True Crime News Roundup: Iowa Teenagers Allegedly Killed Spanish Teacher Over Bad Grades
Plus: Gabby Petito’s parents file lawsuit against Utah police; Handyman admits to killing New York mom; Massachusetts ‘Lady of the Dunes’ identified; Long-haul trucker accused of murdering girlfriend.
Associated Press
According to documents filed on Nov. 1, Jeremy Goodale and Willard Miller, both 17, killed their 66-year-old Spanish teacher because they were upset over receiving bad grades. They have both been charged with first-degree murder in connection with the 2021 death of Nohema Graber, their former Spanish teacher at Fairfield High School in Iowa. Prosecutors have alleged the two students stalked the teacher and learned her daily routines, and then ambushed Graber on her daily walk. They allegedly beat her to death with a baseball bat. She was reported missing on Nov. 2, 2021, and her body was found the next day hidden under a tarp. Goodale's trial will begin on Dec. 5, and Miller's trial is scheduled for March 20.
Read more on People.
Gabby Petito’s parents file suit against Moab Police
On Nov. 3, the parents of Gabby Petito filed a $50 million wrongful death lawsuit against the Moab City Police Department alleging they could’ve done more to save her life. The lawsuit claims the officers were negligent in their interactions with the 22-year-old and her fiancé Brian Laundrie during an investigation into a domestic disturbance in August – just weeks before Laundrie killed her. In a news conference on Nov. 3, Joseph Petito, her father, and Nicole Schmidt, her mother, said they filed the suit to ensure that police make these changes to help other abuse victims.
Read more on CNN.
Handyman admits to killing New York mom, stuffing her in a duffel bag
On Nov 22, David Bonola, 44, pleaded guilty and admitted to the murder of 51-year-old mom of two, Orsolya Gaal. According to Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz, a judge agreed to sentence Bonola to 25 years behind bars for the brutal slaying in exchange for his guilty plea. Bonola and Gaal were allegedly having an affair and on April 16, they apparently got into an argument before Bonola slashed Gaal's throat, and stabbed her upwards of 50 times before dismembering her body and stuffing it into one of her son's hockey duffels. Her body was found the next morning in a park in the Forest Hills neighborhood of Queens, New York. There was a trail of blood from the crime scene to the victim's home.
Read more on People.
The 'Lady of the Dunes' has been identified after nearly 50 years
In July 1974, a girl out for a walk on the beach in Provincetown, Massachusetts came across the body of a woman in the dunes. She was naked on a blanket with her hands severed and she was nearly decapitated. Authorities believe she was killed several weeks before her body was found. The body went unidentified until November 2022, when authorities announced that DNA analysis in combination with genealogy research and historical records were able to determine that the body belonged to 37-year-old Ruth Marie Terry. Now, police are looking for information on Terry’s husband, the late Guy Rockwell Muldavin.
Read more on AP News.
Long-haul trucker accused of murdering his girlfriend in Georgia
On Oct. 8, the body of 46-year-old Massachusetts woman Jessica Goodrich was found in the woods near Roadie's Chevron Truck Stop in Woodbine, Georgia. Her boyfriend, long-haul trucker Jason Michael Palmer, 47, has been arrested while driving through Indiana. He is slated to be extradited to Camden County, Georgia, and will face charges of murder, felony murder, aggravated assault and concealing a body. After her death, he reportedly called Goodrich’s sister and son, saying she’d be home soon. He is being held without bond until he can be extradited to Georgia.
Read more on People.
