[9] McGuire persisted in claiming she was innocent, and claimed her husband had become increasingly moody and unpredictable and was a compulsive gambler. That night, according to the prosecution, McGuire drugged her husband, shot him dead, and subsequently dismembered his body. Then, they looked in Pennsylvania. She was indicted on four additional, relatively smaller charges in October. Born on October 8, 1972, Melanie Lyn Slate has spent all of her life in New Jersey growing up in Ridgewood and Middletown Township. [9] A witness testified that Melanie used the same towels to protect furniture when she moved. The 2004 case was dubbed the suitcase murder because the victims legs were found in a suitcase that washed up in Virginia Beach. Thirteen years have passed since Melanie McGuire's conviction. On June 2, 2005, more than a year after the murder, Melanie dropped her children off at child care and preschool. A few days later, a suitcase surfaced in a bay miles away with a horrifying discovery inside. Melanie McGuire - Wikipedia She was later charged with other offences including perjury and desecration of human remains, for which she also pled not guilt. Melanies not the only person who believes that the police got it wrong. YouTubeMelanie McGuire married her husband in 1999 and later alleged that he had a gambling problem and a violent temper. Entertainment Weekly may receive compensation for some links to products and services on this website. (Video By Bumper. The podcast hosts and Melanie McGuire herself, raise questions about whether it's even possible the gun she purchased was the murder weapon. Melanie Mcguire Affair With Bradley Miller, Suitcase Killer Story McGuire had a message for her sons, who are now adults, "Make up your mind. Like, how could somebody think that I did that? she said on 20/20. ABCs 20/20: Interview with Melanie McGuire is a two-hour broadcast wherein the suitcase killer opens up about the circumstances that landed her in prison for the rest of her life. After all these years, I still feel hurt. She wished to avoid purchasing a house at substantial expense and beginning a new phase in a marriage she regretted. On camera, Melanie tells them: Make up your mind. Miller was also married with children. Meghan Sacks, host of podcast "Direct Appeal" and Fairleigh Dickinson University criminology professor questions Melanie McGuire's guilt. Investigators also found trash bags in Melanie McGuire's home that they believed matched those used to wrap parts of Bill McGuire's body. Prosecutors believed that McGuire forged the prescription as she had access to this prescription pad. 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. The medical examiner determined that the body had been shot multiple times. "Suitcase Killer: The Melanie McGuire Story" premieres June 18 at 8 pm on Lifetime. 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. [9] Green fibers had been found on one of the bullets lodged in Bill's chest; the fibers were identified as polyester fill, a common material found in household furniture. A jury convicted McGuire in 2007, and she was sentenced to life in prison plus five years. N.J.'s most infamous killers behind bars: Then and now 01: Three suitcases, containing human remains, surfaced in Virginia's Chesapeake Bay in May 2004. Author John Glatt wrote a book about the case, entitled To Have and To Kill. Melanie McGuire is now serving a lifetime sentence at Edna Mahan Correctional Facility for Women in New Jersey, as Entertainment Weekly reports. Upon further investigation, police discovered a security video of the car being moved in the early morning hours of April 30, 2004. On April 23, 2007, McGuire's murder trial jury found her guilty of first-degree murder, finding that the evidence established her culpability for the murder beyond a reasonable doubt. Sometimes, she said, hed get violent with her. 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. Yet, in the end, it turned out that shed lied about it all. ", Credit: Jean-Paul Aussenard/WireImage; ABC, Amy Locane's prison cell roommate is the notorious Suitcase Killer. Like, how could somebody think that I did that?. After pulling the surveillance footage from the parking lot, however, investigators were disappointed. https://t.co/ZGewROXCaQ pic.twitter.com/hlzcKR96Ss. By that point, the two had only flirted and corresponded via e-mail, only for a romance to blossom. McGuire, 34, a mother of two, is charged with first-degree murder in the April 2004 killing of her husband, 39-year-old state computer analyst William T. McGuire. Lena Christine Kindschi Obituary (1930 - 2023) | Perry, Oklahoma The Twisted Case of Melanie McGuire That Chapter 1.81M subscribers Subscribe 64K 1.8M views 9 months ago 2004, Chesapeake Bay. She will not be eligible for parole until she has served 66 years in prison. In September 2020 McGuire took part in a rare interview with ABC News, in which she continued to profess her innocence for the crime. Melanie McGuire is a former nurse who worked at a fertility clinic in New Jersey. He probably would have broken my cheek if it had been a closed fist, Melanie McGuire told 20/20. They surmised that Melanie had sedated Bill, shot him, and cut up his body. I still feel bothered. In a new episode of "20/20," co-anchor Amy Robach sits down for the first on-camera interview with Melanie McGuire since she was sentenced to life in prison 13 . How Many Children Did Melanie Mcguire Have With Husband William Mcguire A four-count indictment came down from a state grand jury. Dig, dig. 'Suitcase Killer' Melanie McGuire real story behind the movie This stuff exists. There are just too many holes in this story.. In the early morning hours of April 29, 2004, the day her husband disappeared, Melanie McGuire said that they had a violent fight and claimed that he choked her with a dryer sheet and hit her before leaving the house. However, McGuire was acquitted of the two counts of hindering apprehension, as well as tampering with evidence and possession of Xanax without prescription. She didn't fit the profile, I guess, of a murderer, Shlosberg said. Melanie did try to appeal her case and later get relief from her long sentence, but her petitions were denied. McGuire, now 47, was convicted of killing and dismembering her husband after a lengthy trial in 2007. The case is being featured on a two-hour ABC special, Suitcase Killer, which airs Friday, September 25, 2020 at 9 p.m. Eastern time. So if you wish to learn more about her and her current whereabouts, heres what we know. 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. She was immediately booked into the Middlesex County Adult Correctional Center on first-degree murder charges, but made her $750,000 bail ($1.04 million today). His business partner described him as a good father . After re-examining her murder conviction over a decade later,. Melanie McGuire married her husband in 1999 and later alleged that he had a gambling problem and a violent temper. Melanie went to work at a fertility clinic and Bill began teaching computer science at a technical college. Once Melanie spots Bills car from the highway, she decides shes going to move his car, said Shlosberg. A New Jersey grand jury indicted McGuire on charges of first-degree murder, second-degree possession of a weapon for an unlawful purpose, second-degree desecration of human remains and third-degree perjury in October 2005. Melanie Lyn McGuire (ne Slate; born October 8, 1972)[3] is an American former nurse who was convicted of murdering her husband on April 28, 2004, in what media dubbed the "suitcase murder". 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. Bill worked as a computer program analyst for a Newark, New Jersey college and Melanie worked as a fertility nurse, according to a 2011 appeal filed in her case. At her televised trial, prosecutors explained that she had drugged Bill, shot him, and dismembered him. I still feel bothered. State Superior Court Judge Angela Borkowski gave Locane more time after the punishmentfor her original conviction (second-degree vehicular homicide and assault by an auto), which was deemed too lenient. This chart demonstrates the significant drop in active cases from approximately 800 active inmate cases in DOC facilities at the peak of the pandemic, the DOC website says. 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? He was 39 years old. 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. Everyone Practices Cancel Culture | Opinion, Deplatforming Free Speech is Dangerous | Opinion. State of New Jersey Melanie McGuire, sentenced to life in prison for killing her husband in a case known as the "Suitcase Murder," filed a petition in New Jersey Superior Court Thursday asking a judge for more. CNN.com - Transcripts Direct Appeal on Apple Podcasts Melanie McGuire denies this, pointing to the fact that there are hundreds of miles between Delaware and Virginia Beach. Actress Candice King who is best known for her work in the Vampire Diaries will play McGuire. 3d 411 - NJ: Appellate Div. Where Is Bill Mcguire Now? The Suitcase Killer Melanie Mcguire Husband Today, Melanie McGuire is almost 50 and is serving a life sentence at Edna Mahan Correctional Facility for Women in Clinton. [9] Police believed that she used a syringe and prescription from her work to obtain the drug used as a means to incapacitate her husband.[11]. She will not be eligible for parole until she has. Bill McGuire, 39, went missing on April 29, 2004. It was reliving it. It says: The State alleged that defendant wanted to end her marriage to Bill but also had concerns about divorce. Please review our privacy policy here: https://heavy.com/privacy-policy/, Copyright 2023 Heavy, Inc. All rights reserved. According to PEOPLE, Melanie claimed that Bill had a gambling problem and a volatile temper. If I wanted to look for something like that, I have a [physicians' desk reference]. She is currently incarcerated at the Edna Mahan Correctional Facility for Women in Clinton, New Jersey, according to her prison records. Make up your mind. The Superior Court of New Jersey affirmed her verdict and sentence in 2011. [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. ET on ABC A top priority for New Jersey investigators was determining if Melanie McGuire had ever owned a gun. 'Suitcase killer' Melanie McGuire maintains innocence in prison TV She became known as the Suitcase Killer during her televised 2007 trial. A Wednesday. To this day, Melanie maintains that she did not kill her husband, dismember him, and dispose of his body parts in suitcases. Sex, Lies and Secret Lives - ABC News Melanie McGuire Sentenced to Life in Prison for Murdering and But police soon found that the couple had a deeply unhappy marriage, that Melanie had begun an affair with a co-worker, and that someone in the McGuires home had searched for things like how to commit murder online. In addition, Melanie was 38-weeks pregnant with her second child when the relationship started, based on reporting from New Jersey-based news outlet CentralJersey.com. "It turned out that when the record check was done with Pennsylvania, a record came back that Melanie McGuire had purchased a gun," said Patti Prezioso, the lead investigator and prosecutor at Melanie McGuire's trial. Melanie remembers this as. But life can spring an unexpected surprise, and it was an alleged infidelity in the McGuires' case that shattered to tragic pieces their marriage with the gruesome death of Bill in 2004. She maintains her innocence, having recently told 20/20 that "after all these years, I still feel hurt. After a 7-week trial, Melanie McGuire was found guilty of first-degree murder and sentenced to life in prison. The Melrose Place actresswho is now serving a second sentence at Edna Mahan Correctional Facility for Women in New Jerseyshares a prison cell with Melanie McGuire, the infamous "Suitcase Killer." Candice King as Melanie McGuire in "Suitcase Killer: The Melanie McGuire Story," which explore the real death of Bill McGuire in 2004. 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 . She pleaded not guilty to all indictments and soon posted an accumulated bail of over $2 million. It was a mistake on a gun manufacturer's website. It is physically exhausting. This stuff exists, she said on the show. She had apparently grown worried about their well-being upon noticing their behavior and got them tested. There was. Dont accept what youre just being told on the surface. The prescription for chloral hydrate came from Millers prescription pad. During the 20/20 interview, Melanie sends a message to her now adult sons, whom she hasnt had contact with since her 2007 trial. With Candice King, Michael Roark, Tristan Laurence, Jackson Hurst. My job is to convince the jury. In 1999, she started to work as a nurse at Reproductive Medicine Associates, one of the countrys largest fertility clinics. The circumstantial evidence against Melanie McGuire was mounting by this point, but investigators were still having trouble finding any physical evidence that would link Melanie McGuire to her husband's murder, according to Sacks. In 2004, three separate dark green Kenneth Cole suitcases, containing pieces of a dismembered body, were found in and around the Chesapeake Bay, near Virginia Beach, Virginia. Offers may be subject to change without notice. Melanie then became the prime suspect in the investigation. I still feel bothered. His wife, Melanie McGuire, a fertility nurse and the mother of his two sons, was eventually convicted of murdering him and dumping his body. A few weeks later, once Bills body was discovered and Melanie was identified as the prime suspect, Dr. Bradley had asked her to swear upon her childrens life that she had no hand in this homicide, which she did. Speaking to ABC News' Amy Robach for 20/20, she said: "I'm doing this because there's a murderer walking around. The appeal details the murder, the night of Bill McGuires disappearance, and the disposal of his body. 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.. "I can't even fathom that. It was hard. 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. After finishing high school, she enrolled at Rutgers University for a double major in math and psychology, which she achieved in 1994. Locane said she worries that her daughters and the public will forget her. 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. During her interview with ABC News, McGuire shared a message for her sons, saying: "Make up your mind. Did star lawyer botch suitcase murder case? Do Not Sell or Share My Personal Information. YouTubeMelanie McGuire says shes innocent and that someone else killed her husband, Bill, in 2004. She graduated from Oberlin College, where she earned a double degree in American History and French. [4] 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. 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. 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. Yesterday, more than a year after the three grisly discoveries, Melanie McGuire, 32, of Brick, N.J., was charged with first-degree murder in the April 29, 2004, slaying of her husband of four. The podcasters and Melanie McGuire also point to unexplained animal hair found on Bill McGuires dismembered body and noted in investigative reports. Also if the crime scene didnt happen [at the family home] and shes home with her children all night, where is this happening? Video Convicted murderer Melanie McGuire says she's 'terrified to hope Like, how could somebody think that I did that? she said on 20/20. I still feel bothered. Investigators discovered that the parking lot had surveillance cameras, and they pulled the security footage thinking they had stumbled upon a smoking gun that would show who dumped Bill McGuire's car. It premiered on 17th June 2022 and is airing exclusively on Lifetime.The show follows the shocking murder of Bill McGuire, so don't miss it - learn how to watch Suitcase Killer The Melanie McGuire Story in Canada on Lifetime.. No matter where you live, the alluring Suitcase Killer The . At least the prison conversations won't be, ahem, boring for Amy Locane. Don't accept what you're just being told on the surface. [8] She married United States Navy veteran William T. "Bill" McGuire (born September 21, 1964) in 1999. Miller was adamant that he had nothing to do with any crime, and he didnt know anything about this. by Chilling Crimes July 20, 2020. [1], By April 2004, the McGuires had been married for five years. But Melanie maintains that she did not commit the infamous Suitcase Murder. After a nearly month and a half long trial, Melanie McGuire was found guilty. The Departments virus mitigation tactics, along with its universal testing initiative of staff and inmates, has controlled the spread of COVID-19 within NJDOC facilities. Who Is Melanie McGuire, From Lifetime's 'Suitcase Killer'? | True Crime Bill McGuire, 39, put a down payment down on a $500,000 house for the couple and their two young sons in April 2004. Murders A-Z is a collection of true crime stories that take an in-depth look at both little-known and famous murders throughout history. 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. 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. She then graduated from the Charles E. Gregory School of Nursing (now Raritan Bay Medical Center) in 1997 with a nursing diploma. There are just too many holes in this story.. At that time, Melanie was a nurse at a fertility clinic and had managed to have a long-standing affair with one of the doctors there, Bradley Miller. Leave a sympathy message to the family in the guestbook . During the next three days, according to the State, and likely with the help of an accomplice as yet unidentified, defendant caused Bills body to be cut into sections with a reciprocating saw and a knife, wrapped the body in industrial-type garbage bags sealed with adhesive tape, and packed it into the matching set of luggage. this link is to an external site that may or may not meet accessibility guidelines. In addition to 20/20, her case is being examined in a podcast, Direct Appeal. She filed an appeal to the New Jersey Superior Court, which affirmed her conviction and sentence in 2011. [9] Melanie admitted that the couple owned the same set of luggage that the body was found in, a matching three-piece set of Kenneth Cole suitcases. With the story debunked, the request for a new trial was withdrawn. [9] Police released a facial reconstruction sketch of the victim, which an acquaintance of Bill McGuire's recognized. So, as soon as the topic of custody arose, the two boys were sent to them, especially since Bill and Cindy were already great parents to their own adult children: Laura Ligosh and Max Ligosh. The case involved 21 witnesses qualified as experts, hundreds of pieces of evidence and 21 days of testimony. The prosecution argued McGuires motive was her affair with Dr. Bradley Miller, a partner at the medical practice RMA Associates. 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. https://t.co/ZGewRPfd2o pic.twitter.com/i4dBUBR7PJ. 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. Watch the full story on "20/20" Friday, Sept. 25, at 9 p.m. If youre willing to wear a wire, well believe you, said Sacks. [9], On May 5, 2004, the first suitcase, containing human legs, was found by two fishermen and two children floating near the Chesapeake Bay BridgeTunnel's fourth artificial island, and a murder investigation was launched. Melanie McGuire - Wikipedia. He had been married to Melanie Lyn Slate McGuire for about five years had two beautiful sons with her. Powered by WordPress.com VIP. Melanie McGuire says she isnt hoping for prison release, in a new jailhouse interview with @ARobach Friday at 9/8c during a new #ABC2020. READ NEXT: Melanie McGuire Today: Where Is the Suitcase Killer Now in 2020? They shared two children together but their marriage was seemingly not a happy one as McGuire embarked on an affair with Dr. Bradley Miller, who was then a partner at the clinic she worked in, per Fox News. The 48-year-old actress and mother of two has been sober since the 2010 crash. Friday on #ABC2020: The co-hosts of the @directappeal podcast tell @ARobach why they believe Melanie McGuire was wrongfully convicted: I dont think that there was enough evidence to convict her. https://t.co/ZGewROXCaQ pic.twitter.com/qJfD3ATBkD. Melanie McGuire, The 'Suitcase Killer' Who Dismembered Her Husband They looked high and low to connect Melanie to some pet, and once they found that there was no way to connect Melanie to these pet hairs, it became not of evidentiary value, said Sacks. However, the state's expert disagreed, testifying that he ran the tests he believed were necessary to link the bags. Miller, however, claimed that the prescription was written in Melanies handwriting. Police also found a number of suspicious internet searches on the McGuires home computer, including questions like: how to purchase guns illegally, how to commit murder, and undetectable poisons. And they believed that the garbage bags in the McGuire home matched the bags wrapped around Bill McGuires dismembered body. She reportedly spent most of her life in New Jersey. She said her marriage to Bill McGuire was not going well and claimed that he was violent. Trial photos of Melanie McGuire, a New Jersey nurse best known for being the perpetrator in the media-dubbed "suitcase murder." . Miller eventually testified against Melanie McGuire at her trial. "And I'm driving down, and I take the first pass on this, on this highway, and I see a dark sedan, and lo and behold, there it is, Melanie McGuire said. But Melanie maintains that she did not commit the infamous Suitcase Murder. I still feel bothered. She told Miller that she was furniture shopping, according to Prezioso, who said she believes that is when Melanie McGuire drove the suitcases with her husbands remains to Chesapeake Bay. At trial, prosecutors presented an apparent mountain of circumstantial evidence against Melanie McGuire in Bill McGuires disappearance and murder. Suitcase Killer: The Melanie McGuire Story: Directed by Nicole L. Thompson. However, after five years and two kids, their marriage ended on April 28, 2004, with Melanie killing her husband. Life in Prison for Melanie McGuire - YouTube Do you know how hard it is to cut through bone? There's less of a waiting period.. (BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Less than a year later, the McGuires had their first son. [14], Shortly after her conviction, but before sentencing, McGuire appealed for a new trial on the basis of the story of jailhouse informant Christopher Thieme that her husband was deeply in debt and may have been killed by Atlantic City mobsters. After all, a medical-grade towel found with Bills body matched those stocked at the clinic as well as those she kept at her home. Though a jury agreed and sentenced Melanie McGuire to life in prison, the so-called Suitcase Killer has long insisted upon her innocence. We were not gathering evidence from a gun manufacturer's website. Former Brick Resident's Murder Conviction Upheld Melanie McGuire/Bill McGuire. Welcome to the Quantum Realm. Image Credit: ABC News / 20/20 [9] Similarly, a medical grade towel found with Bill's body matched those stocked at the clinic where Melanie worked. Melanie McGuire is an American former nurse who was found guilty of killing her husband, Bill McGuire, on April 28, 2004, in a case called the "suitcase murder" by the media. During her interview with ABC News, McGuire shared a message for her sons, saying: "Make up your mind. For the two toddlers, they usually woke up, saw their parents, went to daycare, came back, saw their parents, ate, played, and then slept. McGuire is lodged at the Edna Mahan Correctional Facility for Women, serving a life sentence in Clinton, New Jersey. Youre talking about hours [of driving] and there isnt enough time, said McGuire.