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. Running across the parking lot and up the stairs, responding officers head toward the apartment. And neither is Will Sanders, the truck driver spearheading the drive to get justice for Jessica. The devil is in the details. They're saying it was self-inflicted, she said. According to a press release issued by the Griffin Police Department, Boynton was on Friday arrested without incident and transported to the Spalding County Jail. But someone else did. The babys muffled cry echoes, getting louder as the officers sweep their guns back and forth, searching for the shooter. While Jessica believes someone tried taking her life from her, she refuses to allow anyone to take her kids away from her. Despite their problems, Matthew tells investigators he still loved Jessica and the boys, and he offers an explanation for why he didn't run in the apartment that terrible night to save them. Officer Matthew Boynton has never been charged with anything in connection with this case, but the Georgia Bureau of Investigation did question him. Jessica has given Will every piece of evidence in her case, including that divorce diary. Jessica's husband and high school sweetheart is Griffin Police Officer Matthew Boynton. 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. ", Following that phone call, Mathews, perceiving that she was threatened, called the GBIs director of professional standards to file a formal complaint and to gain clarity about what he meant by, Were gonna have a problem.. Matthew's fellow officers try to shield him from the sight of his gravely injured wife. "I don't want to put all the blame on him but he's the only person that could have done it," said Jessica Boynton. Thats what we had to establish, Yates confirmed. The next door neighbor interview was conducted after Matthew returned to full duty. If his wife, Matthew's attorney continued, was capable of attempting to take her own life, there's a chance that she might do something to their children. Mass shooters. Jessica, then-19, had just put her two young sons to bed and was getting her clothes ready in the closet for the next day. The chain of custody on that stuff is messed up. The July 29 arrest of former Griffin Police Department Officer Matthew Boynton stemmed from a theft report filed Dec. 19, 2016, by his former wife, Jessica Lester. It was sitting out in the open, caught on police body-camera when cops kicked in the closet door. My understanding of the laws of physics is that one person cannot be in two places at the same time," Mathews said in an interview with 11Alive. 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. Before he leaves, Matthew says Jessica makes a bizarre request: She asks him to call an ambulance. 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. By the time Jessica was twenty, she'd had enough of Matthew, and their crumbling marriage had driven her to a dark place. Matthew admits to having an affair. She had an appointment Monday.. And that's all I needed, so I was on cloud nine.". One, investigators said penetrated Jessica's head and the other the wall. OR OTHER GOVERNMENT OFFICIALS. A Griffin cop finally arrives to take Matthew's formal domestic violence complaint. Honestly, I have no idea. On Dec. 19, 2016, Lester met with GPD Investigator Dexter McCune regarding property she alleged Boynton had stolen. There are a lot of questions that I would love to have answered. For the wife of a Georgia police officer, answering that question is unfortunately turning out not to be so simple. 11Alive - BREAKING | Matthew Boynton, who was under - Facebook Jessica's husband and high school sweetheart is Griffin Police Officer Matthew Boynton. Her limp body is on the floor, just behind the door. Yancy also requested that Boynton write a statement pertaining to the allegation. 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. Cops finally reach that locked closet door. "He tried to kill her.". He asked her what she thought could've happened. 'We're not going to do this in Georgia anymore' | Prosecutor fighting to stop animal abuse, NASCAR star Chase Elliott hurts leg in snowboarding accident, Forecast | Cooler air moving in for the weekend, Metro Atlanta, north Georgia hit with widespread damage after storms produce powerful winds, calls 911, reaching Spalding County dispatch. While sifting through pages and pages of the report, a GBI evidence photo caught her attention. FOLLOW THE EVIDENCE FOR YOURSELF, CLICK HERE. Well I couldn't get it for him because I couldn't get it out of his gun holster, she said. God damn it, man! A family of Marines is divided after father shoots ailing wife Matthew, a police officer in a small town called Griffin, in Georgia, rushed home. 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. 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. Who shot Jessica Boynton? A new podcast investigates | kiiitv.com A key piece of evidence was photographed inside the kitchen after officers arrived on the scene. My kids are at home with her, so I'm trying to hurry up and get back there., I'm driving. They wanted me to come back Friday for orientation for the job, she said. 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? It's just one piece of the brand new beginning the young mother and wife has been putting together for her and her sons. "In looking at this, this does not have the appearance of a suicide to me. BREAKING | Matthew Boynton, who was under investigation and cleared by the GBI last year for his wife's shooting, was charged with one felony count of false statements and writings, and one felony count of violation of oath of office. She's moaning.. Matt shouldnt be allowed to ever be a cop anywhere else. 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.. Crime Watch Daily's security team tracked the email address, only to find it was from an anonymous server. No it wasn't. That's the bottom line for me. It's one of their owna police-issued .40-caliber Glock. Especially because of my children. Domestic violence has always been a precursor to violence in other areas. He has been charged with false statements and writings and violating his oath of office. "Another reasonable explanation is that there was a fight over the gun and during the course of that she was injured, Matthew thought she was dead and put the gun underneath.". 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. "Happy," said the neighbor. Hike also includes a rare chance to tour inside the old powerhouse which provides great photo opportunities of the Towaliga River. On something like this, does it usually take a while?, Right now it depends on what happens with Jessica, too. And would a dad leave his kids inside with a suicidal woman and a loaded gun? Both Jessica and Matthew reportedly want a divorce. She said there were too many errors and discrepancies for her to have sent it. It appears she's been shot in the head. A Griffin police officer who was investigated in his ex-wife's shooting was charged Friday, July 28, 2017, with making false statements and violating oath after officials say he took her belongings, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports. One of about 70 messages they exchange throughout the night. Jones approaches Matthew to find out what happened. [I miss] getting to see them every day and getting to watch them grow more and more into the boys and men that they're going to be someday, Jessica said sobbing. The shooting occurred on the evening of April 14, 2016. 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?" Im not sure if it was slightly before or slightly after. The doctor was not contacted by the GBI until July 20. Just one minute later, Matthewcalls 911, reaching Spalding County dispatch. provided images. I was scared to death, because I couldnt find [Tyler]that she would shoot me, I mean shoot him, shoot me, and then kill herself.. 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.. 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. During my stay is when my personal belongings were taken and Matthew Boynton (3842) refuses to give them back, Lester stated. "I know what happened," said the unidentified neighbor. Jones checks on a locked closet door between the master bedroom and hallway, across from the bathroom. They hit the top of the stairs knowing somebody's got a gun. UPDATE: This story was originally published in November 2016. "Police department!" It entered at an upward leftward trajectory angle," said Sheila Mathews. But where's the second round? Jessica's husband and high school sweetheart is Griffin Police Officer Matthew Boynton. 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. The 20-year-old says he's heading to Waffle House for a late night food run with on-duty cop and best friend, Officer Joshua Guthrie--leaving his service weapon at home, in its holster and in the closet. They turn her over from her stomach to her back. A phone that text messages were sent and received to/from following his recollection of hearing,POP-POP! and running out of the apartment. Terms of Use | Fast forward to May 11, the day numerous items that reportedly belonged to Lester were turned in to the Griffin Police Department. | Examine the evidence yourself, calls 911, reaching Spalding County dispatch. Trammel records the 10:53 p.m., incident report from April 14. This couldn't happen man. Matthew sends another text to his girlfriend, a Spalding County dispatcher, Give me a few. "Being in the closet," said Jessica. The police officer's wife was found with a bullet to the head, lying in their closet. "I think what happened after they come home from Walmart, Jessica and Matthew got into an argument. A body-cam captures her inconsolable baby boy in the arms of an officer. A message to Matthew's phone is received and marked as read, from his mistress. A grandson of the county sheriff, a career in law enforcement was in his genes. "Police department!" To text back long story I'll tell you later.. Six months later, everything would changefor everyone. Matthew makes it home, jumps out of his truck, races through the breezeway of his apartment building and bolts up the stairs. Around 9 o'clock on the night of Thursday, April 14, 2016, Matthew Boynton calls a lieutenant on duty and reports Jessica is hitting him again. Her head shaved. That is not a reaction that I can relate to.". A previous study found 41% of police admitted to being abusive to their spouses. Example video title will go here for this video. 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. Furthermore, he said, it's his observation that self-inflicted gunshot wounds are very unusual among women. Then-Griffin Police officer Matthew Boynton was arrested on July 28, 2017 for giving a false statement to his own department about having possession of a gym bag full of clothes, underwear. What he finds turns this case of a suicide upside down. 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. Moments later Matthew's fellow officers from the Griffin, Georgia Police Department arrive on scene with body-cameras recording. The 20-year-old says he's heading to Waffle House for a late night food run with on-duty cop and best. On May 11, Will Sanders met withYancy and Sgt. 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,. But Griffin Police are treating this as a suicide attempt. Henderson said in the letter, that he did not believe that Jessica's head injury was the result of a gunshot wound, and furthermore, questioned how she got the injury at all. Griffin Police officer Matthew Boynton was arrested and taken to the Spalding County Jail on multiple charges. an officer questions the others. But another heated argument goes down in the baby food aisle. She's having suicidal thoughts. Her neighbor, who asked us to protect her identity, says she knows the motive: Jessica had uncovered Matthew's dark secret. Why did no one ask about the comment Matthew made about the kids being in the closet too? I thought he hadnt gone inside the apartment until backup arrived, so how would he know Jessica was in the closet unless he put her there? Stay out, Matt, one the officers advises his fellow officer. What are my kids going to do? he pleaded, his voice cracking with emotion. This all follows a Georgia Bureau of Investigation case that ultimately ruled Lester had attempted suicide in April 2016. Who shot Jessica Boynton? A new podcast investigates - WCSH Running across the parking lot and up the stairs, responding officers, Keys, Jones and Gresham head toward the apartment. They are 50% more likely to commit police brutality. Collectively, they examine the bullets' trajectory from the closet, into the bedroom wall and ceiling. Based on that acknowledgement, The GRIP asked if it would not alleviate legal concerns pertaining to the chain of custody, and furthermore, why Boynton was not also charged with theft. "There was no testing done on his clothing," said Sheila Mathews. ', Do you know how it was that you got shot?, Have you ever had any type of thoughts about hurting yourself?. To text back long story I'll tell you later.. I didnt know if I was dealing with a possible active active scenario where she still had the gun and she had shot Tyler, he replied. Matthew interviews with the GBI early that morning. I hadn't really put much thought into it, Jessica told him. Sheila Mathews publishes The Grip, an independent newspaper in Griffin. Jessica was a blushing bride, excited to spend the rest of her life with the man she loved. Earlier that night Jessica's husband Matthew headed to Waffle House for a late-night bite with a fellow officer, leaving his service. It appears it was self-inflicted. "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. The only person who truly knows what happened behind that closet door was jessica -- and she's now out of her coma. They were calling me the miracle child Because what I went through, not a lot of people survive through it, she told 11Alive's Brendan Keefe, nearly six months after the incidenther golden blonde hair now growing back. 11Alive reached out to the GBI and Officer Matthew Boynton, however, neither returned our phone calls. Click here for "Trigger: The Last Word" | And we talk to Jessica Boynton again here: "Trigger: Free as a Bird" | Anda story when the officer was arrested and kicked offthe force (but not for shooting his wife ). They hoist her inside. Jessica's theory of what happened centers around her "dirty divorce diary." I left a message with the lady that answered for her to call me. Cops find 8-month-old Tyler visibly upset but thankfully uninjured. No. "What you're saying to me, that's not, you know, I don't see anything he did wrong by saying that," Fred Mays told Mathews. It's possible, but I mean it's very doubtful, because he's never hurt me before. And, the first officer on scene, as recorded by body cam footage, was not interviewed by the GBI for months after the incident. 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. Earlier that night Jessica's husband Matthew headed to Waffle House for a late-night bite with a fellow officer, leaving his service. (whit his baton I would guess) ..is every person in the police department total idiots? Jones passes by a framed portrait hung on the wall. His flashlights beam reveals a smiling family of four. Donald Britt, Lt. Darrell Dix, Lt. Keys and Beam are also present. Earlier that night Jessica's husband Matthew headed to Waffle House for a late-night bite with a fellow officer, leaving his service weapon . We asked retired homicide detective Tim Miley to review Jessica's entire case file and every crime scene photo. Matthew sends another text to his mistress, a Spalding County dispatcher, Give me a few. If not, get on a plane and go HOME.". RE-open the case Georgia!!!!!! My kids are at home with her, so I'm trying to hurry up and get back there., I'm driving. The ambulance pulls away with Jessica in critical condition, to the fire station located on Carver Road, where the medical helicopter picks her up and takes her to an Atlanta hospital. Crime Watch Daily investigates what really happened to Jessica Boynton, something even Jessica herself wants to know. While Trammel's body cam is out of juice tonight, Jones's bodycam spots Trammel as the other officers enter the apartment. ", "There are two theories in this case, the first is that she shot herself and on the way to the ground she accidentally fired the gun a second time. Dispatch notifies Spalding County Sheriff Wendell Beam, Matthews grandfather,and police notify Jessicas family that she has died. She says there were pages missing. And he said 'Yeah, we did.'". He's meeting his buddy at the local Waffle House. But the story is far from over: Jessica now claims the April 15 incident was a staged suicideconstructed by her husband. Her mouth covered with a breathing apparatus and several machines attached to her monitoring her condition. Who shot Jessica Boynton? A new podcast investigates | 13newsnow.com But asking those questions resulted in a threat. I don't know why. Id be afraid to luve in that town until that poluce brotherhood is abolished. Its one of their owna police-issued .40-caliber Glock. Boynton was released from the Spalding County Jail Friday night on a $4,806 cash bond. That's what they're all assuming, Matthew said. Bring the little ones for a story every Saturday morning at 11 a.m. to hear Sam's favorite tales. Matthew, 20, quickly called 911 and said he had received an alarming text message from his wife, claiming she was going to commit suicide, cops said. 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 specific items Lester alleged Boynton had stolen included a Toshiba laptop valued at $500; clothes valued at $300; jewelry valued at $50; kitchen items valued at $500; and a retainer valued at $150. We're going to be doing that to do touch DNA on the gun, and um, and why we're doing that is obviously one to corroborate everything that's what believed happened, and that way it also, it also eliminates the possibility of her family saying, you had something involved in this, or whatever, the GBI agent said to him. The next action noted in the case occurred nearly two months later. She rebukes the text message that was sent from her phone to Matthews that night and said she didnt have a lock on her phone, so anyone couldve sent it. The ceiling fan circles on high speed. Armed with body camera attached to their uniforms, the officers burst through the door, quickly passing Matthews phone, a black and grey Verizon LG smartphone, on the kitchen counter. Jones shouts as he travels deeper insidehis weapon drawn. He drove back to the apartment, he tells Jones, but it was too late. Once the scene is secure, investigator Misty Gresham checks on Tollin, who's sleeping, and Tyler, who is awake and still crying in his cribboth unharmed. It could, but it wont necessarily do it, Yates said. 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? But Griffin Police Chief Michael Yates said, Officer Boynton was not the shooter and trusts the investigations outcome. "I don't really know what happened in the closet, I just know that I did not try to kill myself," said Jessica Boynton. Griffin police officer wife Jessica Boynton shot | 11alive.com She remembered an instance when Matthew asked her grab his gun. The notification was made following an April 15, 2016, shooting incident - ruled by the Georgia Bureau of Investigation to be a suicide attempt - at the home of Jessica Boynton and her now-estranged husband, Griffin Police Department Officer Matthew Boynton. "He said 'What's wrong? Body cam shows moment cop's wife was found shot in head Jessica was still in a coma with a traumatic brain injurytubes stemming from her brain to alleviate pressure and fluid. 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. Emergency-responders finally arrive and carry Jessica to a waiting ambulance. He's asked me to go get it out before. He hears a baby crying as he carefully steps into the bedroom where a dark brown crib is situated. Who shot Jessica Boynton? A new podcast investigates - KHOU To stage a suicide," said the neighbor. This, Matthew says to Trammel, is the precursor to an argument the couple also had at Walmart later that night, just after 10 p.m. Once outside, he tells Trammel Jessica refuses to get into the car to go hometelling him she would find another way home and walked back into Walmart. "He does report an incident that would be considered domestic violence, that she was poking him in the chest with her finger," said Sheila Mathews. Her marriage had been crumbling, and she and her husband of six months Matthew Boynton, 20 . So if there is no gunshot wound, what really happened inside that closet? No bullet entered her body anywhere. She's having suicidal thoughts," he calmly says about Jessica to the dispatcher. Stephen Kruspe, 65, appears at his first appearance before a judge after the March 27, 2017, shooting of his wife, Pamela, at a Boynton Beach assisted living facility. Yates also said Boynton had provided a statement during the subsequent Internal Affairs investigation, acknowledging the items Sanders turned in were Lesters belongings. Jones removes the gun, which has a tactical flashlight attached to the bottom of its barrel, and places it on the kitchen counter and heads outside. I finally had the evidence that I needed that Matthew was cheating on me. He then said the GBI has not indicated to him that the investigation will be reopened. "They did not. Jessica's hair is so matted with blood no one can find the actual gunshot wound to stop the bleeding. "That's the way we're gonna play this game, Sheila. "He told 911 that he was so worried and he was trying to get back to the house as fast as possible. He says she started poking him in the chest with her finger, telling him that he had to admit there was another woman. Was the investigation a mess up or a cover up? 'Trigger' Griffin Police officer arrested | 11alive.com And they said yes," the neighbor said. After you got on the radio and you were outside communicating on the radio, you never went back in to actually check, check on the kids, the agent questioned Matthew about once he removed himself from the apartment. As he drove he received a text message from Jessica's phone. Officer Boynton hung up and did not respond to multiple messages, while the GBI refused to talk about the closed case. But here's the thing that has everyone shaking their heads: In the bureau's final report, dated months after Jessica was released from the hospital, they still declare Jessica dead. He hears a baby crying as he carefully steps into the bedroom where a dark brown crib is situated. Cops now know what was behind that closet door -- but the true mystery is just about to begin. They're saying it was self-inflicted, she said. "I saw a lot of things change after time. In turn Jessica begins keeping a so-called "dirty divorce diary," a red notebook she kept carefully hidden in a closet. Five days after his wife was shot, Matthew talked with the GBI again. 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. 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. 2023 Telepictures Productions Inc. Jones eyes a small child sleeping on a bottom bunk bed in the back bedroom. Her marriage had been crumbling, and she and her husband of six months Matthew Boynton, 20 . I can't even get it out of its case, she replied. 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? "Next thing I remember was I wake up and I'm in a hospital.". 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. Man that young girl deserves justice, it really smells like the cop snapped and tried to kill her, especially during the night of interview when he starts talking fast and over explaining his actions like I didnt even wash my hands. It's locked. Do you think Matthew did something? he asked her bluntly. After you got on the radio and you were outside communicating on the radio, you never went back in to actually check, check on the kids, the agent questions Matthew about once he's out of the apartment. 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!!!