He would be tried and convicted of their murders. Elizabeth, another sister, and Jennifer, Kimberly's twin, were both there. A federal court has overturned the 1991 conviction and death sentence of Von Lester Taylor, pictured here. But despite Mills' claims, Lenard contended "the evidence will show Mr. Vaughn did not pull the trigger in the vehicle that day his family passed away.". On Saturday, Vaughn was arrested in St. Charles and 'Today I lost everything,' Vaughn says on the video, later referring to how tired he is. need your help for this. I was brought on to the case by a St. Louis criminal defense attorney with whom I had worked before. His children, 12-year-old Abigayle . Previously running for mayor and a beloved activist. 15:45 GMT 29 Aug 2012. Kimberly Ellen Vaughn, 34, and her three children, Abigayle Elizabeth Vaughn, 12; Cassandra Ellen Vaughn, 11; and Blake Philip Vaughn, 8; all of Oswego, were found shot to death in an SUV in far southwest suburban Channahon Township. The podcast is currently on the second episode and has shown the case from the view of Chris Vaughn's supporters. Vaughn's wife and children were never mentioned in the writings, but there was a reference to one of the exotic dancers. His wife, Kimberly, 34, was in the front passenger seat, slumped over the center console with a single contact gunshot wound under her chin. The prosecution won a motion to introduce all of Kims emails to show to the jury that she was a happy person who was planning for the future. Will County States Attorney James Glasgow. Then, the surviving husband and father revealed that he had been getting threats. Emma Reynolds But there is more than just stress involved here. he did it and heres what proved it: he had an article about hw to make a murder look like suicide, claimed he didnt read it but somehow followed some of the suggestions listed in the article. Its unlikely that Vaughns recollection of the murders from 2007 was useful. to keep expanding and making Murderpedia a better site, but we really Prosecutors said Vaughn shoved his Taurus handgun under Kimberlys chin from outside the SUV and shot her, then reached over her to shoot his children. This could be due to my lack of search skills. RELATED: Jurors hear about Lakewood murder linked by DNA to 1984 killing of Bennett family Contact 9NEWS reporter Kevin Vaughan with tips about this or any story: kevin.vaughan@9news.com or 303 . It was his blood that bled onto her buckled seat belt. Lenard objected to the death scene photos being left on the television screen for long periods of time. Vaughn was charged with their murders. Most who knew the family described Chris as quiet and mild mannered, an introvert. Christopher Vaughn is an American man convicted of the murder of his wife, Kimberly, and the couple's three children in June 14, 2007. He said that when he was told at the hospital he had been shot, he was incredulous because there was no one else around and his wife didn't own a gun. The psychiatrist said this nuance of detail would be difficult to fake. Just after 5 a.m., his wife asked him to pull off the highway . And after Vaughn was taken to the hospital with minor gunshot wounds to his wrist and leg, Mills said, Vaughn expressed more concern for his special jacket and the possibility that emergency workers "were ruining his cowboy boots" than for his dead wife and children. So the mind blocks it out. Heres some of whats on our to-do list. Christopher Vaughn wanted to live in perfect freedom in the Canadian wilderness, prosecutors said, but instead he will spend the rest of his life in prison after a Will County judge sentenced him to four consecutive life terms Tuesday for the murders of Vaughn's wife and three children. Meanwhile, the man whose office oversaw the prosecution said Vaughn would go free when hell freezes over.. The massacre. He looked back over his shoulder at his family before being led from the courtroom after the sentencing. At Vaughns 2012 trial, jurors heard that Vaughn had been discovered limping and bloody along the frontage road by a man on his way to work. Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment. The children were shot once in the head and once in the chest. The first entrance hole was the front right pocket; the second an exit hole near the back bottom left side of the jacket. It makes me feel less alone that many of you felt the weight of listening to his family talk so positively about a man that is convicted of such a abhorrent crime. Susan Phillips, right, mother of Kimberly Vaughn, and Kimberly's twin sister, Jennifer Ledbetter, spoke at Christopher Vaughn's sentencing Tuesday at the Will County Courthouse in Joliet. NL VFW Friday Fish Fry. It's believed the killings began around 12:45 p.m., but they weren't discovered for nearly 12 hours. I was already put off by the "he looked too nice to be guilty", but the second episode was downright inappropriate. Had he known this he would have taken her off the medication right away. in the shooting deaths of his wife, Kim fired at me. SHARE. The magazine was collected as evidence and sent to the crime lab in an attempt to prove that Chris had read the article, and became an expert on crime scene staging. Watch with discovery+ 5. There was a life insurance policy on his wife worth a million dollars, but if Chris was motivated by money, why would he leave a job that paid him $200,000 a year to hike into the wilderness to live off nature? I have no problem delving into the evidence if theres something substantial pointing to a wrongful conviction, but the vitriol and complete lack of decency I kept hearing just became too much to take. She worked on an assignment the day before her death and communicated with others that she would be working on it more the day she died. Camren Wynter hit a three-pointer with 0.7 seconds left to give Penn State a 68-65 victory against Northwestern. To this day he maintains no memory of what occurred that tragic day 20 years ago. "I don't think he felt what we feel when he held our (grand)children," said Phillips, who said he had hoped to hear some explanation or apology from Vaughn on Tuesday. the Vaughn family's Oswego home. She married Christopher Vaughn in 1994. I dont know the family, but Kimberly baby-sat my husband and his brother when they were little. He had re-secured the strap on the topper, got back into the vehicle, noticed that his leg was bleeding, but had no memory of being shot. Check local listings to see where you can watch. He remembered pulling off, parking in front of a cell phone tower along a frontage road and getting out of the car to check the back tires. Reviewing his statements, it was apparent that he had no memory of what happened to his family. And so far no actual evidence that might show innocence, just story after story of all the stuff they did outside (???) Police had given him every opportunity to blame his wife, but he responded, There was no way she could have hurt the kids. Murder in Illinois follows the complicated circumstances that led to Vaughn's conviction, as well as the forensic evidence his supporters believe proves his innocence- in . There was no sexual contact, not even a lap dance. None of the evidence they say prove his innocence has been discussed so its pretty frustrating to listen to the constant derision of a murder victim and her family. Christopher Vaughn, 32, is charged with eight counts of murder He was in pants, tshirt AND long sleeve flannel shirt. Chris revolver was lying on the floorboard near her feet. The bullet was recovered from the motor of the drivers door window mechanism. It was only after police showed him the photos of his dead family that he began to refer to them in the past tense. Their claims of being judged by her family are pure projection. Friday Raffle $66,230 and Fish Fry Special, NL VFW Top List Karaoke With Cheryl in the Bar Friday. Sept. 5, 2021. He then fell 'head-first' out of the vehicle and stumbled down the road until he flagged down a passing motorist, he said. I can breathe again. Weiss said he was haunted for a time by what he saw the day of the murders, struggling to sleep or concentrate. And in Stone, Vaughn has enlisted the same attorney who represents Marni Yang, the woman convicted of killing the pregnant girlfriend of former Chicago Bear Shaun Gayle another case being challenged. Still, even a bloodstain expert called by Vaughns lawyers agreed at trial that a defense claim that Vaughn left the SUV before Kimberly was shot didnt make sense. When Vaughn's family was killed, he lost his three young children and his wife, making him the sole survivor. No longer alive, Chris.'. Another showed the three children, who were settled under blankets and on pillows for the long, early-morning ride to Springfield, dead together in the backseat of the SUV. By accepting all cookies, you agree to our use of cookies to deliver and maintain our services and site, improve the quality of Reddit, personalize Reddit content and advertising, and measure the effectiveness of advertising. In this video, I visit the location where they we. the Murderpedia project stay alive. Then the doctor was asked what the significance would be taking both medications Nortriptyline and Topamax together. There were two holes in his jacket. In 2012, an Illinois court convicted Vaughn of murdering Kimberly and their three children. On Thursdays episode of Murder in Illinois, a letter purportedly written by Vaughn is read, in which he admits he lied about not remembering how Kimberly shot my kids then killed herself., I pulled over and got out to give her a minute, the letter said. In some cases the memory may be restored days later, or not at all, according to the DSM-IV. To request removal of your name from an arrest report, submit these required items to arrestreports@patch.com. Murder in Illinois has taken heavy criticism for its generally negative portrayal of Kimberly and her family. I was hoping to find some website with a list of all the reasons Chris Vaughn is guilty like the pro/con websites you find for more popular cases like the West Memphis Three. The shots to the children in the back seat came from over the left shoulder of the front passenger seat, where Kimberly was found, records show. When investigators arrived at the scene, they noticed blood stains on the strap of the seatbelt. He claims he had been patching things up with her after he had confessed to cheating on her and was trying to be a better family man. John List. family's sports utility vehicle June 14, in Channahon, Ill., is 10. The psychiatrist said he was using the present tense when he talked about his wife and children. The evidence was overwhelming and conclusive. Im fully aware it wont make a difference, but it felt like therapy so why not? 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He allegedly murdered his family so he could move to a . Clutter has previously written that a transfer blood stain on Kimberlys right thumb all comes together to prove it was the wife who unbuckled her own seatbelt, after her husband had been shot., That was my working theory at the time, Clutter said Thursday. What the actual?! Instead, the trip turned into a bloody scene with Vaughn's wife and children all dying after being shot, leaving Vaughn as the sole survivor. Chris Vaughn and his family are driving to a water park when their lives are tragically ended in a roadside shooting. It was then re-dated to reflect that it was finalized a day after the lead detective gave his factually inaccurate grand jury testimony. However, the DNA report contradicted his testimony. On Saturday, Vaughn was arrested in St. Charles and charged with eight counts of. Cassandra "Sandi", 11, an animal lover who was trying to persuade her mom to let her start a dog-walking business, was killed next. At some of the scenes where the Rhoden family was killed, investigators did find . The jury in Alex Murdaugh 's high-profile murder trial will visit the scene where his wife Maggie and son Paul were brutally gunned down in the summer of 2021. He said Thursday he wants to find out when Vaughns memory returned. Though he had been an early member of Vaughns defense team when Vaughn initially faced the death penalty, Clutter said he was discharged when the death penalty was abolished and has mostly worked pro bono on the case. One of the members suggested he get a gun for serving process. Prosecutors said that in the 14 hours he spent there, Vaughn stuck to the story that he had only a vague recollection of what happened in the SUV. He said her big change in personality was of concern to him. I went down a Google rabbit hole in trying to figure out what case this guy had for his innocence, and it's a really tough one to figure. After hearing the evidence that supported our defense theory, he recruited a defense attorney to assist pro bono. They lived briefly in an Aurora apartment . He posted wistful Internet messages about building a cabin and. I have read some of the flood of news articles following the Chris Vaughn trial. Later, Ledbetter spoke with Sgt. I got back in to check the kids. Chris parents Gail and Pierre sit down with Dr. Phil for their first-ever live television appearance and discuss why they believe their son is innocent. I am not sure how you get past this fact. Jurors found Vaughn guilty of the June 14, 2007, murders of his wife Kimberly, 34, and their children: 12-year-old Abigayle, 11-year-old Cassandra, and 8-year-old Blake. While prosecutors flashed grisly photos of his wife and three young children slumped dead and bleeding in the family SUV, Christopher Vaughn sat expressionless, calmly jotting notes. Out of all the True Crime ive seen and read about, somehow this one has slipped me. Christopher Vaughn may be the least unjustly imprisoned of the tens of thousands of men and women doing time in Illinois prisons. Updated 11/27/12 - 4:05 p.m. CHICAGO (CBS) -- An Oswego man has been sentenced to life in prison for the horrifying murders of his wife and children . FORENSIC EVIDENCE OF MURDER-SUICIDE People v. Christopher Vaughn, Will County, IL No. Just because you feel inferior academically doesnt mean someone is else is forcing that superiority on you. Though Vaughn claimed not to remember details of the shooting, he contended that he pulled the Expedition off the highway when Kimberly said she was feeling sick. He genuinely appeared unaware that his family had been killed. . 'They're gone. Also this past weekend on 07/25/21, the afternoon radio host (WGN Radio) was discussing the horrific "crime of the century" when Richard Speck brutally murdered 8 nurses in Chicago (07/14/1966). 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