Melanie McGuire claimed that her gun could not have been the murder weapon since the numbers of lands and grooves on the bullets that came out of Bill McGuire didn't match the number that the manufacturing website said it had made her gun with. As of June 22, 2020, two inmates had died of COVID-19. All we know is that they havent been in touch with their mother since before she was convicted. They closed the documents on their new house on April 28, but never moved in. She then graduated from the Charles E. Gregory School of Nursing (now Raritan Bay Medical Center) in 1997 with a nursing diploma. The 62-year-old actress posted a jaw-dropping selfie on Instagram Tuesday night, featuring the . New Jersey fertility clinic nurse Melanie McGuire stands accused of murdering her husband, William, in 2004. A Wednesday. Although investigators were unable to find physical evidence of murder inside the McGuire's home, they were able to find small pieces of Bill McGuire's flesh -- evidence that would eventually be referred to in the media as human sawdust -- from the car. Melanie McGuire, the Suitcase Killer, gave a rare interview to Amy Robach of ABC News in September 2020. We should mention that after Melanie was convicted of the charges against her, her family started a custody battle with Cindy, but to no avail. His head and torso with bullet wounds were found in a medium size suitcase and his arms in a smaller suitcase in the Chesapeake Bay. Melanie McGuire defends her innocence from inside prison in 2019, over a decade after she was convicted. He did not return a call from the seller later that evening. Join half a million readers enjoying Newsweek's free newsletters. She graduated from Oberlin College, where she earned a double degree in American History and French. YouTube "I can't even fathom that. I'm a nurse or I was a nurse, and I don't need to look up things like that. After they released a sketch to the public, one of Bill McGuires friends soon came forward. According to 20/20, the police were able to quickly identify the dismembered man. In the evening hours of April 28, 2004, after the closing on the new house, she allegedly drugged and incapacitated Bill and then shot him sometime during April 28-29. It is with deep sorrow that we announce the death of Lena Christine Kindschi of Perry, Oklahoma, who passed away on February 27, 2023, at the age of 92, leaving to mourn family and friends. [1] She graduated, second in her class, from the Charles E. Gregory School of Nursing (now Raritan Bay Medical Center) in 1997 with a nursing diploma. It was reliving it. I just burst into tears, Melanie said of learning about her husbands death in a 2007 interview. Lifetime's new film Suitcase Killer: The Melanie McGuire Story explores the shocking death of Bill McGuire on April 28, 2004. Through record tracing, they found out that the chloral hydrate was picked up at a Walgreens pharmacy just down the road from the McGuire children's daycare on the morning that Bill McGuire disappeared. Powered by WordPress.com VIP. She was sentenced to life in prison on July 19, 2007, and is serving her sentence at the Edna Mahan Correctional Facility for Women in Clinton, New Jersey.She will not be eligible for parole until she is 100 . As a realtor at the Weichert office in Franklin Lakes, she, along with her husband, pharmacist Bill Ligosh of Wyckoff, New Jersey, were deemed well qualified and capable of taking good care of the toddlers. She actually obtained the means to incapacitate Bill from her workplace, which eventually became her downfall. On April 28, 2004, the last day anyone ever saw Bill alive, Melanie had dropped off their sons, aged 2 and 4, at their daycare as routine at around 8:20 am. After all these years, I still feel hurt. McGuire offered a message to her sons on 20/20, who are now adults, encouraging them to look deeper into the case and find the truth for themselves. Police also learned that Melanie had been having a long-term affair with a co-worker named Bradley Miller. At her televised trial, prosecutors explained that she had drugged Bill, shot him, and dismembered him. Dig, dig. And shes not the only one who thinks that police arrested the wrong suspect. Meghan Sacks and Amy Schlosberg are the hosts of the podcast "Direct Appeal" and Fairleigh Dickinson University criminology professors. At the time, the local media also reported this detail about the parking lot's surveillance cameras. Watch the full story on "20/20" Friday, Sept. 25, at 9 p.m. ET on ABC Where Is Bill Mcguire Now? The Suitcase Killer Melanie Mcguire Husband Prezioso is certain that Bill McGuires murderer is the woman who was convicted and is now sitting in prison. After all these years, I still feel hurt," McGuire told "20/20", For some, it mightve seemed like a real-life episode of The Sopranos.. Melanie McGuire, now 47, maintains her innocence from the Edna Mahan Correctional Facility for Women in Clinton, New Jersey, the state's only women's prison where there are approximately 500. Her defense lawyers have not said if McGuire will testify . [11] Through her attorneys, Joe Tacopina,[12] Steve Turano, and Marc Ward, she pleaded not guilty to the charges. Colombia Finds Two New Shipwrecks Near The Site Of An 18th-Century Spanish Galleon That Sank With Billions In Treasure, The Life And Death Of JFK Jr., The Beloved Son Of John F. Kennedy, What Stephen Hawking Thinks Threatens Humankind The Most, 27 Raw Images Of When Punk Ruled New York, Join The All That's Interesting Weekly Dispatch. Born on October 8, 1972, Melanie grew up in Ridgewood, New Jersey, majored in statistics at Rutgers University, and enrolled in nursing school, according to The New York Times. Miller was adamant that he had nothing to do with any crime, and he didnt know anything about this. I dont know how you would dismember a body and effectively clean that up, said McGuire. Melanie remembers this as. Over a period of 12 days in May 2004, three dark green suitcases were discovered in and near the Chesapeake Bay. Convicted N.J. Wife Dubbed 'Suitcase Killer' Tells '20/20 - Peoplemag Thats what happened the night of April 28, 2004, the day Bill McGuire disappeared, according to his wife. Melanie McGuire said that Bill McGuire had asked her to buy the gun for him since he had a felony conviction from a bad driving record, which barred him from purchasing one on his own. She's now a 47-year-old inmate at the Edna Mahan Correctional Facility in Clinton, New Jersey, where she claims that she's not only innocent of killing her husband but that his real killer is still out there. Turn on desktop notifications for breaking stories about interest? These documents exist. On June 5, 2005, authorities arrested Melanie McGuire on first-degree murder charges. After exiting the older child's school, Melanie started walking toward her vehicle when law enforcement emerged from the bushes, taking her into custody without incident. 01: Three suitcases, containing human remains, surfaced in Virginia's Chesapeake Bay in May 2004. Dig, dig. There were two charges, totaling 90 cents, on her statement that proved she had driven to Atlantic City after her husband went missing. But despite her apparent grief, police soon began to suspect that Melanie McGuire had murdered her husband. In 2007, McGuire was convicted of killing and dismembering her husband, Bill. Melanie McGuire is currently in a New Jersey jail, awaiting sentencing on July 19. Whatever Happened To The Suitcase Killer Melanie McGuire's Two - MSN [26], On September 25, 2014, McGuire appeared in court with her new attorney Lois DeJulio, a public defender, to try to get a hearing that could overturn her 2007 murder conviction, on the grounds that her previous legal representation by Joe Tacopina was inadequate or ineffective. by Chilling Crimes July 20, 2020. Melanie had to withdraw her appeal after the prosecutors debunked the story, and so, on July 19, 2007, she was sentenced to life in prison. Bill and Melanie McGuire in happier days. While the prosecutors claimed, supported by evidence, that Melanie killed her husband in cold blood in the hopes of freely taking up a new life with Bradley Miller, her defense team argued that she was innocent and it was Bill who had issues. More than a year later, on October 26, 2006, McGuire was charged with two counts of hindering apprehension for allegedly writing letters to police aimed at getting them off her trail. Where Is Melanie McGuire Now? - The Cinemaholic YouTubeMelanie McGuire married her husband in 1999 and later alleged that he had a gambling problem and a violent temper. CNN.com - Transcripts A dramatization of the romance and marriage of the McGuires, the 2004 murder of Bill, the investigation, and the subsequent trial of Melanie, who who dismembered and disposed of her husband's body in suitcases. Do you know how hard it is to cut through bone? Born on October 8, 1972, Melanie Lyn Slate has spent all of her life in New Jersey growing up in Ridgewood and Middletown Township. They surmised that Melanie had sedated Bill, shot him, and cut up his body. 1:15. They knew that Pennsylvania was close and a lot of people will go to Pennsylvania for firearms because gun laws are more lax, Sacks said. Her bail was raised to $2.1million ($2.9 million today), but she was again released. Who is Melanie McGuire and where is she now? Whereabouts - Sportskeeda (The court awarded custody to Bill McGuires sister, Cindy Ligosh.) says the actress. There are times when podcasts and media can shine a light on certain cases where what the government did was not right. The podcast, hosted by Fairleigh Dickinson University criminology professors Meghan Sacks and Amy Schlosberg questions Melanie McGuire's guilt and suggests that there is evidence in the case that never received the legal scrutiny it deserved. Watch new at 9/8c on ABC. The publication reported that two days after Bill left, McGuire filed for a restraining order so he couldn't unexpectedly take their children, and three weeks after he had disappeared she filed for a divorce. ET on ABC. Melanie went to work at a fertility clinic and Bill began teaching computer science at a technical college. The bullets that came out of my husband had six lands and grooves," said Melanie McGuire. She became known as the Suitcase Killer during her televised 2007 trial. And my answer is I can't explain because I don't think it makes any sense either," Wronko told EW earlier this month. [10] Prosecutors contended her motive for murder was to take up a new life with her lover. McGuire had been married for five years by April 2004. Days later, an unidentified man, believed by many to be her stepfather, also contacted E-ZPass and attempted to have the charge removed. But she didnt report Bill missing. It was the 28th of April 2004. By that point, the two had only flirted and corresponded via e-mail, only for a romance to blossom. Dubbed the "Suitcase Killer," she was found guilty and sentenced to life in prison on July 19, 2007, at the age of 34. McGuire went through a lengthy trial, which was televised on Court TV, from February to April 2007. The Suitcase Murder - Forensic Tales Melanie McGuire has had no contact with them since before the verdict. She said in a moment of admitted irrationality she decided to drive down there and look for his car. Pam Grier reflects on her most iconic roles, from Coffy to Jackie Brown. WOODBRIDGE - Former township resident Melanie McGuire has spent 13 years in prison after receiving a life sentence for the death of her husband, William McGuire, but in a new television. Then, they looked in Pennsylvania. Also if the crime scene didn't happen [at the family home] and she's home with her children all night, where is this happening? [9] Bill and Melanie owned a green couch, and investigators theorized that the murderer used a pillow or couch cushion as a makeshift silencer) to shoot Bill. In the interview, she continued to say that she was innocent and asked her sons to look into the case and not believe what they were seeing. On July 19, 2007 she was sentenced to life in prison without possibility of parole until she is 100 years old. McGuire, now 47, was convicted of killing and dismembering her husband after a lengthy trial in 2007. A four-count indictment came down from a state grand jury. However, not much else about the day was typical. Prosecutors also pointed to Melanie McGuire's supposed internet searches in the days leading up to Bill McGuires disappearance. I have a book that I can look in that doesn't leave an internet history, Melanie McGuire told "20/20.". New Jersey Department of Corrections/Find a Grave Melanie McGuire told the podcast "Direct Appeal" that she is not the suitcase killer, and that the true murderer is still on the loose. They recorded her calls with family and friends, including Miller, with whom she was having the affair. Melanie claims she's innocent, and hopes that she will be released someday. However, McGuire was acquitted of the two counts of hindering apprehension, as well as tampering with evidence and possession of Xanax without prescription. Criminologists Dr. Meghan Sacks, and Dr. Amy Shlosberg dig into the evidence on the podcast. Dont accept what youre just being told on the surface. During her interview with ABC News, McGuire shared a message for her sons, saying: "Make up your mind. Do you know how hard it is to cut through bone? Melanie McGuire/Bill McGuire. Melanie McGuire is now serving a lifetime sentence at Edna Mahan Correctional Facility for Women in New Jersey, as Entertainment Weekly reports. A nurse said her husband walked out on her. The jury deliberated for three days before convicting her of all four counts lodged against her in the first indictment, and acquitted her of the eight counts filed in the second indictment. Direct Appeal on Apple Podcasts McGuire maintains her innocence, and wants her two adult sons to look into the case for themselves. They insisted he was a compulsive gambler who had become increasingly moody, unpredictable, and tempestuous in the months before his passing. After pulling the surveillance footage from the parking lot, however, investigators were disappointed. Did star lawyer botch suitcase murder case? - Daily Record Suitcase Killer The Melanie McGuire Story is available to watch in Canada with a Philo subscription! She then drove to Virginia on May 3, where the suitcases were thrown at night from an isolated stretch of the Chesapeake Bay Bridge into the bay. A staff writer for All That's Interesting, Kaleena Fraga has also had her work featured in The Washington Post and Gastro Obscura, and she published a book on the Seattle food scene for the Eat Like A Local series. Melanie claims that Bill pushed her against the wall during a fight, hit her, and tried to choke her with a dryer sheet. Image Credit: ABC News / 20/20 But just 48 hours later, 31-year-old Melanie requested a restraining order against him, alleging that he'd gotten violent during a fight the night before inside their New Jersey home. These documents exist. [9] Police released a facial reconstruction sketch of the victim, which an acquaintance of Bill McGuire's recognized. Although detectives did not find what they were looking for on the surveillance footage, they were able to find something curious on Melanie McGuires statement from her electronic toll payment company, EZ Pass. It's out there," she said. It never made sense.. When Bill McGuires body was found with bullet wounds, prosecutors pointed to the fact that Melanie McGuire had purchased a gun in Pennsylvania just two days before her husband was reported missing. "There was no evidence connecting him to this crime.. State of New Jersey McGuire was sentenced to 63 years, eight months and 30 days to life for first-degree murder, five to 10 years for desecration of human remains, two years and six months to five years for third-degree perjury, and a maximum sentence of life for second-degree possession of a weapon for an unlawful purpose, according to her prison record. by Sarah Jae Leiber Sep. 21, 2020. At the time, the case created a media sensation, with McGuire dubbed the "suitcase killer.". 24/7 coverage of breaking news and live events. Its out there., Melanie McGuire said she's speaking in a new #ABC2020 interview tonight with @ARobach, 16 years after she was convicted of murdering her husband, because she believes "the killer is out there and it's not me." Meghan Sacks, host of podcast "Direct Appeal" and Fairleigh Dickinson University criminology professor questions Melanie McGuire's guilt. Now her children have neither a mother or a father, neither one, because of Melanie McGuire. With Candice King, Michael Roark, Tristan Laurence, Jackson Hurst. Miller also said in his . This stuff exists. ABC dug into the case and interviewed McGuire in prison for their two-hour 20/20 special, Suitcase Killer, which airs at 9 p.m. Eastern time Friday, September 25, 2020. [21] The case has been profiled on television outlets: Snapped Oxygen Network; Dateline NBC; 48 Hours Mystery CBS; and The Investigators TruTV; Deadly Affairs Investigation Discovery, and Forensic Files II, among other true crime television shows. Dont accept what youre just being told on the surface. After all these years, I still feel hurt. Their theory was that this nurse, who was kind of so meticulous, had somehow just forgotten to wipe the bottom of her shoes, that she accidentally tracked these human sawdust particles of Bill's body from the house to the car, said John Glatt, a true crime author who wrote To Have and To Kill, a book about Melanie McGuires case. According to state records, she must serve at least 85% of her sentence before she can even be considered for parole, which means shell become eligible for it on May 20, 2073. In April 2004, defendant conducted internet research to learn about buying a gun and about poisons, sedative drugs, and murder.