Hults and his then-fiance babysat Shirley's daughter on the night of the explosion. I did my best. Investigators found that the couple had substantial debt, including $63,000 in credit card debt, and were in bankruptcy proceedings. 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. As stated previously, the investigation and prosecution of this matter has literally taken tens of thousands of hours of effort by numerous individuals. Its about remembering who you are. "I was at one of my part-time jobs when I got a text from my daughter, which was very unusual. Shirley didn't hear anything more about a plot to start a fire that night, and nothing happened. Shirley wasnt a suspect at the time, and the interview was a routine one. The next morning, they went to Bob Leonard's mobile home. [6] Her attorneys argued that she was trapped in an abusive relationship and was coerced by Mark Leonard into participating in the crime. The shirley daughter is an Italian restaurant that takes more than 15 minutes to make you feel at home. On top of his prior criminal convictions, at the time of his arrest, Mark Leonard was being sued civilly by multiple women who accused him of scamming them out of money through online dating sites. Both the prosecution and defense attorneys asked Shirley if she thought Hults was joking. The men were reportedly in the home briefly and hurriedly left. Gary Thompson pleaded guilty to charges of conspiracy to commit arson and received a 30-year sentence, with 10 years suspended. As Mark Leonards defense team would point out repeatedly throughout his trial, there was a chance, however small, that Shirleys cooperation could end with her walking free at the end. INTERACTIVE MAP|Residents relive Richmond Hill explosion, ViewExplosion Damaged Homesin a larger map, Download the new and improved RTV6 app to get the latest news on the go and receive alerts to your phone, Sign up to have the latest news headlines delivered straight to your email inbox, Give Light and the People Will Find Their Own Way, Indianapolis, IN Interactive Weather Radar, Full testimony: Monserrate Shirley takes the stand. They enter into evidence two golf bags with clubs and a driver. Bob Leonard, Monserrate Shirley, Gary Thompson and Glenn Hults also face charges in connection to the explosion. [37] She is serving her sentence at Indiana Women's Prison in Indianapolis. I had to know I could make this case based on the evidence I had.. Prosecutors told Judge Marnocha Tuesday they will likely rest their case next Wednesday or Thursday. Her sister had lived in the same housing complex. But didnt the jury need to hear from the residents? Shirley met Mark Leonard. Shirley recalled a later conversation that she had with Bob and Mark Leonard, after the explosion. The November 2012 blast claimed the lives of John and Jennifer Longworth and spawned an investigation that landed five people behind bars. Once they were alone, Leonard, Holts and Shirley started talking about the fire again while they sat around the pool drinking beer. Start the day smarter Notable deaths in 2023 The world's largest war 2023 meteor showers When the relationship first started, she said, "He was a nice guy. [25] Leonard allegedly asked another inmate at the Marion County jail if he could put him in contact with a hitman, according to the probable cause affidavit. [6] One woman had previously won a $70,000 judgment against Leonard in a civil suit after lending him $53,000, which he never repaid. Taking them at face value, taking them at what they told the court, they believed that since it was going to come up in the trial they should talk about it during jury selection, Robinson said. Hed also been previously accused of insurance fraud in connection with a car accident. Shirley may have been the prosecution's highest profile witness, but that doesn't mean they're done. Monserrate Shirley agreed to testify against Mark Leonard as part of a plea agreement to reduce her potential prison time. While Shirley and the Leonards had been sitting in jail, Robinson and Hollingsworth had been traveling to the ATF lab in Washington D.C. to learn about explosions and taking a crash course on natural gas. On December 21, 2012, Monserrate Shirley, Mark Leonard, and his brother Bob Leonard were charged with 2 counts of felony murder and . Robinson says she didnt expect anything to change. Deputy Prosecutor DeniseRobinson has said she will argue for 50 when the time comes. She went to a bar on the south side of Indianapolis in November 2011 and they immediately noticed each other. He told her one of the reasons she needed to upgrade the policy was he planned to bring in some nicer things and do some work around the house to improve it and they would need the extra coverage to match the upgrades. The defense certainly offered to stipulate that 60 homes were damaged. We knew we were taking a week of testimony from the residents to talk about what had happened to their houses, Robinson said. Made and inspired by a love triangle, this was written by a girl from Italy. The crowd watched in grim silence as a Marion County judge entered not guilty pleas for Monserrate Shirley, her boyfriend Mark Leonard, and his brother, Bob Leonard. He looked over the insurance policy and said she was under-insured so she called the insurance company and doubled her policy from $150,000 to $300,000. Download the RTV6 app to get the latest live blog posts as the proceedings unfold. Did you see her on TV a few days later? "I mean, sometimes I wish I was there and I'd be dead, and now I wouldn't have to be asked so many questions.". Mark Leonard drove her home that night and stayed with her for what the defense characterized as a romantic, sexual night. At one point, after one of the failed attempts to burn the home, Monserrate Shirley said she offered Mark Leonard her 401k instead. Roughly a week afterward, Mark asked Shirley for $500. It was unclear when the complaint was made and whether the utility company was alerted. The Oscars will air on ABC and can be streamed on ABC.com and the ABC app as well as Hulu + Live TV, YouTube TV, AT&T TV or FuboTV. This is an archived article and the information in the article may be outdated. Mr. Monserrate Morales was born on January 7, 1955 in Puerto Rico. 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. Dion and Jennifer Longworth, two occupants in the house at 8355 Fieldfare Way, died in the explosion; seven others were injured. He faces up to life in prison without the possibility of parole if convicted. Of the dozens and dozens of homes damaged by the blast, 33 were affected so severely they had to be demolished. Richmond Hill explosion: 'It's the toughest thing I've ever done in my career', Richmond Hill explosion: 7 keys that solved the case, Your California Privacy Rights/Privacy Policy. Except her cat, the clothes on her back and a teddy bear she got when she was 1. The blast the product of an insurance fraud scheme killed two people and injured dozens of others. He was sentenced to 3 years in prison. ", Minch: "You testified that you only used a babysitter maybe once a month, because your lifestyle with Ms. Shirley wasn't such that you went out every weekend?" Critics have accused Shirley of faking her reaction after the explosion because she seemed upset but never shed a tear. I didnt want to do anything that would cause that trial date to be continued.. [6] Mark Leonard was the first to go on trial. At one point you replaced the thermostat." A prosecuting attorney showed her a photo of the house that exploded and asked her who lived on either side of her. Leonard then tried to get Thompson to talk about what he did at Holts' home, but he refused, saying they shouldn't talk about it. She took care of all three. "[6] The witness also told investigators that Leonard talked about buying a Ferrari with the insurance money from the house. arranged for her daughter to stay . No one deserved what happened. She talked about being Catholic and said it was in God's hands, but still, they should be punished.". Although prosecutors didnt need their blessing to go ahead with the plea, Robinson said they felt it was important to tell the residents as much as they could. And it wasn't the answer we were looking for. Another woman reported that she had loaned him about $5,000 for a construction job, which he had yet to pay back. He says the log lighter worked fine when he lived there. When she told him there was around $10,000-12,000 in it, he said that wasn't enough. Lisa Marie Presley's daughter Riley Keough wears a Graceland sweater as she . [34][35], Monserrate Shirley pled guilty to conspiracy to commit arson. She then got food for them both and went back to the room around midnight. (WISH) Monserrate Shirley told jurors Wednesday she would do anything for Mark Leonard, because she was in love with him. Monserrate and John had the home in Richmond Hill built in 2003. I tried to ignore Mark Leonards history as much as I could, Robinson said. I told them I dont even want to be a part of this, Shirley testified as telling the Leonards. But she put an end to that in August 2011.". They went home together that night and he moved in the first week of December. 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.. They claim that Leonard wanted the hit man to force the witness to call 9-1-1 and recant his statement before killing him. They then worked to establish a pattern of poor decisions in her personal life and changing stories throughout the investigation. Prosecutors ended by asking Shirley if the Longworths or any of her other neighbors deserved what happened. In court Wednesday, she said he turned on the gas, but never lit the fire. The Richmond Hill neighbors had been waiting long enough without a trial. Its quite obvious that monserrate is the source of the name in this case. I know it caught us by surprise and we had to react to it.. Monserrate Shirley and her boyfriend, Mark Leonard, who lived in the home, along with Leonard's brother, Robert Leonard, were arrested Friday on 48 charges, including murder and arson. ", Minch: "You've had problems over the years with the furnace and the water heater. At least three of his possessions did survive, however: two golf bags, with clubs, and a driver he'd been gifted. [39] Glenn Hults received a three-year sentence.[40]. John Duncan was the one to call, saying something horrible had happened on her street and he wanted to make sure she and her daughterwere okay. [36] Shirley was sentenced to 50 years in prison, the maximum possible under her plea agreement, on December 20, 2016. All I can say is, I had one small role in this. Mark Leonard was convicted in 2015 of two counts of murder as well as a litany of other charges, including multiple counts of arson and conspiracy to commit arson. To see the faces of the neighborhood people and the sense of relief and calmness when the verdicts came in was a good thing, Garza said. This time, Leonard worked with Thompson instead of Thompson doing the work while Leonard stood next to him, watching and planning. It was a restaurant that had the name of a famous Italian poet who died young, but the restaurant only lasted for a year. But the plan went horribly awry when a vast amount of natural gas had built up in the home before something set inside a microwave oven ignited the blaze. She wanted to put it on her plate. He was going to bring Thompson to their house so she could say she was okay to move forward, too. Shirley said she has a condition with her tear ducts that makes her unable to produce tears, so people dont think Im crying for real.. It started as a bad headache, but quickly grew until he was hospitalized with an autoimmune disease serious enough he would need a blood transfusion. Robinson could not tell them, for example, that Shirley would be facing a sentencing range of 20-50 years in prison. "No one.". ", When asked if the attacks on Shirley's credibility would damage the State's case, Deputy Prosecutor Denise Robinson said, "If you think about anybody who gives a number of statements, and you think about inconsistencies when you're asked questions and you have to answer the questions that you're asked [no more, no less]. She still qualifies as a practicing nurse. She moved to the United States when she was 25. Attorneys walked Shirley through a number of conversations she had with Mark Leonard from the time they met until the house exploded. [6] Investigators said personal insurance on the home had recently been increased to $300,000. The family, he said, will never truly get closure. In her sentencing order, Judge Sheila Carlisle repeatedly stressed that Shirley could have stopped the plan at any time but didnt. [6] They had arranged for Shirley's 12-year-old daughter to stay with friends and had boarded their cat, Snowball, for the weekend. SOUTH BEND, Ind. Mark Leonard is on trial in South Bend in connection to the explosion in the Richmond Hill neighborhood that killed Jennifer and Dion Longworth in November 2012. Its a game that only you can play. She transferred from her job in Michigan to the VA hospital in Indianapolis, where she worked for 17 years, focusing in the ICU. Mark then asked Bob twice to "go get the part that we need." While Shirley said he lost a lot, he pointed out the toll was much greater on his then-13-year-old daughter Brook. Its been around since the late 80s, but Im sure well find more of it on our own site. To begin the day, Monserrate Shirley explained how she and Mark Leonard met. I look at a neighbor that I would have been happy to help if she would have just come across the street and said, man I got a problem will you give me a hand? Monserrate "Moncy" Shirley, a nurse, owned the home at the center of the explosion. After the second failed attempt to burn the home, Monserrate Shirley said she went to the home of Glenn Hults to pick up her daughter. Their first trip together was to the Hollywood Casino roughly 3-4 months after they first met. Holts invited Leonard and Shirley to his friend's house for a pool party in the Geist neighborhood. Shirley: "I moved out in February of 2011. She was too involved. On the day of the explosion, another neighbor saw a white van pull into the driveway of Shirley's residence between 2:00 and 3:00p.m. The problem was that none of that criminal history would be admissible at trial. Monserrate Shirley is lead into her sentencing hearing in December 2016. 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. Its because the game of death is the game of life itself. monserrate is a real-life cousin of Shirley, and its said that her daughter monserrate will be taking us on when we die. [7] Shirley told the police she never smelled any natural gas, but that her daughter had thought she did recently. Her role in the plan and execution of this act protected her own child and the family pet, but failed to consider the obvious danger it presented to anyone else. They went to the casino and waited for the call that a fire had broken out, but again, the call never came. Many Git commands accept both tag and branch names, so creating this branch may cause unexpected behavior. They started looking around the house at potential ways to start the fire. It ended in the deaths of Dion and Jennifer Longworth. Jordan Fischer is the senior digital reporter for RTV6. But after a second round of boarding Snowball the cat, getting a babysitter for Shirleys daughter and setting hotel reservations, the house again was standing. 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. Prosecutors alleged that the natural gas explosion was intentionally set to collect insurance money. The sentence accounts for time served and good. Shirley says he replaced the thermostat "so there were more options to heat the house during the day.". You can't do anything," he said. You were a neighbor and you were a friend, Carlisle said. The brothers were sentenced to terms of life without parole for spearheading the conspiracy. She now faces 20-50 years, though a judge has the right to suspend some, or all of that time. Made and inspired by a love triangle, this was written by a girl from Italy. They decided to cut a piece of cardboard to block off the chimney path. After her 12 hour shift, she planned to see her daughter at the Holts' house and change there. The inmate and Leonard drew up a contract agreeing that Leonard would pay the inmate $15,000 when he was released, the affidavit said. The two divorced on July 25, 2011. 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. So there wasnt a great deal of pressure on us, or desire by us, to offer her anything.. A class C felony carries 2-8 years. Thats time served, and hes out. If that timeline holds, final jury instructions would be given Monday, July 13 then deliberation would begin. He never gave her money like that again, but did play with his own money, spending anywhere from $2,000 - 10,000 each trip. "That cannot be real. Thompson arrived on Monday or Tuesday, October 22-23, while Shirley's daughter was at school. Ms. Shirley, 47, and Mark Leonard, 43, her boyfriend, were 100 miles away at a casino when their home blew up. The name comes from a restaurant that is on the run called theserie rossa which translates to the run of the wits. Below, former IMPD Det. [3][4] Damage to homes in the neighborhood was estimated at $4 million. Glenn Hults, the final defendant to stand trial for the explosion, pleaded guilty to a lesser charge last month that may result in no additional jail time. Indiana sheriffs deputy dies after falling ill during training, Myles Colvin captivates Heritage Christian crowds, preps for Purdue. Follow us on Twitter at @AOLRealEstate, or connect with AOL Real Estate on Facebook and Pinterest. Including journalists, it was closer to four dozen. "Two innocent people died because of this!" . Shirley and Leonard had gone on television on multiple occasions following the blast to state their innocence, and to ask for privacy. 2023 CIRCLE CITY BROADCASTING I, LLC. Leonard got sick in March 2012. 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. She later found out her neighbors didnt make it. In addition to his roofing business, Mastercraft, Leonard also flipped cars on the side. Denise Robinson, the Marion County Prosecutor on the case, told the court she rarely asks for the maximum sentence. John did all the maintenance on the home - she never did any. Bob Leonard's son told investigators that several items were in the van that had been taken from the home, including photos and financial documents. The human toll is harder to estimate. Shirley told her daughternot to come back to the house for any reason, though she didn't explain why not. They are charged with. We interviewed our tech expert, Jaime Vazquez, to learn more about accessible smart home devices. 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. At about 11:10p.m., on November 10, 2012, a large explosion occurred in Richmond Hill, a subdivision on the southeast side of Indianapolis. -- 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. Leonard died around 9:15. So in the end there were a couple of people who were opposed to it, and I respected that. Shirley says he and Monserrate married on July 17, 1993. Robert Leonard, who was convicted of murder and multiple felonies, was sentenced to life without parole. "I mean, I'm totally devastated like my neighbors are.". 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. But these were good defense attorneys. 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. She would then go to a southside bar to meet Mark before they left for the casino. Will they get to the felony murder?. The case was expected to be the largest and most expensive trial in Marion County history. At 11:11 p.m. on Nov. 10, 2012, a two-story home on the south side of Indianapolis exploded with the force of as much as 5 tons of TNT. She was able to take that to the prosecutor and get a protective order against me. BREAKING: By a vote of 24-38, New York's State Senate has voted against same-sex marriage legislation. John Shirley, her ex-husband, who owns the home with her, told The Associated Press that he believed the home's faulty furnace could have led to the explosion. Prosecutors alleged that the men conspired to submit an insurance claim for a stolen motorcycle. When we got in this case, we were asked to save her life, said defense attorney James Voyles. That hit man was later revealed to be an agent with the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. There's little remaining of Shirley's home (pictured at left) after Saturday's explosion. Would you describe her demeanor the same way?" FULL STORY | Mark Leonards friend says he knew too much. Wednesday in court, Shirley said that at the July 4th pool party, she called lighting the house on fire crazy. Once the trial began, rather than trying to claim their client was innocent, Black and Shircliff instead told the jury up front that he was guilty but of trying to start a small fire, not cause an explosion. But I dont feel bad for the deceased.. Shirley gave 12 interviews and statements between the explosion and Wednesday's testimony - some for law enforcement, others for attorneys and one for the media - and defense attorneys pointed out inconsistencies between some of those. On the night of the explosion, Shirley said he was working a second job in Fishers. I didnt give it any credibility. And I understand it, because of their feelings about her. It would have shortened the trial a week. When testimony moved to the night of the explosion that killed Jennifer and Dion Longworth, Monserrate Shirley had a difficult time staying composed. Follow his reporting on Twitter at @Jordan_RTV6 or on Facebook. She and her boyfriend, Mark Leonard, who also lived at the residence, told authorities they had left Friday night for a weekend at Hollywood Casino in Lawrenceburg, Indiana. Call IndyStar reporter Holly Hays at (317) 444-6156. Neighbors, family testify in sentencing hearing of Monserrate Shirley, owner of the home. [14] In April 2015, a fifth man, Glenn Hults, was charged with conspiracy to commit arson. Prosecutors ask if Shirley was asked by police to identify personal property following the explosion. You were a mom. 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. I worked from the smaller charges to the larger ones to say, Of course its clear he did this, this and this, but heres how you get to here, Robinson said. Leonard died around 9:15 a.m. Tuesday at an Indianapolis hospital,according to an Indiana Department of Correction spokesman. Please look at the time stamp on the story to see when it was last updated. The stove was electric. The topic came up again around July 4. Once again, she agreed to make the same three arrangements: the casino reservation, a babysitter for her daughterand boarding for Snowball. She said they should be punished, Carter testified. The explosion leveled 8349 Fieldfare Way, the home at the center of the explosion, and severely damaged a number of other residences, including several (on either side) which were damaged by the ensuing fire. A second home was reduced to rubble as well, and other houses were half-collapsed. I have morals.I love my patients and I would do anything for them. The Richmond Hill explosion took place on November 10, 2012, in the Richmond Hill subdivision in Indianapolis, Indiana, United States. So you do get concerned about, will they see the arsons? She will be 72 years old. Everything's under control.". They'd soon get a new roommate. (They were) my neighbors for a very long time since we built the house, Shirley said. He was sentenced to two life sentences without parole, as well as 70 years from other charges, on March 18, 2016. I want everyone to know how sorry I am for this horrible tragedy, she said in court in front of Richmond Hill residents. While still at the hotel, Mark asked her to call a heating & cooling company on Sunday, November 4, to see what they would charge to check on the heat because the house was too cold. While there had been some communications early on, we were not willing to offer Monserrate Shirley a significant deal for her cooperation, Robinson said. He also told Bob to go get Gary Thompson. The explosion in the subdivision just south of the city on Saturday, Nov. 10, killed John and Jennifer Longworth. Monserrate Shirley, the Indianapolis homeowner whose house is suspected of being the source of a deadly explosion that damaged nearly 80 homes in her subdivision, was inconsolable Tuesday as. She later worked at St. Francis and Community South. "Shortly thereafter I moved some furniture into the apartment. Ultimately, she could end up serving 21 years if she maintains good behavior in prison. Robinson knew that. [2] Over sixty firefighters responded to the blaze. And the water heater." Yes, I didnt think it would be possible, Monserrate Shirley said.HUGE EXPLOSION. The meeting was difficult for me because I couldnt ethically tell them everything, Robinson said.
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