This is Jessica Lester's story of survival. Like many docile, self-effacing women, Jessica has some hidden pockets of pride, and one of them is her skills as a writer. According to Jessica Lester, Boyntons ex-wife who filed a police report that ultimately led to Boyntons arrest, she became aware of this development during a meeting with representatives of the Griffin Judicial Circuits District Attorneys Office. Jessica Lester was found unconscious in her Griffin home from what police thought was an apparent self-inflicted gunshot wound. Murderific True Crime Podcast. Denise said that Amy confided that Matthew had once hit her and that their relationship was strained. Her relationship with Matthew is far from perfect and he seems to be pretty controlling. to say that he had the original document. The GRIP is continuing to work this story and will report additional information as it becomes available. In reference to my wife. He explained that she was having suicidal thoughts and she told me to take care of the boys. This is Jessica Lester's story of survival. The neighbor saw Matthew leaving the apartment for dinner with a coworker. Im only concerned with the G.B.I. When The GRIP attempted to schedule a time to meet for an interview, Yates said, It wont be tomorrow because my day is pretty much booked, and I dont feel comfortable doing a sit down interview with you unless I have my camcorder going., The GRIP readily agreed to comply with Yates desire to record the interview, but Yates then said, Like I said, you have the same offer you always have. I made sure that I had another party with me, to insure the accusations wouldnt be made, Matthew said later. Jessica and Matthew left their wedding reception, which her family hosted, after less than an hour. Its just a hobby, he said. She said that Matthew told her she wasnt related to them by blood. Theres no second shot. After getting home around 10:45 PM, a neighbor heard a gunshot from the Boynton home. I said, Oh, that figures. $100. For a while, he put clear tape on the doors of his house and car, so he would know if anyone had sneaked inside. Its always more exaggerated every time. She felt uncomfortable that Matthew told Beam every detail of his life, but that the conversations were all confidential.. Take care of the children. Why did you write the damn statement? a sergeant asked him. In early May, after three weeks in a coma, Jessica began to regain consciousness. Jessica Lester Boynton is from Spalding County Georgia, just an hour south of Atlanta. According to the order, which Matthew had petitioned the court to issue, probable cause exists that Family Violence has occurred in the past and may occur in the future. Jessica was ordered to have a psychological evaluation.  Jessica and Matthew started dating in high school and she got pregnant ends up with 2 young children, at a young age. He did not explain why hed earlier sent word that Jessica was dead. But Jessica Boynton, 19, now claims hubby and high school sweetheart Matthew Boynton was the one who shot her in a bid to fake her suicide. She became dead seriousId never seen her so serious, Denise said. Raisa Habersham is the Intown Atlanta hyperlocal reporter for The Atlanta-Journal Constitution. Crimes & Closets. Anybody that went against him would be eliminated. Whitehouse said that Beam seemed concerned, but he said that shed have to write down her complaint. That's right. Info. 1,423 Followers, 1,082 Following, 1,354 Posts - See Instagram photos and videos from jessica boynton (@gessieboy) gessieboy. Matthew met Jessica during her sophomore year of high school at open house in 2012. The GBI was uninvolved. 10 mos. She loved those kids more than anything, and she knows how it feels to grow up without a mom, she said. She concluded that shed chosen the wrong tactic. Earlier that night Jessica's husband Matthew headed to Waffle House for a late . Last summer, the sheriff of Los Angeles County, Alex Villanueva, articulated a common justification for not considering domestic violence as a concern: in defending his decision to employ a deputy who had been accused of stalking and physically abusing his ex-girlfriend, he told a local reporter that it was a private relationship between two consenting adults that went bad. The violence was seen as unrelated to job performance, an activity that could be understood only within the context of a relationship. Check out this great listen on Audible.com. Martha was initially skeptical when Jessica got involved with another man who assumed the role of protector. In this episode, we discuss the toxic relationship between a couple, affairs, abuse, and a police officer who is a suspect in his wife's shooting. She suspected that there had been a physical altercation leading up to the gunshots. In an email dated Oct. 20, 2017, from Cokers Chief Investigator John Wright to Lt. Karen Yancey, who at that time headed the GPDs Criminal Investigation Division, Wright requested not only the oath be made available, but numerous additional pieces of evidence, as well. Wheres my baby? Jessica asked, once her breathing tubes were removed. Murderific True Crime Podcast. The inability to pinpoint the source of Gibsons dominanceand of Beams capacity to shield other menseemed only to feed the drama and paranoia. And then I started thinking, Well, why did I even come to you? she said. Denise was on a science-curriculum committee with Matthews stepmother, Amy, a teacher in the same district. He had a reputation for being kind and personable but also passive, indecisive, and resistant to change. Meet at the Visitor Center. A meeting with Assistant District Attorney Kate Lenhard was held April 13. Right, she said, nearly whispering. Intent: The Tex McIver Case. Her relationship with Matthew is far from perfect and he seems to be pretty controlling. Bring the little ones for a story every Saturday morning at 11 a.m. to hear Sam's favorite tales. Willey contacted Jessica on Facebook and warned her that Matthew was not taking good care of the children; they were subsisting, she said, on cheese puffs, Fudge Rounds, corn dogs, and Mountain Dew, and sleeping at odd hours. Some bills to watch, Atlanta neighbors want to reclaim and revitalize the Joyland neighborhood. Jessica and Matthew started dating in high school and she got pregnant ends up with 2 young children, at a young age. Although its possible that Jessicas head hit the wall after she shot herself, there was no blood on the wall or on the clothes in the closet. The older boy was asleep in his bedroom, and the baby was in his own room, crying in his crib. Shocking body camera footage showing the moment police found a young mother, barely alive and suffering from a gun wound to the head has emerged online. 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 . 10 mos. Jessicas grandparents wrote letters to the G.B.I., the governor, the city manager, and the district attorney to request that the investigation into Jessicas shooting be reopened. Matthew Boyntom deserves to be thrown in prison and left there to rot. There is no public record of the proceeding, but the grand jury chose not to indict Matthew either for making false statements or for violating his oath. Philip Stinson, the professor at Bowling Green, maintains a database of officers who have been arrested around the country, and he said that, in response to the Lautenberg Amendment, a federal provision that was passed in 1996 and prohibits people convicted of domestic violence from owning firearms, cops accused of domestic violence are often charged with lesser offenses, as a kind of professional courtesy, so they can continue working. Lowry wanted to put witnesses on the stand who would testify that Matthew had been psychologically abusive. She agreed, and in May, 2017, Sanders dropped off the bag at the Griffin Police Department. In the nineteen-nineties, researchers found that forty-one per cent of male officers admitted that, in the previous year, theyd been physically aggressive toward their spouses, and nearly ten per cent acknowledged choking, strangling, or usingor threatening to usea knife or a gun. There is an unwillingness to believe, as if its just preferable not to know this about our culture, Meier told me. Wet submarine was released. Police found Jessica Boynton in the closet of her home with a gunshot wound to the head, and a police issued firearm in her hand. They so called investigated but the only people I know they talked to was the family and when I bring the case back up all they want to do is talk to me again . Uruguay's real-life persecution of the outside world, lacey has. Her ex-husband and former Griffin police officer Matthew Boynton was investigated in the case, but was only charged with making false statements and violating oath. She was sure that if she didnt comply he would arrest her. by . He would flash his lights and pull her over, and force her to have sex with him. Jessicas only diagnosis was acute stress disorder, which, the evaluator wrote, occurs when an individual is exposed to actual or threatened death. The evaluator added that her symptoms are normal and to be expected through circumstances such as hers.. "It was determined that he knowingly provided a false statement relating to the property in question and his possession of (it)," Natale said in a release.l Center. Matthew was now dating Shelby Willey, a young mother who had recently separated from her husband. Dusty approached a group of Griffin police officers and asked whether Matthew had shot her sister. In a composition notebook, Jessica documented the times she assumed Matthew had been with his girlfriend, and she jotted down notes for the lawyer. But the sheriff still loomed large in their relationship. Difference between non-contested & adultery divorce? she wrote. This is a listing of articles Griffin Police Officer Matthew Boynton Cleared In Wifes Shooting But Still Lost His Job easiest After . In July, he was charged with two felonies: making false statements and violating his oath of office. Ive always been such a firm believer in our justice system, she said. As it became clear that Gibsons activities could be criminal, the G.B.I. He had control of Spalding County, she said, referring to Gibson. Aug 22 2021 22 mins. Gradually, though, her concerns dissipated. Jessica, at home with her three boys, still has occasional migraines, weakness in her left foot, and lingering amnesia about the night of her shooting. Just read about this case in the New Yorker. But otherwise, he said, Im doneIm out. Jessica Lester's friends persuaded her to date Matthew Boynton, a boy in the eleventh grade, by saying, "If you don't like him, you can always break up . Henderson, the surgeon, had written Lowry a letter stating that whatever investigation there was done into this event in no way reflected our observations in the emergency room.. She wore hand-me-downs and liked to take nature photographs. You find plenty of reasons to leave nowI know that, Jacob teased her. In all my years in law enforcement, when someone shoots himself in the head its one and done, Jessica Whitehouse, a deputy there at the time, told me. Listen to this episode from Crimes & Closets on Spotify. It breaks my heart! she wrote. 1,082 following. Before being elected sheriff, in 2011, Beam had worked in the sheriffs office for thirty-seven years. Jessica could see her children for only four hours on Sunday afternoons. Im glad to know theres still advocacy in the practice in the courts of the Griffin Judicial Circuit. No one ended up testifying about Jessica and Matthews marriage. That same day, The GRIP made contact with Griffin Judicial Circuit District Attorney Ben Coker, who said he was unfamiliar with the missing oath or the meeting between Lenhard and Lester. When I visited them in August, Jacob mentioned that one of the boys had recently done a spin in the living room and called it a pirouette. Jessica seemed more energized by the comment than by anything else we discussed. jessica boynton saved by grace master of arts in art history architectural photographer + light chaser. Jessica Barden (born 1992) Mischa Barton (born 1986) Matthew Beard (born 1989) . Her family wondered if this was her way of escaping the relationship. Justice for Jessica needs to happen ASAP. This is Jessica Lester's story of survival. Cokers office, however, produced records indicating his staff spent more than six months attempting to obtain Boyntons oath from the Griffin Police Department. Violation of his oath of office one of two felony charges for which the Griffin Police Department in 2017 arrested Matthew Boynton, one of its own officers was reportedly at risk of being dismissed because his sworn oath of office, the signed document, could not be located. Jessica didnt have her own credit card or car, so if she needed something from the supermarket she texted Matthew, who either took her to the store himself or asked Beam or his wife to deliver the item. She wouldnt have done that to them. The officers told Dusty she needed to either calm down or leave the property. You are your own person. She was wearing fluffy slippers. The fact that they dont believe that she did this to herselfI think theyre not taking it seriously, Owen said. She has found that courts are rarely willing to hear evidence about a form of abuse called coercive controla crime in Englandwhich describes the process by which people are dominated, sometimes to the point that they are no longer free agents and cannot make decisions without a partners permission. I figured she was going to retract her statement, he said later. Matthews wedding ring had a blue stripe, to signify he was in law enforcement. The boys expressed fear of having any potential contact with their biological father, the psychologist wrote. Unable to obtain further information through the previously agreed upon interview, The GRIP on April 26 submitted Open Records requests to Cokers office and the city of Griffin. I love you and the boys., A minute later, Matthew responded to a joke from Callaway. 15 talking about this. 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. When Willey asked Matthew about it, she said, he told her he intended to burn the bag, which Jessica had packed one night when she was planning to leave him. Murder + Horrific = Murderific. The Griffin Police Department had not received any complaints about Matthews use of force, but Darrell Dix, a former lieutenant, told me that he and some of his colleagues worried that Matthew had a domineering and one-dimensional approach to his work, which could provoke fights and scuffles. He had not learned that there is a human side of this, too, Dix said. He said he did not know when the case was concluded. Karen, I am working on Matthew Boyntons case and according to your check list, there is a lot missing. Jessica Lester was found unconscious in her Griffin home from what police thought was an apparent self-inflicted gunshot wound. Twice, Matthew called the police on Jessica, for yelling or cursing or poking his chest. They had even taken notebooks off shelves and shredded the documents., Dix was one of the Griffin police officers present the night that Jessica was shot. Leigh Goodmark, the director of the Gender Violence Clinic, at the University of Marylands Carey School of Law, speculates that one reason for the dearth of research is a reluctance to fund a study that will bring attention to an uncomfortable dilemma: that, as Goodmark says, those policing the crime and those committing it are often the same person.. Nothing will prepare you for what happens . Her aunt Denise, a public-school teacher, said that, at the wedding, there was just this sadness in her eyes, like, Im done. She had the demeanor of a child who had promised herself not to cause trouble or draw attention to her own feelings. There is no indication Yancey responded in writing to Wrights email, but another representative of the D.A.s Office said several D.A.s Office employees had spoken by phone with multiple GPD personnel regarding Boyntons missing oath. It was like he was spitting in my face, she said. One woman said that he would drive to her house and shine the lights of his patrol car into her windows. He had looked in the master bedroom, and when he didnt see the baby, who typically slept there, he ran outside. She was watching a cartoon about a lion. Her husband Matthew (a police officer) is the one who called the police because he has "no idea what's happened to .  Her relationship with Matthew is far from perfect and he seems to be pretty controlling. Despite the months the oath reportedly could not be located, once The GRIP informed Coker it had acquired a copy, the GPD reported Boyntons original oath of office had been found. 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. Haha Im sorry I didnt think about that lol, he wrote. But Jessica Boynton, 34, was excited for Thanksgiving. He asked me to go get it out before, and I told him, Youre going to have to.. Follow. She wasnt sure how to unlock the safety lever on the holster. The police asked for assistance from the Georgia Bureau of Investigation. Nothing will prepare you for what happens to this young couple. No further information was forthcoming regarding the missing oath or the potential dismissal that could have resulted had it not been located. The subsequent investigation was short-lived, with it having been deemed a "civil matter.". It was almost like her personality got squished out of her.. So Im trying to hurry up and get back home, just to make sure that nothing is going to happen to them., Six minutes later, Matthew reported on his police radio that he had heard two gunshots as he was walking up the stairs to his apartment. The shooting is the subject of CNN's hourlong episode of "Real Life Nightmare," which airs 8 p.m. Saturday. Why is he getting so much protection and coverage? the agent said. I mean, I walk past it. Rachel Aviv Jessica Lester's friends persuaded her to date Matthew Boynton, a boy in the eleventh grade, by saying, "If you don't like him, you can always break up." He was the grandson of the sheriff of Spalding County, where they lived . The psychologist wrote, of the older son, I asked him if he has been happy or sad. He drove to a nearby Waffle House to have a late dinner with a fellow Griffin police officer. Jessica had to wean her baby before starting the job, so on Thursday night she and Matthew drove to Walmart, to buy formula. But the factors that lead to abuse at homecoercion, authoritarianism, a sense of entitlement to violenceare also present in the work that police officers do on the streets. Matthew signed a sworn statement promising that he no longer had anything of Jessicas. According to a police report, Jessica was very reserved and appeared to be upset. She said that the officers recommended that she not yell at Matthew. After they were married, her grandmother said, it was almost like her personality got squished out of her., Photograph by Danna Singer for The New Yorker. Her marriage had been crumbling, and she and her husband of six months Matthew Boynton, 20 . Jessica found it darkly funny that it was a missing retainer, and not her brain injury, that ultimately led to Matthews arrest. Murderific True Crime Podcast. The county sheriff ruled her dead at the scene. The following year, Gibson put a female colleague in a headlock and held a Taser against her temple. What would happen if you were being abused by your spouse and he just happened to be a police officer? Her aunt Kathy, who lives on the farm, said, With Jessicas family background, there was probably just a feeling of Oh, Ive finally found someone who loves me.. Something had happened to the mama lions cubs, Kathy said. Her relationship with Matthew is far from perfect and he seems to be . Yates had lost his previous job, in 2014, as chief of the police department in Jonesboro, Arkansas, after he called a local reporter smelly and said that dealing with her was like trying to pick up a dog turd by the clean end. She resigned, citing the level of stress and anxiety created by a public official who commands a small army., Within two hours of Sanderss Facebook comment, Yates informed Sanders that his private Facebook messages would be made accessible to any persons interested in the entire scope of your actions, activities, motives and history. He added, This material will be released in the interest of transparency and context. The department had obtained the messages a year earlier, as part of the investigation into Jessicas gym bag.