Body cam shows moment cop's wife was found shot in head Since both sides have their theories of what happened that night, Crime Watch Daily brought in an independent investigator to give us his unbiased opinion. "I believe I just heard a shot fired coming from my residence. The doctor was not contacted by the GBI until July 20. She agreed to provide those items to Sanders, who then turned them in to the Griffin Police Department. "Well listen, if you're going to start quoting, you gonna start recording these things, you need to let me know ahead of time before you do, before I'm starting answering questions," DeMarco ordered the reporter. At that exact point the interviewing officer detected something fishy, forced him to stop giving himself away and ended the interview and therefore night of investigation. "He never re-entered the apartment after that point," said Sheila. He's hoping if the case gets reopened, any possible clues will be preserved. "He tried to kill her.". Matthew and Jessica's two sons are still inside. The glowing yellow and black, blocked-letter Waffle House sign illuminates his truck as he drives by, turning around to head back home. "I'm guessing Matthew," said Jessica. The agent who told Mathews, Were gonna have a problem, apologized to the reporter and told her that he was answering questions about a case file that he had not reviewed for months. He's meeting his buddy at the local Waffle House. Cops find 8-month-old Tyler visibly upset but thankfully uninjured. Her limp body is on the floor, just behind the door. Matthew makes it home and races to the breezeway of his apartment and enters, checks the master bedroom and bangs on the locked closet door. Jones shouts as he travels deeper insidehis weapon drawn. But they have no idea what's waiting for them behind a locked closet door. Earlier that night Jessica's husband Matthew headed to Waffle House for a late-night bite with a fellow officer, leaving his service. Did you all have sex?' How did his phone get in there and how was there activity on his phone if he was not in the kitchen with his phone?" "I hope she didn't shoot my kids," he says to one officer. Most of the cases that he would have made or would be involved in would also have, or should have, body worn camera video, car video, things of that nature, so the fact that his statement to us was compromised would not necessarily taint everything else. Investigators confirmed at least some of this evidence did belong to Lester, but along with questions regarding the chain of custody was the issue of whether the belongings were personal or community property. Minutes later, just as Matthew pulls into the Waffle House parking lot, he says he receives a chilling message from Jessica, what he calls a "suicide text," that says: "I can't do this anymore. She's like a sister to me, Browning says, her voice quivering. The ceiling fan circles on high speed. It could, but it wont necessarily do it, Yates said. However, she was NOT shot. Nearly four years later, questions persist about what happened to the young. The first bullet went upward at 54-degree angle. Its one of their owna police-issued .40-caliber Glock. An officer tries to console his grieving coworker. Will Sanders also has questions about a crime scene photo showing Matthew's cellphone. Did investigators look for a blunt object? The GRIP has reported extensively on seeming inconsistencies and irregularities in that GBI investigation. Griffin police officer wife Jessica Boynton shot | 11alive.com A lot of times its two or three or more days, Yates said. In it, she logs Matthew Boynton's every move, including his unexplained disappearances with their two boys. And Sanders was beyond fascinated by this one. I said 'Is she still alive?' The GBI needs an overhaulclean house. One of those bullets went through the roof, the other lodged into the baby's bedroom wall. Who shot Jessica Boynton? A new podcast investigates - WCSH The air is thick with mystery, as the officers approach the locked closet. Then-Griffin Police Department officer Matthew Boynton was arrested on July 28, 2017, for giving a false statement to his own department stating he was not i. If America is really a first-world country, it will enact legislation that takes this issue seriously, and fund more studies and programs to preventing domestic violence and identifying and protecting victims. In fact, 68 text messages are exchanged between him and his mistress. in the head..in hospital for a month..just an FYI. No one may have ever done anything to question this case again if not for Will Sanders. Still lodged in Jessica's skull? They had Tollin soon after, and were married on Oct. 24, 2015. Excessive force. GBI/Griffin Police Dept. provided images. Officer Matthew Boynton has never been charged with anything in connection with this case, but the Georgia Bureau of Investigation did question him. And based on the totality of circumstances, all the facts and circumstances, all the forensics, and the conclusion of the case, as well as the GBI's and the district attorney's recommendation, is no, he did not cause her injuries, Yates concluded in an interview with 11Alive for"Trigger: Who shot the officer's wife.". Jessica Boynton's husband says he gets a suicidal text from his estranged wife, so he rushes home, only to hear two gunshots. "He said 'What's wrong? "Being in the closet," said Jessica. She just said that she's been experiencing suicidal thoughts right now, she told me to take care of the boys. "How did his phone get in there? Armed with bodycams attached to their uniforms, the officers burst through the door, quickly passing Matthew's phone, a black and grey Verizon LG smartphone, on the kitchen counter. Jessica Boynton says she's free as a bird'. And its inside that closet, where police found her seemingly shot in the head, laying on top of her husbands service weapon. Statements from Jessica Boynton and Matthew Boynton are logged into evidence, said a statement written by Yancy March 13. Matthew Boynton: The evidence and investigation that led to his arrest That's fine. If that's what you want to do. But Yates told 11Alive, Matthew was not the shooter and trusts the investigation's outcome. Cops do find Jessica's DNA on the gun. Blood pressure.. Credit: GBI/Griffin Police Dept. That was the best physical evidence that we had, Yates said. I'm prior military so to me it sounded like a gunshot, he tells DeMarco. A woman who lived across from the couple, who works with law enforcement, agreed to a Crime Watch Daily interview if we protect her identity. Eventually, the Georgia Bureau of Investigation concluded what they believe happened inside that closet; Matthew Boynton was never charged with any connection in harming his wife. Jessica Boynton, 19, was found lying in a pool of her own . So just one?" The police department should be ashamed of themselves for trying to cover this up!!! The panicked cop grabs his police radio and runs outside to make the frantic call to dispatch. Matthew's mistress worked as a dispatch officer, reporting to Sheriff Wendell Beam, who just happens to be Matthew Boynton's grandfather. This time for a DNA consent. "The second shot that was fired, it entered the back wall of the closet approximately a foot, no more than a foot off the ground. Tyler, the 8-month-old baby, is the result of a relationship Jessica had with a mechanic while she and Matthew were temporarily separated. Lester recovered from the shooting but doesn't remember any of it. nd police notify Jessica's family that she has died. He reads another text from mistress, while driving home at nearly 90 mph. This stinks, and the fact remains, it appears he tried to kill his wife, so what are you guys going to do?? "When the GBI concluded their case they gave it back to Jessica, and I got it from Jessica," Sanders said. But another heated argument goes down in the baby food aisle. "I know for a fact that Jessica was not suicidal," said the neighbor. Griffin Police Department Officer Matthew Boynton has been arrested and charged with two felonies. The shooting occurred on the evening of April 14, 2016. It's a question 11Alive investigators asked a few months ago, when Griffin Police Officer Matthew Boynton's wife, Jessica, allegedly shot herself in the head with his service weapon,. After just six months of marriage, the Boyntons' one-time neighbor says she saw their young love grow toxic. A bunch of CLOWNS!! I can't keep doing this.. I mean you can't prove that," DeMarco. Published: 7/28/2017 6:16:14 PM. Aft. The paramedic begins accessing her head wound, but they're having a hard time finding it through her hair and thick blood. Jessica Boynton was just 19 years old when she was found inside a locked closet with a gunshot wound to her head. He advised that he does not have any of the items listed in this report.. Matthew Boynton arrested | 11alive.com She spoke to the GBI, from her hospital bed. I f***ing love her. Does Jessica know whether the cops ever swabbed her hands? She was hit over the head. This is not the first time I have had suicide thoughts. Who shot Jessica Boynton? A new podcast investigates | 13newsnow.com She told me to take care of the boys, so I'm trying to hurry up and get back home just to make sure nothing is going to happen to them. The purpose of it, is when you're fighting with somebody to keep the weapon from coming out of your holster, but it's certainly easy to take it out under most cases. Dr. Vernon Henderson, chief of Trauma and Critical Care at Atlanta Medical Center was on-call the morning Jessica came in and treated her for the next month while she was in the hospital. the GBI agent posed a return question. Do you think Matthew did something? he asked her bluntly. Jessica was a blushing bride, excited to spend the rest of her life with the man she loved. But asking those questions resulted in a threat. The gun then landed underneath," said Tim Miley. And he called the girlfriend, so Mays said to Mathews. "That's the way we're gonna play this game, Sheila. Yancy also requested that Boynton write a statement pertaining to the allegation. | Examine the evidence yourself, calls 911, reaching Spalding County dispatch. Just minutes after Jessica is airlifted to an Atlanta trauma center, Sheriff Beam asks deputies to deliver the devastating news to Jessica's family that she's dead of an apparent self-inflicted gunshot wound. Griffin, Georgia is the kind of small Southern town where high school sweethearts stay married forever. She's having suicidal thoughts," he says calmly to the dispatcher. Do you think Matthew did something? he asked her bluntly. December 20022 so heartless to show this right before Xmas. "Recently she did confirm that the second baby is not mine," Matthew tells the GBI investigator. I mean he might have grabbed my arm before, but I don't think he would intentionally do anything to hurt mebut like I said, he's changed so much here, lately, she said. A lot," said the neighbor. I'll be there in about two. But she doesn't buy it, especially since her head was perfectly laid on a pillow, she said after watching the bodycam footage. "I didn't know if I was dealing with a possible active scenario where she still had the gun, and she had shot Tyler, and then I could have been the next target," Matthew says in the interview. Immediately following that flip, Mathews said, DeMarco asked if she was recording their conversation. Sanders says there are a few things that really stand out: The red sweatshirt Matthew offered police to test for gunshot residue. In response to 11Alives questions about the case, the GBI said, We are confident in the investigation that was conducted., RELATED: Jessica Boynton says she's free as a bird', MORE | Watch the Facebook Live with Brendan Keefe. Earlier that night Jessica's husband Matthew headed to Waffle House for a late-night bite with a fellow officer, leaving his service. Her husband is cheating on her with another woman, reveals Browning, who said, they called dispatch a few nights earlier because he took the kids. Who shot Jessica Boynton? A new podcast investigates | 13wmaz.com Just have a soul here please please please. GRIFFIN, Georgia, April 15, 2016: Police are breathlessly racing to save a life. | Examine the evidence yourself. His flashlight's beam reveals a smiling family of four. But many believe Jessica holds the only key as to what really happened inside that closet. "I was with the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department for 33 years," said Tim Miley. Who shot Jessica Boynton? A new podcast investigates | abc10.com - KXTV I finally had the evidence that I needed that Matthew was cheating on me. I don't know if it's just his job or what, but like I said I don't think he would intentionally hurt me.. Matthew Boynton along with Lee Boynton, Josh Guthrie and Courtney Callaway moved all of my personal belongings from the residence. Jessica Boynton was initially . Donald Britt, Lt. Darrell Dix, Lt. Keys and Beam are also present. The GBI is a joke as well Nearly four years later, questions persist about what happened to the young. "I saw a lot of things change after time. If he's willing to cheat on his wife, he's willing to cheat the law., She wanted to file for divorce, says Kshywonis. The agent asked her if she had ever held her husband's service weapon. Am I recording it? She made a full recovery, but doesnt remember a thing. He grabs his police radio, stationed on top of the white microwave in the kitchen charging, and puts his phone on the counter. After Jessica was shot, Matthew, then-20, was back on duty with his gun on his hip, before key interviews were conducted and the GBI director wrote an official letter about the cases conclusion, stating that the shooting was ruled a suicide.. Here's where things get blurry. Jessica Boynton, 19, was a stay-at-home mom to 8-month-old Tyler and 2-year-year old Tollin. Jones checks on a locked closet door between the master bedroom and hallway, across from the bathroom. "It was. After Jones pushes the gun away from underneath Jessica's bodyplacing it inside the bedroom, he and Officer Josh Howell move Jessica from the closet to the bedroom floor next to the foot of her bed so that EMS can begin working on her. Emergency-responders finally arrive and carry Jessica to a waiting ambulance. If the phone was found by the GBI in the kitchenif the phone is on police body camera footage sitting on the counter by the microwave, and he was outside never returning insidehow is it possible for Matthew to text his girlfriend, while he's calling in shots fired while outside of the apartment? He tells Trammel he left Walmart without Jessica. "The neighbors [said] somewhere around 11 p.m., and he is the only one who hears the gunshots at 1 a.m., and he calls it in," said Sanders. Ive seen no evidence to indicate that would be necessary, but that does not preclude the GBI or anybody else from doing it if they choose. "She suspected Matthew was cheating on her and so she dug for information, and we found it," the neighbor said. This all follows a Georgia Bureau of Investigation case that ultimately ruled Lester had attempted suicide in April 2016. Then, a moment of hope from the 19-year-old mother: She's still breathing. Boynton: Can you please dispatch a unit out to my location, in reference to my wife? $5 plus $5 parking. While Trammel's body cam is out of juice tonight, Jones's bodycam spots Trammel as the other officers enter the apartment. Yates said, Yes, but that doesnt overcome the civil side of it whether it was or was not marital property, and even if it was, it would have been a misdemeanor as opposed to the two felonies.. And they said yes," the neighbor said. For the next three and a half weeks, Jessica remains in a coma with a traumatic brain injurytubes protruding from her brain to alleviate pressure and fluid. Trammel records the 10:53 p.m., incident report from April 14. There's no way I could have shot myself in the top of the head and not kill myself. When they finally shove their way in, tragic heartbreak is lying in front of them. If I just would have left my f**king duty belt in the car.. Yates also said Boynton had provided a statement during the subsequent Internal Affairs investigation, acknowledging the items Sanders turned in were Lesters belongings. But according to Mathews, that was not the last number dialed, so it could not have just been a redial accidently called through the evidence bag. I'm sure as you've heard, I'm getting a divorce. Eventually, the Georgia Bureau of Investigation concluded what they believe happened inside that closet; Matthew Boynton was never charged with any connection in harming his wife. I was excited I wasn't going to have to put up with him anymore because honestly I felt like his maid, and that's all I felt like.. She says under the helm of Wendell Beam, the sheriff's department had a reputation for protecting its own. But he's also texting her before he called 911," said Sanders. GBI agents, however, have closed her case. Collectively, they examine the bullets' trajectory from the closet, into the bedroom wall and ceiling. He said the description of a self-inflicted gunshot wound didn't fit, noting her pristine and unmarked hands and calling it a very unusual direction in which to point the gun at one's self with the intention of committing suicide., First of all, the wound that she suffered was toward the vertex of her skull on the right side of her head; this would imply that she shot herself with a gun pointed downward near the top of her skull., The second most striking observation he said he made while assessing Jessica was neither of her hands had any evidence of any gunpowder stippling from gunpowder blowback.. Yes, I didn't have time, you know with everything going on, I didn't think anything about getting any other clothes, so I didn't know if y'all would want these or not. The agent had that phone, I think DeMarco, Chris DeMarco had the phone and they was [sic] trying to get in the gate, and, uh, he accidentally hit, I guess, the last number dialed, called or whatever. Security camera captures the family walking in around 10:15 p.m. With his gun raised and arms poised, he holds his weapon out in front of him with both hands. 2023 Telepictures Productions Inc. So I'm trying to hurry and get back home just to make sure that nothing's going to happen to them.. Jessica Boynton | GBI changes information about evidence | 11alive.com The one seen in the police body-cam is not the same gray sweatshirt he was wearing at Walmart earlier that night. He checks the closet where he keeps his police-issued firearm, but the door is locked. I hadn't really put much thought into it, Jessica told him. "I think it was in the heat of the moment, he was angry with me. After studying Jessica Boynton's case, Miley sides with Jessica. Unfortunately, the only person who may be able to answer that question is Jessica, and she was in a coma. What are my kids going to do? he pleaded, his voice cracking with emotion. "There was no testing done on his clothing," said Sheila Mathews. GBI conducts canvas and begins interviewing neighbors. Cops now know what was behind that closet door -- but the true mystery is just about to begin. "She logged on to his Facebook, we got his Facebook messages and printed them out and started reading the messages between him and the lady from the dispatch," said the unidentified neighbor. There was a question of what was and was not community marital property, so that took some doing to sort that out, also, Yates said, adding that many of the items reported as stolen including the clothing, computer and household items had been cited as community property during the couples divorce. Is that what you're saying?" Honestly, I have no idea. Mass shooters. Matthew immediately calls a friend at dispatch. The quiet is broken when the baby begins to mumble from the other room. Matthew Boynton allegedly deprived ex-wife Jessica Lester of her belongings and lied to the authorities about doing so, Griffin police Lt. Michael Natale said in a statement. Matthew Boynton is the grandson of Sheriff Beam. Geez, im no cop , no investigator and know absolutely nothing on how investigations are even done but if the doctors say she wasnt shot what more do they need..that little punk got away with it.please tell me im missing a story and he has been arrested for the attempted murder of his wife.please.and please tell me that every stupid ass cop that had any involvement with this case is no longer a cop..oh and his Grandpa, well i think he needs a little jail rehabilitation as well..i could go on and on, but obviously they wouldnt understand anyway..what a disgrace to all REAL POLICE OFFICERS, https://the-grip.net/2016/10/18/gbi-completes-boynton-investigation-requested-by-gpd/ this says she was SHOT!!! I wouldn't trade those two boys for anything," she said, swiping away tears streaming down both cheeks. Griffin Police officer Matthew Boynton was arrested and taken to the Spalding County Jail on multiple charges. "No they did not because they assumed I was shot, because that's what Matthew said," Jessica said. Of course the Grandfather could not be reached for a comment, he had it covered up. ', Do you know how it was that you got shot?, Have you ever had any type of thoughts about hurting yourself?. But long hours on the force took its toll on his marriage. "Her hands appeared to be pristine, but also he noted that she had no gunpowder burns.". She had an appointment Monday.. He calls out for Jessica, but no answer. Take care of Tollin and Tyler, please tell them I love them every day. "Nobody ever asked him about why he changed clothes," said Sanders. Matthew makes it home, jumps out of his truck, races through the breezeway of his apartment building and bolts up the stairs. Earlier that night Jessica's husband Matthew headed to Waffle House for a late-night bite with a fellow officer, leaving his service weapon . "I know what happened," said the unidentified neighbor. However, Yates said, that's not that uncommon. He later tells investigators that he heard Tyler crying, and then, POP-POP!, Jones advises Matthew over the radio, Stay outside. But Jessica still can't remember what happened that terrible night in the closet, and she's says there is only one person with the answers. They wanted me to come back Friday for orientation for the job, she said. Everybody clear out, says Jones, who has Keys call for an EMT. "I said 'It's Jessica isn't it?' Warner Bros. Entertainment | Keyword: Admitted. Less than a month after her hospital-bed interview, Matthew was verbally cleared by the GBI, according to his chief. I just came up the stairs, two rounds be advised I smell gun smoke, and I cant get an answer at the door, he says out of breath and panicked. I never wanted to hurt myself before, she said, going on to say that shes never handled a gun, nor shot one. If I could have been there 10 minutes earlier I could have jumped in front of the gun and try to get it from her man., Where did she shoot herself at? According to Sanders, these items were obtained from a woman who contacted him and claimed to be Boyntons girlfriend. Jessica's two boys, Tollin, 2, and baby Tyler, are sound asleep in their rooms. To stage a suicide," said the neighbor. Still peering down at his phone, Matthew also sends a text to his girlfriend, a Spalding County dispatcher. Because if you go to the photographs that are part of your investigative case file, there's a photograph after the evidence report for his cell phone" she said. Join our naturalist on a short walk and learn about the history of the once-prosperous town of High Falls. I mean that just doesn't happen," said Jessica. Boynton was placed on administrative leave Thursday, July 28, and the Chief said his intent was to terminate the officer, but Boynton resigned before that process could be completed. I mean, I'm sure there's a plausible explanation to it without trying to come up with some sort of, you know, theory that, 'Oh, he has to be here in the kitchen answering these text messages.'". He hears a baby crying as he carefully steps into the bedroom where a dark brown crib is situated. Her condition.. Once he arrives on the scene, Trammel makes contact with Matthew, who tells him that he and his wife got into an argument. Here recently she did confirm that the second baby's not mine. Griffin Police officer Matthew Boynton cleared in wife's shooting, but Matthew runs inside to the closet where he keeps his service gun. He was going to clean his gun and he asked me to go get it for him. "He believed that the shots he heard fired were fired from his duty weapon," said Sheila Mathews, publisher of The Grip. I can't even get it out of its case, she replied. Get him downstairs, one of the officers whispers to another. Just days after running into Officer Boynton, I received a threatening email that reads in part: "Are You An Intelligent Enough Investigative Journalist To Know When You Are Being Conned or Do You Have To Be Spoon Fed? A request is made to notify the Georgia Bureau of Investigation. Hahaha you about have me a heart attack freak!! "She was actually happy, she was thrilled because she finally got that closure that she needed," says the neighbor. "Matthew. And based on the totality of circumstances, all the facts and circumstances, all the forensics, and the conclusion of the case, as well as the GBI's and the district attorney's recommendation, is no, he did not cause her injuries, Yates concluded. We asked retired homicide detective Tim Miley to review Jessica's entire case file and every crime scene photo.