A Wednesday. Melanie McGuire says she isnt hoping for prison release, in a new jailhouse interview with @ARobach Friday at 9/8c during a new #ABC2020. But though she denied parking it there, Melanie later claimed that she had gone to Atlantic City and moved the car to mess with him. This stuff exists. This stuff exists, she said on the show. 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. That same year, she married her husband, a U.S. Navy veteran named William Bill McGuire. Immediately after murdering Bill, according to the State, defendant embarked on a plan to conceal the crimes and to create the appearance that Bill had abandoned his family, his job, and his new house after a violent argument with her. 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. Melanie McGuire, the Suitcase Killer, gave a rare interview to Amy Robach of ABC News in September 2020. She then called Miller the next morning, and he said "she was upset" and had told him about the fight they'd had. "Suitcase Killer: The Melanie McGuire Story" premieres June 18 at 8 pm on Lifetime. "Beware of pretty faces that you find, a pretty face can hide an evil mind." -Johnny Ramistella. 3d 411 - NJ: Appellate Div. The Edna Mahan Correctional Facility for Women near Clinton, New Jersey, made headlines for allegations of sexual abuse and for the recent spread of the coronavirus, New Jersey Spotlight News reported. Melanie did not incapacitate, shoot [or] use a saw to dismember her husband, said Sacks. NEW BRUNSWICK - Melanie McGuire the former Woodbridge resident convicted of killing her husband, dismembering his body, packing it in suitcases and tossing it off a bridge in Virginia . 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. Now the former fertility nurse is 47 years old and spending her life sentence in Edna Mahan Correctional Facility in Clinton, New Jersey. Police also discovered small pieces of Bill's flesh, which authorities described as "human sawdust," inside the McGuire home, which they believed meant that McGuire had killed her husband. "People ask me, 'Explain this. Leave a sympathy message to the family in the guestbook . During her arraignment on murder charges, McGuire's case was dubbed the "Suitcase Murder" by various media outlets. Melanie McGuire and defense attorney Stephen Turano, right, react to the verdict during her trial in New Brunswick, N.J., Monday, April 23, 2007. It was a mistake on a gun manufacturer's website. And on May 16, a third. The appeal details the murder, the night of Bill McGuires disappearance, and the disposal of his body. [9] Melanie later claimed she had moved the car as a "prank",[8] even though she had applied for a protection from abuse order days earlier after allegedly being slapped by her husband. The plastic bags that contained Bill's body parts and the bags that contained Bill's clothes, which Melanie had given away to a friend, were demonstrated by forensics to have been manufactured on the same assembly line within hours of one another. But this was the first time somebody was basically saying, We hear you, said Melanie McGuire. There are times when podcasts and media can shine a light on certain cases where what the government did was not right. Prosecutors called 64 witnesses, and the defense called 16 witnesses. Like, how could somebody think that I did that? He was 39 years old. So if you wish to learn more about her and her current whereabouts, heres what we know. The killer is out there and it's not me. He had been married to Melanie Lyn Slate McGuire for about five years had two beautiful sons with her. She allegedly wanted to spend the rest of her life with her lover, and so, she did what she could to get rid of her husband. Bill called his friends to happily tell them the news. [23] On September 20, 2011, the New Jersey Supreme Court declined to hear her further appeal. In the meantime, the two young McGuire children, ages 5 and 7, are being raised by Bill's sister, Cindy Ligosh. Dr. Melanie did file for a re-trial before her sentencing on the basis that her husband was deeply in debt and may have been killed by Atlantic City mobsters, but to no avail. [9] The couple had two sons and lived in a Woodbridge Township, New Jersey, apartment, but planned to move that month to a larger home in Warren County. Melanie McGuire Today: Where Is the Suitcase Killer Now in 2020. (BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Less than a year later, the McGuires had their first son. Melanie, who grew up in Brick, and William McGuire were married in 1999 and had lived with their two sons in Woodbridge at the time of the murder. Following the 2018 investigation into allegations of sexual abuse at the prison, the DOC released a statement in April, 2020, saying reforms were introduced at the prison to make it easier for inmates to report sexual abuse. 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. After seeing this report Melanie McGuire told Miller a story that prosecutors later called preposterous. The chart below captures the current COVID cases within the inmate and staff population, following Phase 2 testing, which includes retesting those individuals who were previously negative. this link is to an external site that may or may not meet accessibility guidelines. After re-examining her murder conviction over a decade later, Sacks and Shlosberg, believe Melanie McGuire was wrongfully convicted. She later told police that she believed he'd gone to Atlantic City to gamble as he had a penchant for doing so. The very next day, Melanie spoke with divorce attorneys and attempted to file for a restraining order. Sacks and Shlosberg claim that the tests run by the state's plastic expert were not sufficient to conclusively link the bags found in Melanie McGuires house and the ones used to wrap Bill McGuires body. It never made sense.. And about a week later, suitcases containing his body parts began to float to the surface in the Chesapeake Bay. Melanie went to work at a fertility clinic and Bill began teaching computer science at a technical college. At the time, the local media also reported this detail about the parking lot's surveillance cameras. This is not one of those cases, said Prezioso. Locane is back behind bars for killing Helene Seeman, 60, in a 2010 drunk driving collision in New Jersey's Montgomery Township. Melanie McGuire, 34-years old, sentenced to life in prison for murdering her husband Photo Source: NJ.com (website) If youre willing to wear a wire, well believe you, said Sacks. In this special, she speaks up about her innocence, her troubled marriage, her affair with Dr. Bradley Miller, and how she wishes she could still be a part of her childrens lives. There were five lands and grooves that my weapon was said to have made based on the company's website. 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. Bill McGuire was murdered by his wife Melanie McGuire, and his body was found near Virginia Beach's Chesapeake Bay in 2004. A few days later, a suitcase surfaced in a bay miles away with a horrifying discovery inside. She bought a gun two days before his disappearance in Pennsylvania, but said she did so for her husband, and speculated he was having trouble with someone. She maintains her innocence, having recently told 20/20 that "after all these years, I still feel hurt. It was the 28th of April 2004. 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. 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. Born on October 8, 1972, Melanie Lyn Slate has spent all of her life in New Jersey growing up in Ridgewood and Middletown Township. Melanie McGuire married her husband in 1999 and later alleged that he had a gambling problem and a violent temper. During her interview with ABC News, McGuire shared a message for her sons, saying: "Make up your mind. [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. Soon after William and Melanie McGuire tied the knot in 1999, they welcomed their first child, a son, in 2000. This episode takes you through the case and trial, while showing Melanie being interviewed on an episode of 20/20 in 2007, and showing Melanie speak from prison today. 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. For her part, Melanie insisted that her husband had stormed out after a fight. I dont know how you would dismember a body and effectively clean that up, said McGuire. Like, how could somebody think that I did that?". Meghan Sacks and Amy Schlosberg are the hosts of the podcast "Direct Appeal" and Fairleigh Dickinson University criminology professors. So I think the police said, Well, prove it. 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. She suggested that her husband had been killed over his gambling debts, claiming that he was the one whod insisted that she buy a gun in the first place. The body was eventually identified as 39 year-old Bill McGuire, an employee of the New Jersey Institute of Technology, who lived more than 300 miles away in Woodbridge, New Jersey. They opened it and found a mans dismembered legs, cut off at the knee. 3d 948 - NJ: Supreme Court 2011 - Google Scholar", "N.J. Supreme Court won't hear appeal of convicted 'suitcase killer', "Convicted killer Melanie McGuire seeking post-conviction relief in June hearing", "Suitcase killer Melanie McGuire seeks new review of evidence", https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Melanie_McGuire&oldid=1142209125, This page was last edited on 1 March 2023, at 02:58. Melanie McGuire, a New Jersey woman who was sentenced to life in prison, in 2007, for the murder of her husband Bill McGuire, discusses the case and maintains her innocence; Born on October 8, 1972, Melanie Lyn Slate has spent all of her life in New Jersey growing up in Ridgewood and Middletown Township. She reportedly spent most of her life in New Jersey. Do Not Sell or Share My Personal Information. 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. Melanie McGuire is serving a life sentence in the murder of her husband, Bill McGuire, at a women's correctional facility in New Jersey. It was hard. 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. No one plugged the serial number of my gun into a website to find out what the specifications were, said Melanie McGuire. Melanie McGuire - Wikipedia. He probably would have broken my cheek if it had been a closed fist, Melanie McGuire told 20/20. On May 11, another suitcase was discovered. How Marvel went big with Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania. Powered by WordPress.com VIP. New Jersey fertility clinic nurse Melanie McGuire stands accused of murdering her husband, William, in 2004. 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. 24/7 coverage of breaking news and live events. Pam Grier reflects on her most iconic roles, from, State Superior Court Judge Angela Borkowski gave Locane more time after the punishment, Wrong Turn: The tragic story of former It Girl Amy Locane, Amy Locane to be re-sentenced for fatal auto crash, Amy Locane recalls drunk-driving crash in post-prison interview. 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 . McGuire testified that during their argument her husband had become violent and he threatened to take their children away before leaving the home by himself, per CBS News. 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. A four-count indictment came down from a state grand jury. Miller eventually testified against Melanie McGuire at her trial. Investigators searched the home for evidence multiple times, checking to see if Bill McGuire had been killed and dismembered there. 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. During the 20/20 interview, Melanie sends a message to her now adult sons, whom she hasnt had contact with since her 2007 trial. I guess it is comforting [that people are interested]. 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. While she admitted to her affair with Miller, she maintains she did not kill Bill McGuire. (Video By Bumper. Melanie McGuire's defense team focused on the lack of physical evidence, insisting it was more likely that Bill McGuire was murdered as the result of his gambling, than at the hands of his diminutive wife. A top priority for New Jersey investigators was determining if Melanie McGuire had ever owned a gun. 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. When investigators processed Bill McGuire's car, they also found a bottle of the sedative chloral hydrate and two syringes. Dubbed the "Suitcase Killer," she was found guilty and sentenced to life in prison on July 19, 2007, at the age of 34. At trial, prosecutors presented an apparent mountain of circumstantial evidence against Melanie McGuire in Bill McGuires disappearance and murder. It is physically exhausting. Melanie McGuire says 'it's a coincidence' she bought gun before husband disappeared McGuire said she spoke in a new "20/20" interview, 16 years after she was convicted of murdering her husband . [Watch on your phone with the ABC GO Digital App found here. Melanie then became the prime suspect in the investigation. Prosecutors believed that McGuire forged the prescription as she had access to this prescription pad. I still feel bothered. But Melanie maintains that she did not commit the infamous Suitcase Murder. 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." 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. says the actress. She was sentenced to life in prison on July 19, 2007. [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. She said that they believe the garbage bags were a prop to sway the jury. If I wanted to look for something like that, I have a [physicians' desk reference]. [11] Through her attorneys, Joe Tacopina,[12] Steve Turano, and Marc Ward, she pleaded not guilty to the charges. One contained legs, another a pelvis, and the third a torso and head. The Secret in the Suitcase: With David Muir, Amy Robach, Melanie McGuire, William McGuire. Do you know how hard it is to cut through bone? [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. It was the timing of that purchase, though, that really caught the eye of investigators: It happened just two days before Bill McGuire went missing. Suitcase Killer: The Melanie McGuire Story airs at 8 p.m. After being released on bail, Melanie faced additional charges on October 11, 2005. A nurse said her husband walked out on her. The evidence that was at trial was from ballistic experts.. At least the prison conversations won't be, ahem, boring for Amy Locane. They discovered that Melanie had bought a gun in Pennsylvania two days before Bill went missing and that she was having an affair with a doctor at her practice, Bradley Miller. But Melanie maintains that she did not commit the infamous Suitcase Murder. I believe that the evidence presented to the jury told the jury what happened," Prezioso said. So she drove around until she found his car and then moved it as a prank. Nothing in Melanie McGuires early life suggested shed turn to murder. [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. On June 5, 2005, investigators arrested Melanie McGuire and charged her with first-degree murder. NEW BRUNSWICK - Melanie McGuire the former Woodbridge resident convicted of killing her husband, dismembering his body, packing it in suitcases and tossing it off a bridge in Virginia . The victim, a coroner found, had been shot multiple times. I cannot even think about that. Making matters worse, Melanie McGuire had called the company and attempted to have those charges removed. Melanie McGuire was a former nurse in the United States who was found guilty of murdering her husband on April 28, 2004. In April 2004, defendant conducted internet research to learn about buying a gun and about poisons, sedative drugs, and murder. [24][25] On April 29, 2014, McGuire filed a motion for post-conviction relief, alleging ineffective assistance of counsel and newly discovered evidence. 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. Watch new at 9/8c on ABC. Don't accept what you're just being told on the surface. [B]ut gone doesnt mean dead.. As of June 22, 2020, two inmates had died of COVID-19. After reading about Melanie McGuire and the Suitcase Murder, discover the story of Nancy Brophy, the woman who wrote How To Murder Your Husband and may have indeed murdered her husband. She may be eligible for parole after serving 66 years in prison, court documents filed in her case said. 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. William "Bill" McGuire was having a great day. Prosecutors allege that McGuire, 34, shot him to death, sliced his body into four pieces with a power saw and then dumped his remains in the Chesapeake Bay. His wife, Melanie McGuire, a fertility nurse and the mother of his two sons, was eventually convicted of murdering him and dumping his body. Melanie went to work at a fertility clinic and Bill began teaching computer science at a technical college. She became known as the "Suitcase Killer" during her televised 2007 trial. Please review our privacy policy here: https://heavy.com/privacy-policy/, Copyright 2023 Heavy, Inc. All rights reserved. Custody of McGuire's two sons was given to her husband's sister, Cindy Ligosh, when she was convicted, and McGuire has not seen them since. She pleaded not guilty. Melanie McGuire, born October 8, 1972, is an American former nurse who was convicted of murdering her husband on April 28, 2004, in what media dubbed the "suitcase murder". After all these years, I still feel hurt. 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. She maintains her innocence and . She didn't fit the profile, I guess, of a murderer, Shlosberg said. She will not be eligible for parole until she is 100 years old. Fairleigh Dickinson University criminology professors Meghan Sacks and Amy Shlosberg have an entire podcast called Direct Appeal dedicated to questioning Melanies conviction. We were not gathering evidence from a gun manufacturer's website. McGuire appealed her case, saying she did not receive a fair trial. Melanie McGuire has been in prison for 13 years, but she still maintains her innocence, she said in an interview with 20/20. In April 2004, Melanie and Bill McGuire seemed to have it all: successful careers, two young sons and a new $500,000 home. She was sentenced to life in prison on July 19, 2007 and is serving her sentence at the Edna. Criminologists Dr. Meghan Sacks, and Dr. Amy Shlosberg dig into the evidence on the podcast. 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. Meanwhile, investigators found more and more evidence that suggested that Melanie McGuire had killed her husband. 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. 2023 Cinemaholic Inc. All rights reserved. [9] The footage was blurry and the police weren't able to identify the person in the video. 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). She is currently incarcerated at the Edna Mahan Correctional Facility for Women in Clinton, New Jersey, according to her prison records. Melanie McGuire. [8] She married United States Navy veteran William T. "Bill" McGuire (born September 21, 1964) in 1999. They really turned this place upside down a number of times They couldn't find any forensic evidence whatsoever to establish this was a crime scene.. This stuff exists, she said on the show. 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. In September 2020, Melanie McGuire sat down with 20/20 and gave her first interview in 13 years. New Jersey Attorney Generals OfficeOne of the three suitcases that contained parts of Bill McGuires body. The 47-year-old is currently serving a life sentence at the Edna Mahan Correctional Facility in Clinton, New Jersey . Before she was charged with murder, Melanie contacted E-ZPass and attempted to have the $0.90 charge removed from her account history. On May 5, 2004, a couple of fishermen and their children noticed a dark green Kenneth Cole suitcase floating in the waters of the Chesapeake Bay. There were times I wanted him gone, she told 20/20. She says she is innocent. After all these years, I still feel hurt. Dig, dig., 20/20 airs Fridays at 9 pm on ABC, right after Americas Funniest Home Videos at 8 pm. [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. ABC News also reported that other evidence included McGuire's purported internet search history, which amongst others included "undetectable poisons.". The Superior Court of New Jersey affirmed her verdict and sentence in 2011. Bill McGuire, 39, put a down payment down on a $500,000 house for the couple and their two young sons in April 2004. They surmised that Melanie had sedated Bill, shot him, and cut up his body. [6][7] She enrolled at Rutgers University with a double major in math and psychology and graduated in 1994. There's less of a waiting period.. Bradley Miller told a Middlesex County court this afternoon that he lied to a grand jury when he said he stopped having sex with . Nevertheless, because all the evidence was against her, a jury found her guilty of murder, unlawful possession of a weapon, desecrating human remains, and perjury on April 23, 2007. She will not be eligible for parole until she has served 66 years in prison. Did Melanie McGuire dismember her husband? His body was found in three separate suitcases in the Chesapeake Bay, which led to McGuires nickname, the Suitcase Killer.. But though Bill and Melanie had two sons together, their marriage swiftly soured. Bill McGuire, 39, disappeared April 28, 2004, shortly after announcing to his friends that he and his wife had just closed the sale of their first home, according to an appeal filed in her case. Dubbed the Suitcase Killer, she was found guilty and sentenced to life in prison on July 19, 2007, at the age of 34. At her televised trial, prosecutors explained that she had drugged Bill, shot him, and dismembered him. Melanie McGuire is serving a life sentence in the murder of her husband, Bill McGuire, at a womens correctional facility in New Jersey. She also made inquiries of a friend about how to buy a gun. William "Bill" McGuire was a husband and father of two. Prezioso is certain that Bill McGuires murderer is the woman who was convicted and is now sitting in prison. I just burst into tears, Melanie said of learning about her husbands death in a 2007 interview. The appeal raised many claims contending she did not receive a fair trial, including prosecutorial misconduct, failure to consider a mitigating factor, a tainted jury, and exposure of the jury to inflammatory media accounts. Suitcase Killer The Melanie McGuire Story is available to watch in Canada with a Philo subscription! "There was no evidence connecting him to this crime.. Melanie McGuire. Therefore, more than a year after the incident, on June 7, 2005, Melanie was officially arrested and charged with first-degree murder. Their relationship began in 2002, according to the appeal. Investigators also found Bills car where Melanie suggested it would be Atlantic City. She claims that someone went after Bill because of his gambling debts and that the real perpetrator of the Suitcase Murder is still out there. 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. 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 . 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. Melanie McGuire, shown at left during her trial, was convicted of fatally shooting her husband, cutting up his body with a power saw and then stuffing his remains into suitcases she later. 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. Who Is Melanie McGuire? They closed the documents on their new house on April 28, but never moved in.

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