ET on Saturday, June 18 on the Lifetime network. Prosecutors argued that she killed her husband so. As Dr. Bradley Miller testified in the Melanie McGuire court case, there was an ongoing affair between himself and Melanie when Bill McGuire was killed. 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. She said her marriage to Bill McGuire was not going well and claimed that he was violent. A four-count indictment came down from a state grand jury. Watch the full story on "20/20" Friday, Sept. 25, at 9 p.m. McGuire and Miller began their affair in 2002 when she was pregnant with her second child, and their relationship continued until June 2005 when she was charged with her husband's murder. 2023 Cinemaholic Inc. All rights reserved. They searched gun records in the state but found nothing. After they released a sketch to the public, one of Bill McGuires friends soon came forward. 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. She was later charged with other offences including perjury and desecration of human remains, for which she also pled not guilt. Dont accept what youre just being told on the surface. Her bail was raised to $2.1million ($2.9 million today), but she was again released. 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. The MCUs tiniest heroes are kicking off its biggest phase yet, setting up the next several years of storytelling. It was reliving it. Miller eventually testified against Melanie McGuire at her trial. There was. She will not be eligible for parole until she has. Getty Images. 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. ", Credit: Jean-Paul Aussenard/WireImage; ABC, Amy Locane's prison cell roommate is the notorious Suitcase Killer. And my answer is I can't explain because I don't think it makes any sense either," Wronko told EW earlier this month. [9] Police received a tip from a private towing company employee who said he towed a 2002 Nissan Maxima (Bill McGuire's car) from the Flamingo Motel in Atlantic City, on May 8, 2004. McGuire had a message for her sons, who are now adults, "Make up your mind. Melanie McGuire - Wikipedia. It is physically exhausting. 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. After being released on bail, Melanie faced additional charges on October 11, 2005. [22] She must serve more than 63 years before she is eligible for parole. "Suitcase Killer: The Melanie McGuire Story" premieres June 18 at 8 pm on Lifetime. 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. One contained a torso and a head, the other a mans thighs and pelvis, according to Oxygen. After all these years, I still feel hurt. Melanie McGuire explained that the night after Bill McGuire went missing, she was becoming angrier at her husband and suspected she knew where he was: Atlantic City. Sacks seconded her co-host, saying: Melanie did not incapacitate, shoot [or] use a saw to dismember her husband. 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. Melanie McGuire denies this, pointing to the fact that there are hundreds of miles between Delaware and Virginia Beach. They recorded her calls with family and friends, including Miller, with whom she was having the affair. [9] McGuire persisted in claiming she was innocent, and claimed her husband had become increasingly moody and unpredictable and was a compulsive gambler. Melanie says in the past, when theyre angry at each other, its a way of messing with each other, I guess you could say., It sounds beyond ridiculous sitting here saying it and I acknowledge that Its the truth, Melanie McGuire told 20/20.. Dont accept what youre just being told on the surface. They also discovered a bottle of the sedative chloral hydrate and two syringes in Bill's car, which they traced to a pharmacy near their children's daycare, and they learned that McGuire had bought a gun 48 hours before her husband's disappearance. Melanie McGuire says she is innocent, and wants her sons to know she did not kill their father, she said in interviews with 20/20. Melanie McGuire was found guilty of murdering Bill McGuire, 39, in April 2004. After all, when Bill was murdered in 2004, he and Melanie were the proud parents of two beautiful young boys. Melanie's receipt for the gun also listed an unspecified purchase of $9.95; there were only two items in the store for that amount, and one of them was a box of wadcutter bullets. Prosecutors have always maintained that they believed Melanie McGuire likely had an accomplice. But Melanie maintains that she did not commit the infamous Suitcase Murder. After all these years, I still feel hurt. It doesn't make any sense.' She said she was unhappy in her marriage. 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. Data from the New Jersey Department of Corrections details cases since they implemented additional measures. Dont accept what youre just being told on the surface. says the actress. It sounds beyond ridiculous sitting here saying it and I acknowledge that Its the truth, she later told 20/20. "I can't even fathom that. 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. Melanie McGuire is serving a life sentence in the murder of her husband, Bill McGuire, at a womens correctional facility in New Jersey. A top priority for New Jersey investigators was determining if Melanie McGuire had ever owned a gun. 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.. These documents exist. Melanie McGuire Today: Where Is the Suitcase Killer Now in 2020. People are feeling this way now, but when it's no longer a story, I'll just be forgotten. This is not one of those cases, said Prezioso. Don't accept what you're just being told on the surface. Melanie McGuire is serving a life sentence in the murder of her husband, Bill McGuire, at a women's correctional facility in New Jersey. After all these years, I still feel hurt. Less than a year later, the McGuires had their first son. During her conversation with ABCs Amy Robach, Melanie continued to insist on her innocence. Read More: Where Are William and Melanie McGuires Kids Now? The body parts belonged to a New Jersey father of two named Bill McGuire, and police soon suspected that his wife, Melanie McGuire, had killed him. 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. Dubbed the "Suitcase Killer," she was found guilty and sentenced to life in prison on July 19, 2007, at the age of 34. That night, according to the prosecution, McGuire drugged her husband, shot him dead, and subsequently dismembered his body. 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. So she drove around until she found his car and then moved it as a prank. She claimed he walked out on her and the kids . Melanie McGuire has had no contact with them since before the verdict. Like, how could somebody think that I did that? https://t.co/f9HrMsbxkY. YouTube Watch new at 9/8c on ABC. Like, how could somebody think that I did that? 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. [9] Police released a facial reconstruction sketch of the victim, which an acquaintance of Bill McGuire's recognized. [6][7] She enrolled at Rutgers University with a double major in math and psychology and graduated in 1994. Would love your thoughts, please comment. Miller was also married with children. This sensational case has thus often been referred to as the Suitcase Murder and has been profiled on several true-crime shows, including Oxygens Snapped, NBCs Dateline, CBS 48 Hours Mystery, IDs Deadly Affairs, and Forensic Files, amongst many others. McGuire maintains her innocence, and wants her two adult sons to look into the case for themselves. That same year, she married her husband, a U.S. Navy veteran named William Bill McGuire. Do Not Sell or Share My Personal Information. Melanie McGuire admitted to having an affair with Miller. (The court awarded custody to Bill McGuires sister, Cindy Ligosh.) 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." He lived with his wife Melanie and their two boys in an apartment in Woodbridge, New Jersey, United States. 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. New Jersey fertility clinic nurse Melanie McGuire stands accused of murdering her husband, William, in 2004. ET on ABC 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. 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 . After pulling the surveillance footage from the parking lot, however, investigators were disappointed. Guilty or not, Melanie McGuire, the so-called Suitcase Killer, remains an object of fascination. New Jersey Department of Corrections/Find a Grave, Edna Mahan Correctional Facility for Women, Data from the New Jersey Department of Corrections, Melanie McGuire Was Sentenced to Life in Prison for Murder of Husband Bill. Her trial began in March 5, 2007. Police identified the man in the suitcases as 39-year-old William McGuire, from Woodbridge New Jersey, and they quickly focused their attention on Bill's wife, Melanie McGuire, who did not report him missing. Background Bill McGuire was born in September of 1964. Like, how could somebody think that I did that? Melanie McGuire told ABC News Amy Robach in a rare interview from prison for "20/20.. I dont know how you would dismember a body and effectively clean that up, said McGuire. Melanie McGuire told the podcast "Direct Appeal" that she is not the suitcase killer, and that the true murderer is still on the loose. She drugged him, shot him (in the head and chest) to death, and subsequently dismembered his remains. [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. No one plugged the serial number of my gun into a website to find out what the specifications were, said Melanie McGuire. According to 20/20, the police were able to quickly identify the dismembered man. Their relationship began in 2002, according to the appeal. According to some reports, in 2007, during Melanies murder trial, Cindy put it into evidence that both of her sister-in-laws children, then aged 5 and 7, had been positively diagnosed with autism. Miller agreed to cooperate with investigators and was never charged in the crime. Melanie did try to appeal her case and later get relief from her long sentence, but her petitions were denied. Melanie McGuire went on trial on March 5, 2007. [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]. 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. Melanie McGuire defends her innocence from inside prison in 2019, over a decade after she was convicted. [9] The footage was blurry and the police weren't able to identify the person in the video. 2011 - Google Scholar", "N.J. appeals court upholds life sentence for convicted suitcase killer Melanie McGuire", "State v. McGuire, 27 A. On April 23, 2007 McGuire was found guilty by a jury of first-degree murder, perjury, desecration of human remains and possession of a weapon for unlawful means. Then, they looked in Pennsylvania. 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. 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. She offered explanations for the stories she told police,. 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. [24][25] On April 29, 2014, McGuire filed a motion for post-conviction relief, alleging ineffective assistance of counsel and newly discovered evidence. Melanie McGuire Was Sentenced to Life in Prison for Murder of Husband Bill, Please review our privacy policy here: https://heavy.com/privacy-policy/, Copyright 2023 Heavy, Inc. All rights reserved. The pair lived in Woodbridge, New Jersey where Bill worked at the New Jersey Institute of Technology and McGuire was a fertility clinic nurse in Morristown. this link is to an external site that may or may not meet accessibility guidelines. I grabbed the baby and went to the bathroom right behind me and shut the door. Prosecutors also pointed to Melanie McGuire's supposed internet searches in the days leading up to Bill McGuires disappearance. On June 5, 2005, investigators arrested Melanie McGuire and charged her with first-degree murder. Like, how could somebody think that I did that?". He said he was leaving and he wasnt coming back and [that] I could tell my children they didnt have a father.. Download is FREE. Dubbed the Suitcase Killer, she was found guilty and sentenced to life in prison on July 19, 2007, at the age of 34. During her interview with ABC News, McGuire shared a message for her sons, saying: "Make up your mind. 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. On April 26, 2004, Melanie had purchased a .38 caliber handgun from a store in Easton, Pennsylvania; Bill had been killed with a .38 caliber handgun with wadcutter bullets. He was 39 years old. Bill McGuire, 39, put a down payment down on a $500,000 house for the couple and their two young sons in April 2004. She maintains her innocence, having recently told 20/20 that "after all these years, I still feel hurt. The medical examiner determined that the body had been shot multiple times. And shes not the only one who thinks that police arrested the wrong suspect. But this was the first time somebody was basically saying, We hear you, said Melanie McGuire. It also promised to better educate staff and inmates about the federal Prison Rape Elimination Act, and said it had set up an early-warning system to identify problematic behavior by staff. Melanie was a nurse at a fertility clinic and Bill was a computer programmer. 01: Three suitcases, containing human remains, surfaced in Virginia's Chesapeake Bay in May 2004. by 2Paragraphs in Culture, True Crime Murder TV | September 25, 2020. Melanie McGuire was convicted in the grisly murder of her husband, Bill McGuire, whose body was found dismembered in suitcases in the Chesapeake Bay. Melanie McGuire admitted to having an affair with a doctor at the fertility clinic where she worked. [9] Similarly, a medical grade towel found with Bill's body matched those stocked at the clinic where Melanie worked. The victim, a coroner found, had been shot multiple times. By that point, the two had only flirted and corresponded via e-mail, only for a romance to blossom. The McGuire family resided in a Woodbridge Township apartment but had plans to move to a much larger home in Warren County by the end of April. In September 2020 McGuire took part in a rare interview with ABC News, in which she continued to profess her innocence for the crime. There were two charges, totaling 90 cents, on her statement that proved she had driven to Atlantic City after her husband went missing. 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. Melanie claims that Bill pushed her against the wall during a fight, hit her, and tried to choke her with a dryer sheet. They insisted he was a compulsive gambler who had become increasingly moody, unpredictable, and tempestuous in the months before his passing. Powered by. They pulled out the piping, pulling floorboards up, said Sacks. A jury convicted McGuire in 2007, and she was sentenced to life in prison plus five years. It is physically exhausting. 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.