Funding his defense reverted back to Will County. He allegedly got into the family SUV, where his wife and children were waiting, after getting harmed. Nothing could be done. This podcast is an attempt to give the Vaughn family a platform to besmirch their dead daughter in law and grandchildren. We hear about inconsistencies, such as when the murder weapon was transported to the morgue, covered with cloth, and then washed. need your help for this. "All this tragedy, because one person just could not walk away. Chris Vaughn and his family are driving to a water park when their lives are tragically ended in a roadside shooting. There is a swipe mark on the latch, which corresponds with the transfer stain on his wifes right thumb. But not all entrance wounds produce back spatter. They said he spent nearly $5,000 at a strip club in the days before the murders. 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. His wife, Kimberly, 34, was in the front passenger seat, slumped over the center console with a single contact gunshot wound under her chin. He then decided to adjust a loose luggage rack on top of the SUV at which time he reportedly said he was shot. (By Zbigniew Bzdak, Chicago Tribune), Investigators collect evidence from the Vaughn It was around midnight when the parents of April Boss went looking for the 19 . Five years later, Chris was convicted of murdering his family and is now serving four life sentences. ', 'They're gone,' Vaughn answers, his head bowed. Christopher Vaughn and his family were driving from Oswego to Knights Action Park in Springfield in 2007, but they never made it. So far, I have not found much Reddit discussion on it. Hall was sentenced to death by electrocution in May 1945 and executed on January 4, 1946. yesmagazine.org. 2007-02-15 Stephen Willott, was e-mail friend who planned to live in Canadian wilderness with Chris Vaughn 08/31/12 "Friend: Christopher Vaughn wanted simple life away from government, people" Public Welcome. DNA testing later invalidated a misinterpretation of blood stain evidence, which the State used to establish probable cause to arrest Chris. A prosecutor said that, if Vaughn had been wearing the jacket when the holes were made near the right front pocket and in the back, he might not be here today.. Clutter also previously suggested that Vaughn had dissociative amnesia. No longer alive, Chris.'. The interpretation of blood stains on Kimberlys lap and upper legs indicate she was leaning over the gun when it was fired, which further supports a suicide. Chris is wounded but survives. Lenard objected to the death scene photos being left on the television screen for long periods of time. If these were self-inflicted injuries, why shoot yourself twice? the ISP CSI asked. Vaughn murdered his family members, prosecutors say, because he saw them as obstacles to his dream of a new life in Canada. 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. Gone was the Capital Litigation Trust Fund, a $20 million statewide fund created as one of the reforms to level the playing field by providing funding for defense experts, investigators, and experienced criminal defense attorneys. Im fully aware it wont make a difference, but it felt like therapy so why not? A federal court has overturned the 1991 conviction and death sentence of Von Lester Taylor, pictured here. Approved by the FDA to treat epilepsy and seizures, Topamax has an off label use for the treatment of migraine headaches. I am in the middle of the 9 part podcast about the Vaughn family murders. blood stains occur not only during the bullet impact or exit (back spatter or forward spatter) but also following blood seepage or dripping from the wounds. SHARE Judge overturns Utah death row inmate Von Lester Taylor's double murder conviction. By The night before the killings, Vaughn also visited a shooting range, according to trial testimony. It was then re-dated to reflect that it was finalized a day after the lead detective gave his factually inaccurate grand jury testimony. On Tuesdays episode of Dr. Phil, "Murder in the Suburbs: Inside the SUV," see a reenactment of the crime scene based on Vaughns claims in a letter he wrote that he says show he didnt murder his family. Before the death penalty went away, I was bringing in an expert to help explain this. ), and the state had ballistic evidence that appears convincing. She set up a total financial package, but when she suggested insuring the lives of his children, Chris declined. Police then used trickery to illicit a confession. . This is the first time I've heard about the Vaughn family. . When he got back inside the car, he saw that his leg was bleeding, so he got out again and proceeded to walk up the road to get help. Vaughn's wife and children were never mentioned in the writings, but there was a reference to one of the exotic dancers. Christopher Vaughn and his family Christopher Vaughn's letter to his parents Murder in Illinois: The crime scene reconstruction: . family's sports utility vehicle June 14, in Channahon, Ill., is Abigayle "Abbi" Vaughn, 12, an accomplished student and athlete who had just begun wearing eye makeup, was slain while clutching a Harry Potter book and a stuffed animal. Interviewed by detectives, the only memory Chris had was that Kimberly wanted him to pull off the highway because she was feeling nauseous, a symptom of her stress-induced migraine headaches. They said, he had to make it look like he didnt do this, so he then got back into the SUV and shot himself in the left wrist and thigh before dropping the gun between Kimberlys feet, unbuckling her seat belt and walking away. By rejecting non-essential cookies, Reddit may still use certain cookies to ensure the proper functionality of our platform. But on the day in June 2007 that his entire family was gunned down in a Ford Expedition, he did have on relatively strange attire. His three children had each been shot twice, and his wife had a single gunshot wound under her chin. He was in pants, tshirt AND long sleeve flannel shirt. Kim was slumped so I tried to buckle her. Created after PI Paul Ciolino obtained a confession that freed Anthony Porter from death row in 1999, the fund was intended to provide resources for proving innocence before trial rather than after conviction. 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 . One of the members suggested he get a gun for serving process. Vaughn is being held in Pinckneyville Correctional Center, records show. I was already put off by the "he looked too nice to be guilty", but the second episode was downright inappropriate. 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. 'They're gone. Much of the trial focused on blood evidence that prosecutors said proved Vaughn murdered his family. Feb. 28, 2023. They also pointed to FDA warnings that drugs Kimberly took Topamax and Nortriptyline could lead to suicide. Like does that make her a bad person? Weiss said he was haunted for a time by what he saw the day of the murders, struggling to sleep or concentrate. The Oswego family was reportedly taking a day trip to a water park in Springfield when Christopher Vaughn left Interstate 55 and drove onto a frontage road when his wife became ill. Meanwhile, the man whose office oversaw the prosecution said Vaughn would go free when hell freezes over.. He told a nurse, You should call my wife. In this case, the seatbelt latch was soaked with Chriss blood. You killed them. She then turned the gun on herself and fired. Cassandra was shot in the middle of her forehead and in her chest. Analysis of the bloodstain patterns on her left hand provides more compelling evidence that her death was indeed, a suicide. I tried to explain it awaymaybe they are really young?maybe they couldn't figure out a better way to begin the podcast?Maybe I have to fold all this laundry and I have nothing else to listen to , so I am just going to let it go? Gov. I really couldnt believe what I was hearing. What the actual?! John List. Lol, Gave up early on as the host seemed to be going seriously Sarah Koenig on Mr Vaughn, Im not going to take anyone seriously if they hit me with the very silly he didnt have a killers eyes crap. And on Tuesday, "Murder in the Suburbs: Inside the SUV," Clutter does a reenactment of the crime scene based on Vaughn's claims in a letter Vaughn wrote that he says show Vaughn didn't murder his family. "Mr. Vaughn likes writing poetry. When he was questioned by detectives in the following days, Vaughn told them conflicting versions of how the shooting happened, Mills said, and video of the various interrogations will be shown to the jury. Each of the murders resulted in a life sentence for 46-year-old Vaughn. The podcast is currently on the second episode and has shown the case from the view of Chris Vaughn's supporters. Homicidal and Suicidal Behavior Induced by Prescription Medications. The Oswego man, now 38, murdered his family in 2007 after pulling their SUV off Interstate 55 onto an isolated frontage road near Channahon on the way to what he said was a surprise trip to a . The tragic incident took place on what should have been an exciting day at a local waterpark for the . lastly, its SO weird that his parents say things like accident they left all the odd terminology regarding the murders struck me as super weird. Each of his childrenBlake, 12, Abigayle, 11, and Cassandra, 8was found in the back passenger seat of the car with two bullet wounds. Key experts were never called to testify. Shortly after Chris Vaughn was discovered limping down a highway with two gunshot wounds in the early morning hours of June 14, 2007, his wife and kids were found in their SUV shot to death. What's so unbelievable about all of this is that Archie actually convinced a group of friends that killing 7 people would bring baby Craig back from the dead! Because this podcast made me want to scream. They noted that he had to have been seated inside the vehicle when his wife was shot and killed, yet he failed to remember his wife and kids being killed. The bullet deflected off the watch and went out the drivers side window evidence that was consistent with the CSIs interpretation. Plans changed when Chris landed a job with Chicago-based Navigant. Be forewarned that some of the. Christopher Vaughn, of Oswego, Illinois, is seen in his police interview declining to even say the names of his murdered three children and wife. Doesnt make him some kind of hero. His blood is on her side of the car. She was one of Susan's three daughters with Del, an attorney. During my investigation, I found a June 2003 American Journal of Forensic Medicine and Pathology article entitled Back-Spatter Patterns: Hands Hold the Clues for the Forensic Reconstruction of the Sequence of Events that showed an illustration of the same orientation of a self-inflicted gunshot wound: Blood spatter is mostly expected on the back of the thumb that is used for pulling the trigger . No Cover, Public Welcome 21+, 35th Annual Arts, Crafts and Food Festival, Mark Skorusa Loan Originator powered by Rocket Mortgage NMLS #2347622, Turano Bread Truck Engulfed In Flames On I-55, Video Of Surrendering Man Killed By Will Co. Sniper Won't Be Released, Taste Of Joliet: Tyler Hubbard, Mitchell Tenpenny For Country Night, Multiple Bomb Threat For Joliet's Hollywood Casino, Angry Gunman Confronts Homeowner On Ingalls: Cops. His defense team argued that Kimberly had killed the children and then herself. After visiting a new doctor who specialized in osteopathic medicine, Kim wrote that her new doctor told her, stopping the migraine medication will also help stop my anxiety . According to a study that used high speed photography to document veterinarians shooting cattle at close range, there were several occasions when no back spatter was observed. But at one point in the tape, a weary and disheveled Vaughn is seen saying: 'I couldnt have done this; she couldnt have done this.'. the Murderpedia project stay alive. She told police he only wanted to talk. She was one of Susans three daughters with Del, an attorney. 'Theyre dead. Family life: Christopher Vaughn, 37, with his wife Kimberly and children (left to right) Cassandra, 11, Blake, eight, and Abigayle, 12. Now, its clearly wrong.. family's sports utility vehicle June 14, in Channahon, Ill., is .In this bonus episode I look at a letter written by Chris Vaughn; a man convicted and sentenced to four consecutive life terms for the murders of his wife, Kimberly, and children, Abigayle, Cassandra, 00:14:34. Season 1 explored a different case. It was a lonely life for Kimberly. In the early morning hours of June 14, 2007, a man in Will County, Illinois, waved down a pick-up truck on a frontage road near I-55. There was no bruising around the margins of the skin. 2007 the Vaughn family- Christopher, his wife Kimberly and their three children . whose wife and three children were found fatally shot in the For the first few months, I had assumed this would be a sentencing case. I can breathe again. Shortly after Chris Vaughn was discovered limping down a highway with two gunshot wounds in the early morning hours of June 14, 2007, his wife and kids were found in their SUV shot to death. The bleeding man told the truck driver that he believed his wife had shot him. Whats become of Christopher Vaughn? I got back in to check the kids. Prosecutors have charged Christopher Vaughn with shooting and killing his wife and their three young children on June 14, 2007, the day he was supposed to be driving them to an Illinois water. They told him that after 911 cell phone towers were equipped with security cameras. He had two survivable gunshot wounds. The massacre. His children, 12-year-old Abigayle . The sentence a foregone conclusion under Illinois law came after Kimberly Vaughn's mother and identical twin sister read statements detailing the devastation the family has suffered, her mother in a matter-of-fact tone and her sister in tears. Convicted of murder after a two-day trial in May 1945, Hall was sentenced to death. 'Abigayle, Blake,' the detective adds. 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 . 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. The program is hosted by Lauren Bright Pacheco who examines the complicated . Ugh, just had to turn it off mid way through episode 2. , Your post contains more evidence than the seven hours of this podcast so far. The letter said Vaughn trusted investigators to get to the truth. However, a DNA report from the ISP crime lab contradicted this theory. Kimberlys doctor began to prescribe a cocktail of medications to relieve her migraine headaches, including the prescription medications Nortriptyline and Topamax. . I love how one of their complaints about the wife was that she wasnt outdoorsy. But there was one email she wrote to her husband on May 24, 2007, three weeks before her death that provides the best supporting evidence that she was experiencing dangerous side effects of her medications. Press question mark to learn the rest of the keyboard shortcuts. The psychiatrist said he was using the present tense when he talked about his wife and children. Caption: WICS. Compared with what I knew about Kimberly, yes, that would be a big change. Richard Kling, another veteran Chicago defense attorney, confirmed he is part of the effort. He pulled the Expedition over, got out under the guise of checking a cargo compartment on the roof of the SUV, grabbed his wife through the open passenger window, stuck a pistol under her chin and blew her brains out, Mills said. seen Friday leaving a funeral home after the visitation in St. According to the prosecution, he reportedly killed his family in order to survive in the Canadian forest. 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. Vaughn got out of the family SUV to look at the luggage rack on the roof. Researchers reopened the Michael Francke Murder in . I may need to up my standards. At one point, Sergeant Gary Lawson asks Vaughn what he thought the person who had killed his family deserved. The next night, Archie and his buddies went out in search of victim number one. The ISP crime scene investigator documented in his report that the bullet that struck Cassandra, seated in the middle between her two siblings, exited through the back of her seat and lodged in the rear cargo seat. I am new to Reddit. In some cases the memory may be restored days later, or not at all, according to the DSM-IV. He brutally murdered them in June 2007 The sergeant tells . This analysis of the crime scene evidence not only disproves the initial police theory that it was Chris who unbuckled the seat belt, but it helps to establish evidence supporting a defense theory that this was a murder-suicide committed by the wife. 'S wife and children out the drivers side window evidence that appears convincing and executed on 4. Topamax and Nortriptyline could lead to suicide took place on what should have been an exciting day a... The morgue, covered with cloth, and then herself person who killed. Of Von Lester Taylor & # x27 ; s double murder conviction, he reportedly he. 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