. Like all of Kaushal and Danny’s victims, Keiko is smart and competent. And yet, before long, Kaushal will con Keiko – not once, but twice – to the tune of half a million dollars. Nearly her entire life savings. Investigating how he did it reveals an international visa scam, an elaborate – and fake – kidnapping plot, and possibly willing participation from someone inside the Bank of Hawaii. And it sets the stage for Kaushal and Danny to go from thick as thieves to partners in crime.

YouTube: Episode 4: Aloha Keiko

Source: True Crime Daily

MADISON COUNTY, Ill. (TCN) — A 46-year-old man has been convicted of killing his 60-year-old mother after she went on a date.

According to the Madison County State’s Attorney’s Office, a jury found Neil Howard guilty of first-degree murder in connection with the death of Norma Caraker. Howard will be sentenced at a later date and faces up to 60 years in prison.

Prosecutors argued Howard, who lived in the victim’s basement, was “unhappy about his mother’s dating.” In September 2023, shortly after Caraker went on a date, Howard allegedly strangled her to death with a bungee cord. The victim’s dating was reportedly “making Howard ‘angrier and angrier and angrier,” until “he got drunk enough that he couldn’t take it anymore.”

In the early hours of Sept. 13, 2023, Howard called 911 because his mother was unresponsive. Troy Police responded to the residence and found her in her bed with a bungee cord still around her neck, and she was pronounced deceased.

According to the Belleville News-Democrat, prosecutors said Howard was an upset, unemployed man with a history of domestic violence. Howard allegedly tried to blame his mother’s death on her date, James Carter. However, Howard was reportedly the only person in Caraker’s residence when officers located her body.

Assistant State’s Attorney Luke Yager said Howard “had enough of her sleeping around. He’d had enough of her not giving him money,” the Belleville News-Democrat reports. Yager reportedly showed body-camera footage of Howard telling authorities about a man who ran out of the glass door, but officers determined it had been locked from the inside. Howard also allegedly stole $58 from his mother.

According to the Belleville News-Democrat, the defense claimed Troy Police ignored other possible leads and obtained a DNA sample from Carter over a year after the victim’s death. Other defense witnesses reportedly said Caraker often kept her door unlocked, and she would bring home men for sex and had an on-and-off boyfriend named as a beneficiary on her life insurance policy.

A crime lab technician also allegedly testified and claimed she found Carter’s DNA on the bungee cord and under Caraker’s acrylic fingernails. However, prosecutors reportedly insisted Howard wore latex gloves when he strangled his mother, and his DNA wasn’t on the cord because the victim was trying to pull it away from her neck.

According to prosecutors, during the trial, Yager told jurors that the defendant “wrapped that cord around her neck, and he pulled until she stopped breathing.”

In a statement, Madison County State’s Attorney Tom Haine said, “The careful and meticulous work of the responding officers and investigators allowed our prosecution team to show the jury exactly what happened in the critical timeframe around Norma Caraker’s senseless death. This was a challenging case that relied heavily on scientific and technological evidence.”

MORE:

• Haine Announces Guilty Verdict in Trial of Man Charged with Killing Mother with Bungee Cord – Madison County State’s Attorney’s Office
• Jury renders verdict in murder trial of Troy man accused of killing his mother – Belleville News-Democrat

Source: True Crime Daily