Indiana sheriffs deputy dies after falling ill during training, Myles Colvin captivates Heritage Christian crowds, preps for Purdue. Robinson knew that. After the first failure, Leonard decided he also wanted to bring in his half-brother, Bob. Four years after thedeadly Richmond Hill explosion, another chapter has closed. "No one deserves what happened," she said. Shirley says he and Monserrate married on July 17, 1993. They moved into a home they built in Richmond Hill toward the end of 2003. FORT WAYNE, Ind. [24], On March 28, 2015, Mark Leonard was charged with conspiring to murder the key witness against him, Mark Duckworth. He asked whose name the house was under, and she said it was entirely in her name after the divorce. Home owner, Monserrate Shirley; her boyfriend, Mark Leonard; and his brother, Bob Leonard, were arrested Friday and charged with murder and arson Prosecutors may seek the death penalty Fire. Monserrate Shirley sentenced to 50 years in prison - YouTube Charged in the deadly Richmond Hill Fire RTV6 News brings you the best breaking news coverage in Indiana. In court, Shirley testified Leonard had promised to show her how to make a lot of money. She testified Wednesday she has a condition that prevents her tear ducts from actually producing tears. I should have been there.". Marion County Superior Court Judge Sheila Carlisle sentenced Monserrate Shirley to spend the maximum sentence of 50 years in prison on Tuesday. Neighbors, family testify in sentencing hearing of Monserrate Shirley, owner of the home. The defense wrapped up a little more quickly than expected after Judge John Marnocha denied their request to play a video of Shirley's 2012 interview with the media. They decided to cut a piece of cardboard to block off the chimney path. This is an archived article and the information in the article may be outdated. As fate would have it, it would be Carter, just a few weeks later, who would place Monserrate Shirley in handcuffs. Mark Leonard moved in with Monserrate Shirley about a month later. Give Light and the People Will Find Their Own Way, Indianapolis, IN Interactive Weather Radar, Mark Leonards friend says he knew too much, Opening statements in the trial of Mark Leonard. Monserrate Shirley was a divorced Puerto Rican mother whose exotic looks quickly attracted Mark Leonard. Shortly thereafter I moved some furniture into the apartment. But the majority supported us.. If I could bring Dion and Jennifer back, I would do that in a heartbeat, she said. Robinson told the residents what she could: That they didnt need Monserrate Shirley as a witness, but that she would help fill in blanks they hadnt been able to. Shirley said that she was at a casino bar at the time of the explosion, and her boyfriend and daughter -- who also live with her -- weren't home either. She even took some leave from work to stay with him longer than her paid vacation time allowed. When a defense attorney comes out and says, My client didnt do anything at all, but you clearly can show they did, then usually its going to be an all-or-nothing verdict, Robinson said. He says the log lighter worked fine when he lived there. Follow his reporting on Twitter at @Jordan_RTV6 or on Facebook. Its about becoming who you were meant to be. Prosecutors started by addressing her plea agreement. The now 49-year-old originally faced life in prison without parole. GitHub export from English Wikipedia. They are charged with. She grabbed a few pictures, including the canvas portrait of her daughterat age 5 that hung above the fireplace. The sentence accounts for time served and good. [30] He died on January 30, 2018, at an Indianapolis hospital, aged 48, of natural causes. Critics have accused Shirley of faking her reaction after the explosion because she seemed upset but never shed a tear. [31][32][33] Bob Leonard was convicted on all 51 counts, including murder and conspiracy to commit arson, on February 24, 2016. [28], Mark Leonard was found guilty on all 53 counts, including murder and felony murder charges, on July 14. To do that, the team moved 80 boxes of documents connected to the case to an office on the east side of Indianapolis. Shirley: "In order to pay a very large amount of child support, I was working a full-time job and two part-time jobs. She and her daughterwent to the hotel, where Mark later joined them. They got to the room, but Mark wasn't feeling well so he stayed there while Shirley played slot machines for about an hour. She said Leonard had bought it a few months beforehand at that point. Shirley: "She lost everything. According to Shirleys account, she was struggling to stay financially afloat when she met Leonard, and within a month of dating, he came up with the idea. He said there wouldn't be a problem because it would be a small fire so no one would get hurt, and since she had a long history with the insurance company and no criminal record, they would get the money almost immediately. Call 6 Investigator Rafael Sanchez and Senior Digital Correspondent Jordan Fischer will be in Fort Wayne covering the trial every day. He said that his daughter had mentioned that the furnace wasn't . Its because the game of death is the game of life itself. The cat, nicknamed Snowy, was a birthday gift for their daughter, he said, and "she misses him.". Snapped: Killer Couples (known as Killer Couples from seasons 7 to 15) is an American true crime television series currently airing on the Oxygen Network.The program details couples who commit crimes together. He also told Bob to go get Gary Thompson. I don't want to be involved in any of this.". Prosecutors alleged that the men conspired to submit an insurance claim for a stolen motorcycle. As stated previously, the investigation and prosecution of this matter has literally taken tens of thousands of hours of effort by numerous individuals. IndyStar reporter Robert King contributed to this story. They went home together that night and he moved in the first week of December. Shirley claims Leonard coerced her involvement, testifying that he threatened her and her daughter. They moved into a home they built in Richmond Hill toward the end of 2003. Call IndyStar reporter Holly Hays at (317) 444-6156. An autopsy will be conducted by the Marion County coroner's office Wednesday, according to the DOC. There was discussion about: Should we cut all of those? Follow her on Twitter:@hollyvhays. And it wasn't the answer we were looking for. She was wearing a jail jumpsuit, was shackled and her hair had grown long, dark and curly.IM TELLING THE TRUTH. And I think when the motivation is that, what we have is a person who is the worst of the worst.. Jordan Fischer is the senior digital reporter for RTV6. Monserrate worked Friday, November 9. [10] Included on the probable cause affidavit were complaints from several women claiming that Leonard scammed them out of thousands of dollars. The next morning, they went to Bob Leonard's mobile home. In November 2014, Glenn Olvey who was trapped with his family in his collapsing house finally gave up on rebuilding his home in the neighborhood. They then worked to establish a pattern of poor decisions in her personal life and changing stories throughout the investigation. Shirley said she would come back immediately, but they told her there was no house to come back to. For one thing, the trial team deputy prosecutors Denise Robinson and Mark Hollingsworth, plus two junior deputies would have to wade through an entire subdivision-worth of evidence to build, arguably, the largest criminal prosecution in Indiana history. When the relationship first started, she said, "He was a nice guy. I certainly might feel bad for his family. Thompson arrived on Monday or Tuesday, October 22-23, while Shirley's daughter was at school. The Version table provides details related to the release that this issue/RFE will be addressed. She now faces 20-50 years, though a judge has the right to suspend some, or all of that time. HS counselor at board meeting, Serial Indianapolis rapist pleads guilty to 9 counts, Mom speaks out after 2 kids killed by falling tree, Do Not Sell or Share My Personal Information. Denise Robinson, the Marion County Prosecutor on the case, told the court she rarely asks for the maximum sentence. Eventually, hed be asked to repeat her answer at her boyfriends murder trial. At the end of the interview, Carter asked Shirley what should happen to the person responsible for the explosion. Many of the women reported that they met him on dating sites and that he soon began asking them for money. INDIANAPOLIS, Ind. I was introduced to this once-a-year dish at a party and she was one of the first people to give it a shot. She was crying and hysterical and said the house blew up.". He eventually improved enough to return home, but Shirley had to continue caring for him for several months. Shirley testified in Fort Wayne at the trial of Bob Leonard, Jr. one of five people accused in the deadly 2012 Richmond Hill Explosion. She grew up in Puerto Rico with a violently abusive father who would often beat Shirley as well as her siblings and mother. In 2017, Leonard wasconvicted and received an additional 50-year sentencein a murder-for-hire scheme authorities say he concocted from jail after his arrest. Glenn Hults, who pleaded guilty to a felony for knowing about the plot but failing to report it to police, is scheduled for sentencing on December 28. Their first trip together was to the Hollywood Casino roughly 3-4 months after they first met. Leonard started talking the next week about trying for a second time to burn down the home. She found a house with a floorplan she liked." Having Shirley as a witness came with its own pitfalls, though. Shirley stated that her daughter had smelled gas during the week before the explosion. Leonard asked her to get a babysitter for her daughter, make a reservation at the casino's hotel for the two of them and to board the family cat, "Snowball." She later found out her neighbors didnt make it. Shirley recalled a later conversation that she had with Bob and Mark Leonard, after the explosion. Will they get to the felony murder?. It had three gas appliances - the water heater, the furnace and the fireplace. Monserrate Shirley leaves court after learning her sentence. She said that she hasn't been eating or sleeping well and that she has been taking Xanax to get what little sleep she can. Shirley's next-door neighbors, John and Jennifer Longworth, died in the blast. That's whatwe'll be asking the jury to consider.". After demands for a vote on the bill, we finally received one. And in each of those categories, you betrayed your trust.. Including journalists, it was closer to four dozen. When she left that morning, her daughterand Snowball were still there (Mark was going to take them to school and the kennel). She found a house with a floorplan she liked." They claim that Leonard wanted the hit man to force the witness to call 9-1-1 and recant his statement before killing him. He never gave her money like that again, but did play with his own money, spending anywhere from $2,000 - 10,000 each trip. [5], Monserrate "Moncy" Shirley, a nurse, owned the home at the center of the explosion. Im thankful for my trial team for sticking with me. I did my best. Shirley: "Back in August (2011) she just stopped taking my phone calls and letting me talk to Brook. TRANSCRIPT | Opening statements in the trial of Mark Leonard. I dont believe in vengeance and I know that my son is not a person that would accept vengeance and such things, he didnt live that way., I look at Monserrate Shirley and I see a wasted life, said Tony Burnett, who lived across the street from Shirley. He was sentenced in August to two life sentences, along with 75 years in prison. Before meeting Mark, Shirley had never been to a casino. The host family had a lot of horses, so Shirley's daughter went to play with them under the supervision of Holts' girlfriend, Sharon, whose teen daughters often watched the girl. Bob Leonard, Monserrate Shirley, Gary Thompson and Glenn Hults also face charges in connection to the explosion. ", When they went to pick up Shirley's daughteron Sunday, Holts told Mark to "Get the [expletive] out of here. More on AOL Real Estate:Find homes for rent in your area.Find out how to calculate mortgage payments.Find homes for sale in your area.Find foreclosures in your area. The blast the product of an insurance fraud scheme killed two people and injured dozens of others. Instead, on Dec. 20, 2016 - after a two-day sentencing hearing that would be the closest her former neighbors would get to seeing her on trial - Shirley was sentenced to the maximum term of 50 years in prison. But no other problems. She still wiped under her eyes with a tissue several times while she was on the stand. ", She said Mark told her, "It cannot be that bad.Don't worry about it. Seven months later, on March 18, 2016, his brother Bob Leonard Jr. received his own sentence of life without parole in a courtroom in Fort Wayne, Indiana. Shirley says he was paying Monserrate $1,000 a month in child support and mortgage payments. The sentence accounts for time served and good. Exasperated, Judge John Marnocha, who was assigned to oversee the trial, dismissed dozens of potential jurors and ended the day early with an admonition for Black and her co-counsel, David Shircliff. It wasnt the only curveball Black and Shircliff would throw at the prosecution. [16][17] The alleged motive for the arson was to collect insurance money to ease financial strain. Says Sen. Tom. The stove was electric. John Shirley, 50, of Noblesville, told The Associated Press that his daughter sent him a text message last week complaining that the furnace in the home where she lives with her mother and her. At that point, Shirley and her co-defendants her boyfriend Mark Leonard and his brother, Bob Leonard Jr. had been sitting in jail for two years following their arrest on charges of murder, arson and attempted insurance fraud in connection with the explosion. But I cant do that, and everybody knows you cant do that, but sometimes theres this perception that getting through the justice system will make things better. "In order to pay a very large amount of child support, I was working a full-time job and two part-time jobs," he said. "That cannot be real. Below, find a transcript of John Shirley's testimony from Tuesday's hearing: 2:22 p.m. John Shirley, Monserrate Shirley's ex-husband, called as witness. She took care of all three. Federal grand jury indicts man on hate crime charges after he allegedly shot 2 Jewishmen in Los Angelesin February, Pot vote has Oklahoma hungry to rake in green from Texas, Indonesia fuel depot fire kills 18, over dozen missing, Fishers firefighters assist car flipped NB over I-69. "Two innocent people died because of this!" [27], Mark Leonard's trial began in June 2015. And I wanted to be able to tell them everything., TRANSCRIPT | The full testimony of Monserrate Shirley. At the center of the case, Mark Leonard, a womanizer with gambling debts who preyed on divorcees, hatched an arson plot for money with his girlfriend, Monserrate Shirley. "That's not what you told me," she remembered saying to Mark. She lived in the four-bedroom, two-and-a-half-bath home with her daughter. Leonard said he talked to Gary Thompson without her, telling him they were ready to do it. I was introduced to this once-a-year dish at a party and she was one of the first people to give it a shot. Robinson has said she will argue for 50 when the time comes. After court adjourned for the day, Shircliff said he attacked her inconsistencies "to show that she can tell the truth as easily as she tells a lie, and it's hard for the jury to know the difference. Her house exploded on their third attempt of trying to claim insurance money. Holts invited Leonard and Shirley to his friend's house for a pool party in the Geist neighborhood. Again, Monserrate agreed to do her same three preparations: a casino hotel reservation, a babysitter for her daughterand boarding for Snowball. "We had a lot of parties," the late. I did everything to make him happy, Monserrate Shirley said in testimony. [6] She claimed to have been horrified at the Longworths' deaths, as well as the massive destruction wrought by the explosion. The first attempt was supposed to be carried out by Gary Thompson, but it failed. She told him the attempt didnt work but that there would be another attempt. When you come out and say, My client attempted to commit insurance fraud through a small fire and this just happened, he had no idea, what the jury doesnt realize, because Im not allowed to tell them, is attempted insurance fraud even if coupled with reckless homicide is a class C felony. This time, Shirley's daughterwas at home, but she was upstairs. She and her husband Gabriel Ferrer (son of Rosemary Clooney and Jos Ferrer, and a first cousin to George Clooney) had four children: Jordan Alexander Ferrer (born July 8, 1980), twin girls (Gabrielle Monserrate Ferrer & Dustin Boone Ferrer, born September 17, 1983), and Tessa Ferrer (born March 30, 1986). You're done.". [9], Investigators discovered a number of allegations of insurance fraud and other scams by Leonard prior to the blast, particularly involving stolen or wrecked automobiles. So while I had that, I pretty quickly set it aside and put it in a file marked Mark Leonard and never looked at it, because I couldnt allow that to influence me in the decision. 2012 explosion in Richmond Hill, Indianapolis, Indiana, Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department, Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, "At least 2 killed, others injured in explosion, fire in Indianapolis neighborhood", "Family breaks ground on new home in Richmond Hill subdivision after Indianapolis home explosion", "36 homes critically damaged in explosion in south side neighborhood", "Homeowner at center of explosion feels lucky to be alive", "Authorities call Richmond Hill explosion a homicide case, seek details on white van", "Probable cause suggests pattern of fraud, details inconsistencies", "Richmond Hill suspect, friend face insurance fraud charges", "Affidavit: women say richmond hill blast suspect Mark Leonard has long history of scheming", "Shattered Subdivision Offers a Trail of Clues", "Life sentences without parole sought for Indianapolis explosion suspects", "4th person arrested in Indianapolis house explosion", "Fifth suspect charged in 2012 Indianapolis south side explosion", "Mark Leonard, Indy Blast suspect, pleads not guilty in murder plot", "Jim Voyles now representing Monserrate Shirley", "Home Explosion Case: Monserrate Shirley, Mark And Bob Leonard Due In Indianapolis Court", "Richmond Hill explosion: 3 trials for price of 1? His sentencing is set for December 28, 2016 at 1 p.m. Marion County Prosecutor Terry Curry issued the following statement: We respect the Courts decision ordering Monserrate Shirley to serve a fifty-year prison sentence for her participation in this senseless conspiracy. Shirley stated that her daughter had smelled gas during the week before the explosion. At one point you replaced the thermostat." Prosecutors alleged Leonard was the mastermind behind the explosion that damaged or destroyed more than 80 homes in Indianapolis, plotting with his then-live-in girlfriend Monserrate Shirley. Shirley and her boyfriend Mark Leonard were out of town for the weekend while her 12-year-old daughter stayed with friends. Out of fear that a Marion County jury would be too tainted by extensive media coverage of the case, the trial had been moved to South Bend, Indiana. [5], The most damning piece of evidence was a witness statement from one of Mark Leonard's associates, who told investigators that the weekend before the explosion, Leonard told him that "the house blew up". They enter into evidence two golf bags with clubs and a driver. When testimony moved to the night of the explosion that killed Jennifer and Dion Longworth, Monserrate Shirley had a difficult time staying composed. They agreed to say they'd been having trouble with the thermostat and smelling gas for a while. We knew somebody else was involved, and he was the only one whose name consistently came up, but it was only after she cooperated that we were able to charge Gary Thompson and Glenn Hults.. I see a con artist when I look at her., If she really is apologetic, then I accept the apology, said Dion Longworths father, John Longworth. On Monday, November 5, they changed out the thermostat for a "cheaper" model. [16] On March 13, Leonard allegedly placed a call to a man who he believed to be a hit man. The co-conspirators include Shirleys boyfriend at the time, Mark Leonard, and his brother, Bob Leonard Jr. Deputy prosecutor Denise Robinson returned from prosecuting the Richmond Hill cases to a pile of homicides waiting on her desk. I dont know why they did it. Glenn told me, Between Mark and Gary, theyre going to explode the whole neighborhood. I said, Dont play like that. -- John Shirley told jurors Tuesday that, while his relationship with his ex-wife Monserrate was severely damaged by the time he moved out, the gas appliances in their home were not. Another woman reported that she had loaned him about $5,000 for a construction job, which he had yet to pay back. Shirleys apology rang hollow to many Richmond Hill residents in the courtroom. I dont feel bad for Mr. Leonard, said Don Buxton, father of Jennifer Longworth, who was killed in the blast with her husband, Dion.
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