It was actually Mike Williams' mom, Cheryl, who appealed to the judge for a maximum sentence. [12], The state's star witness was Brian Winchester, who testified at length about how he and Denise had never really ended their high school relationship, even after they both married others. The lake is a large reservoir approximately 50mi (80km) west-northwest of Tallahassee located in the southwest corner of Georgia along its border with Florida, where three other streams merge to form the Apalachicola River. (Featured Image Credit: Alicia Devine / Tallahassee Democrat via AP), #DeniseWilliams Judge formally sentences Williams to life in prison for the murder of her husband. Bruce Cleland Murder: Where Are Rebecca Cleland, Alvaro Quezada and Jose Quezada Now? He said later he never was and was merely trying to comfort her; FDLE said his involvement was limited to asking his superiors if the agency could help with the search; it did not see a need to formally investigate his role. "I get criticized a lot for not admitting that Mike's dead," she told the Tallahassee Democrat in 2007. The following year his father died. [10], Brian told her that he was planning to kill himself with the gun. It was sent to a state forensics laboratory for DNA testing: the results have not been reported. [3], The cove is locally believed to have been an orchard before the Chattahoochee and Flint rivers and Spring Creek were dammed to create the lake. "Further," the statement said, "it was the wishes of Jerry 'Mike' Williams'smother and brother that his heir be 'taken care of.'". Mike and Denise's daughter, who was 18 months when the murder happened, spoke in court and asked for leniency for her mother At the time of the trial investigators said Denise's motives were to get out of the marriage and collect nearly $2million from life insurance. Denise Williams stands trial in Leon County, Florida for the December 16, 2000 murder of her husband, who went by Mike. She now attends Florida State University and she also competes in pageants. Regina Krieger Murder: Where Are Gilberto Rodriguez and Cody Thompson Now? The court upheld Williams . In December 2017, Brian was sentenced to 20 years in prison for Denises kidnapping, but the whole incident led to the focus to be on their relationship and their potential connection to Mikes sudden disappearance and death. The case broke open in 2016 when Denise Williams' then husbandBrian Winchesterwas arrested for kidnapping her. Meanwhile, Winchester is serving a 20-year prison sentence for kidnapping Williams-Winchester at gunpoint in 2016. They found his 1994 Ford Bronco near a remote boat launch in Jackson County, on the Florida side. [13], According to Denise Williams, on the morning of December 16, 2000, a Saturday, her husband awoke early, leaving the house on Centennial Oaks Circle[2] well before dawn, boat in tow, to go duck hunting at Lake Seminole. Cadaver dogs were brought to the area and sniffed it out, but found nothing. Carrie Cox, the psychic and profiler who had identified a possible burial site at which no body was found, published Alligator Alibi, a lengthy book with documents from the investigation, Cheryl Williams's notes, and her own commentary. [6], She believed her son might still be alive. The accessory charge suggested that sometime between August 2014 and the day Winchester was sentenced, Denise had allegedly helped Winchester avoid prosecution or arrest for the crime. Listen to Brian Winchesters account of what happened the day that he killed Mike Williams. Jerry Michael Williams was known as Michael or Mike. In 1994, the couple tied the knot in a beautiful ceremony in front of their friends and family in Florida and started a life together in its capital state Tallahassee. [22], No mention was made of the Williams case at Brian Winchester's sentencing, although State Attorney Jack Campbell told the media that he hoped the case against Winchester would help authorities solve that disappearance. Her ex-husband and Mike Williams' best friend, Brian Winchester, was also charged, although he was already in prison at the time. Denise married husband Lincoln Townley in 2013 and was previously married to actor Tim Healy between from 1988 until 2012. According to Distractify, the grown-up Anslee competed in Miss Florida USA, seeking to win the title of Miss USA. [15], "The circumstances surrounding this case raise many serious and troubling questions," said DIF's lead attorney, Mark Schlein. What is the current location of Anslee Williams? The chilling disappearance and murder of Jerry Michael Williams, or Mike as he preferred to go by, has been covered by CBSs 48 Hours. And with it, we have gotten to know a lot more information about the parties that were involved and how they got away with being criminals for almost two decades. The following year his father died. For the next several years, she investigated on her own when not operating a day care at her home. On this Wikipedia the language links are at the top of the page across from the article title. [21] Later it was reported that he had reached an agreement with prosecutors before the sentencing that they would neither seek a life sentence on the kidnapping charge nor introduce certain evidence at the hearing. Denise Williams collected $1.75 million from her husband's three life insurance policies after she had him declared dead six months after he supposedly vanished in December 2000 during a. Mike Williams disappeared in December 2000 while on a duck hunting trip on Lake Seminole with his friend Brian Winchester. She did not comply until he showed her a gun. [3], Two days before his disappearance, Mike and Denise told his mother, as well as his brother Nick, that they were planning to have another child soon. [2] In 1999, Williams's only child, a daughter, was born. Creator of Brooke's Butterfly Bash LLC . [12], In February 2019, Denise was sentenced to life in prison. [6], In 2008, the Florida Department of Financial Services's Division of Insurance Fraud (DIF), in conjunction with FDLE, began investigating the case from that angle. He offered these details and led investigators to Williams' remains in exchange for immunity in his case. [11], Two FDLE officers went to Cheryl Williams's house immediately following the indictment to inform her. Denises initial plan was that while she stays at home with her daughter, Brian was going to push Mike from the boat and into the lake to make his death look like a drowning accident when they go on a duck hunting trip together. [11], The three-page indictment was released two days later. Both of the couples remained close friends even after they tied the knot in 1994 and started a family. life prison sentence for the murder of her husband, Your California Privacy Rights/Privacy Policy. But instead, he managed to get to a tree stump, so Winchester fired a single shotgun blast to the face. During the search period, daytime temperatures averaged around 55F (13C), with overnight lows below freezing. She held her stepfather responsible for her fathers death and her mothers unhappy marriage. Philips had told her early on in the search that Michael had probably been eaten by alligators, so she had assumed he had been involved in the investigation at that point. [29], Five months later, Mike and Denise's daughter Anslee was awarded all assets of her late father's estate and insurance monies due to Denise, after her mother signed them over to her to avoid prosecution on three counts of insurance fraud. After years of pressure from Williams's mother, Cheryl, the case was reopened in 2004 by the FDLE. Instead of building a house, the parents saved their money so both boys, who helped by working nights at supermarkets, could attend North Florida Christian High School. According to Dateline in 2018, Anslee Williams is still residing in Florida because her family is from the state. [3] It does not normally have jurisdiction in missing-persons cases and cannot get involved in investigations purely on the basis of a citizen's request, although it can offer assistance to local agencies, as it did in this case. QAnon dad who 'spear-gunned his kids fearing they had serpent DNA' could face the death penalty, Cops raid Florida 'drug house' and find enough fentanyl to kill 481k people inside after comic Kate Quigley's overdose. Brian had cracked and told them the truth, but, it was in exchange for complete immunity. Anslee, an optimistic teen who saw a bright future in pageantry, recently severed her links to public appearances. She was outraged. It turned out to be Brian. She ran advertisements in local newspapers, and put up billboards seeking information. A FLORIDA woman found guilty of plotting her husband's murder with her then-lover decades ago has been re-sentenced. Contact News Director Jennifer Portman at jportman@tallahassee.com. Denise Williams herself took the stand as well. Denise Huxtable Kendall is a fictional character who appears on the American sitcom The Cosby Show (1984-1992), portrayed by actress Lisa Bonet.Denise also stars in the first season of its spin-off sitcom, A Different World (1987). [17], Starting on New Year's Day in 2012, Cheryl began writing one letter a day to Governor Rick Scott, asking him to either have another agency besides FDLE investigate or appoint a special prosecutor to do so. According to an audio clip that The Post was able to obtain, Winchester is heard telling investigators, In my view, I had it pretty good. This line of reasoning is problematic. Holly Leopardi , partner of Scott Williams, lights a candle for Scott's mother Denise Williams during a vigil for him on June 16, 2020 in. [3] She followed the story through Denise's conviction, making a point of keeping the poster for the case on her cubicle wall. She not only killed my son, she stole my granddaughter, she said. However, Winchester didn't follow through with killing his ex-wife, Kathy. They claim Denise issued an ultimatum: Stop pushing for an investigation into his disappearance or never see Williams' daughter Anslee again. [3], The FDLE closed its case, convinced that the alligator theory was wrong, but without any leads or evidence that could allow it to further investigate. Mike went missing while on a duck hunting trip in Lake Seminole with his best friend Brian. [10], He took her phone away and began yelling directions at her. On Nov. 14, Williams' family and a coalition of birth justice activists will hold their fourth rally for Denise outside Queens Hospital Center. She spoke in court, asking leniency for her mother, Denise, and insisted that it was her step-father, Brian, and not Denise who plotted the December 2000 murder of her father. Denise Williams, 49, was sentenced to life in prison in Florida on Wednesday . After the trial, Williams-Winchester was sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole. Denise Williams, 48, was convicted in December for the murder of her husband, Mike Williams, 18 years after the young father disappeared while on a fishing trip in 2000. What Is Anslee Williams Net Worth After Receiving The Assets? His office kept the case open, and had some persons of interest, although he did not identify them. To this day, she is behind bars, and, as in Florida life means life, she will spend the rest of her days there. "I don't find that [Williams] was a relatively minor participant" Carroll said. [10], Denise told Leon County Sheriff's Office investigators that, on August 5, the day when the appraisal had to be filed with the court, she left her home to drive to her job at Florida State University. All Rights Reserved. As part of that order, he was to provide an appraisal of the couple's house, due early in August 2016. Midway through the year, the couple bought a $1 million life insurance policy on him through Brian Winchester,[6] a childhood acquaintance of Merrell who had also become best friends with her husband. In 2001, she said, they were planning to go on a cruise in Hawaii that spring; later in the year he expected to travel to Jamaica for work as well. Williams has been married three times and has four sons. He grew up in Bradfordville[6] (north of Tallahassee), the son of a Greyhound bus driver[3] and a day care provider who raised him and his older brother Nick in a double-wide trailer. "There was nothing there that we had from the scene that suggested foul play at all." The 51-year-old's 2018 first-degree murder conviction was dropped last November by an appeals court, according to the Tallahassee Democrat. Anslee is said to have a strained connection with her grandmother, Cheryl, and her family following her mothers conviction and punishment. Audio of Brian Winchester's interview with the FDLE was played in court. During the hearing Thursday, Denise Williams' sister, daughter and friend testified asking for the minimum sentence of 21 months. [15], However, Brian Jones, an expert in insurance law at Florida State University, told the Democrat that any fraud case would have to rest on more than just those facts already known to have aroused investigative interest. If I had not done what I did for 17 years, Mikes disappearance never would have been solved. "These waders, we don't know where they came from," Austin said. According to what Shiflett shared with The Post, If he believed somebody was picking on you, he would speak up for you. Its possible for things to go wrong on the school bus, but he didnt let it bother him. No other details were provided. Denise was arrested for the murder of Jerry Michael Williams in May 2018 and was charged with first-degree murder, conspiracy to commit murder and accessory after the fact. Her arrest Tuesday coincided with their daughter's birthday. Her fate, in which she could have been. Winchestertestified against Denise, whom he later married and divorced, in exchange for immunity from prosecution for the murder. What happened to Mike Williams and Denise Williams-Winchester's daughter? [11], Denise's attorney declined to comment at that time, saying he had not had time to review the case. Prosecutors countered that Winchester's actions that day indicated he planned a murder-suicide that was only averted by Denise's quick thinking, and asked the court for the 45-year maximum. "The mere fact that they can't locate the body isn't necessarily something the insurance industry would care about," he said. Searchers thus assumed that Williams had hit a stump with his boat, fallen out, sunk into waters 812 feet (2.43.7m) deep when his waders filled, and then drowned when he was unable to extricate himself. The order of no restitutionwas approved and the fraud charges formally dropped at a Tuesday morning courthearing. Heres all that we know. Early searchers had reported seeing many of them, and some of the officials were willing to accept the possibility. When the boat was recovered, its engine was off, yet the gas tank was full. After Jackson County sheriff's investigator, Wester, asked the federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms (ATF) to look for it, agents visited Denise and Brian Winchester, now married, in their house (the same one she had lived in with Michael), to interview them. A chromosomal disorder "has caused a lot of developmental delays for her," explains Richards . Meanwhile, more information about her life is now unavailable. Williams' death was ruled a homicide. Despite her promise to him not to tell police about the incident, she drove straight to them afterwards. "It's a burden lifted," she said. On the anniversary of Williams's disappearance that year, the Winchesters made one of their few public statements on the case: "For seven years we have prayed and hoped to find out with certainty what happened to Mike," Brian said in an email to the Democrat, and "Nobody wants Mike found more than we do." "[We're] at a brick wall pounding our heads against it," said Austin. "Then after a couple, three days and after the weeks went on, those first things looked even more out of place. Two DNA tests matched the remains to his mother's sample. Nevertheless, a week later, a Leon County judge granted Denise Williams's petition to have Mike declared legally dead on the basis of those recovered items and an assumption that alligators and other water life had consumed the body in its entirety. Mike and Denises daughter also spoke in court and asked for leniency for her mother, insisting it was Brian and not Denise who plotted the December 2000 fatal shooting. Before we get into the meat of uncovering whatever happened to Deniece Williams, we will take a short look at her life and career. Denise distanced herself from Mike's family, cutting off communication between them and her daughter, according to those close to the Williamses. Published June 9, 2021 at 1:39 PM EDT. Throughout their time in high school, both of them participated in a variety of extracurricular activities. Family members of murder victim Jerry "Mike" Williams repeated a startling allegation against his widow Denise Williams on Wednesday. "Truth is Williams could have stopped this". [3], A possible new lead emerged in October 2007, when Michael Williams's older brother found a photograph and the serial number of a .22-caliber Ruger pistol that had once belonged to their father. Way said his client would appeal the conviction. Out on the water, he had gotten Mike to put the waders on, then pushed him out of the boat, thinking he would be unable to resurface and thus would drown. After waders and a jacket containing Williams's hunting license were found in the lake six months later, he was declared legally dead, following a court petition by his widow, Denise. Denise Williams has been resentenced to 30 years in prison for a conspiracy conviction in her husbands death. [28], Prosecutors also played a taped phone conversation in which Kathy Thomas, who was working with police at the time, had told Denise she knew the truth about the crime. That allowed her to claim Mike's insurance policies worth $1.75 million. "They botched it." Anslees condition is that she cant use any of the money or assets she received to help pay her mothers legal bills or other costs related to the murder case or any pending appeals. [27], On the day Mike disappeared, Winchester said, he had enticed him to Lake Seminole. Some investigators felt aspects of the case were not consistent with the alligator theory. Denise met Mike back in North Florida Christian High School when they were both just teenagers. In May 2018, Denise Williams was arrested and charged with first-degree murder, conspiracy to commit murder, and accessory. "If you will make Denise serve every minute of her 30 year sentence for conspiracy to commit murder then and only then will I believe justice has been done for my son," Brian's mother Cheryl Williams said in court during the re-sentencing. In 1988, Mike and Denise graduated from high school alongside their classmates Brian Winchester and Kathy Aldridge, who would later become Brians wife. [23], On May 8, 2018, Denise Williams was arrested at Florida State University as she left work to celebrate her daughter's 19th birthday, minutes after a grand jury had indicted her on charges of first-degree murder, conspiracy to commit first-degree murder, and accessory after the fact. She said later that he claimed this was necessary since she was not taking his calls and was blocking his text messages. Still, he decided to follow Williams-Winchester's new plan to get rid of Mike Williams by the lake. Denise and Brian were having an affair, and they planned to murder each others husbands so that they could be together. Denise Eger, Jewel Thais-Williams, Maxine Waters, Irwin Rappaport, Phill Wilson, Sharon Stone and Jeanne White-Ginder are seen at the AIDS Monument. I was married to a wonderful woman, I was raising a child, and I was also seeing Denise in the meantime. All rights reserved. One of the policies, for $1 million, was written less than a year before he went missing by his best friend, Brian Winchester, who 17 years later confessed to killing Mike during the hunting trip after conspiring with Denise so they could be together. After he married Merrell in 1994, he would often go home for dinner and return to work after she (and later, his daughter as well) went to bed, and he sometimes went into work after going duck hunting in the morning. His coworkers said he was as devoted to her as he was to his work. But things took a horrifying turn - nine . Just before Mother's Day in 1999, Denise gave birth to the couple's daughter. Denise Williams herself took the stand as well. "[3], Doubts that Williams had drowned became much more serious when investigators learned that, in fact, alligators do not generally feed during the winter months due to the colder temperatures. [4], After Denise Williams was arrested, the FDLE disclosed that they had received information on where the body was in early October 2017. 2023 Cinemaholic Inc. All rights reserved. They formed a connection, a relationship, and fell in love hard and fast. In December, a jury found Denise guilty of all three charges, including conspiracy to commit murder, first-degree murder, and accessory after the fact. Want to get an all access pass to the latest tallahassee.com news, analysis, commentary, photos and video?Become a digital subscriber to support our investigative journalism. Anslees family has been ripped apart since her mother and stepfather were sentenced to life in prison for killing Mike in 2000. [16], Ten days into the search, a camouflage-patterned hunting hat was found, but it could not be connected to Williams. Winchester is serving a20 year prison term. Prosecutors dropped the charges and agreed to not seek financial penalties as part of a settlement agreement blessed by Mike Williams' mother and brother, which shiftedall of Denise Williams' assets to the couple's daughter, Anslee Williams. [12] In 2020, a Florida appellate court overturned her murder conviction but upheld her murder conspiracy conviction, for which she will serve 30 years. Update, February 7, 2019: Denise Williams was sentenced to life in prison for her husband's murder. Denise's estranged husband, Winchester, was serving his sentence at Wakulla Correctional Institution near Tallahassee; his attorney said his client would take the stand at trial if legally compelled to do so. "I would say this is a suspicious missing person. I just did what God put on my heart to do.". This sentencing hearing came after the First District Court of Appeals decided in Nov. 2020 to overturn her murder conviction in the case. I will honor Mikes memory by fulfilling my purpose.. [9] In 2016, Winchester was arrested on charges stemming from an incident where he allegedly kidnapped Denise, the missing man's widow, who was now divorcing him;[10] he was sentenced to 20 years in prison on the day before the FDLE announced that Williams's body had been found. Anslee, who is now 20 years old, was rewarded all the insurance money. Both agreed to get rid of their spouses so that they could be together and collect the insurance money. Brian and Denises marriage was plagued with poison and physical assault, according to Anslee. As part of the deal, Anslee may not use any of the money on her mother's legal fees; if she did, she would owe the state a US$150,000 penalty. After rejecting plans for a murder at Mike's office meant to look like a robbery, Winchester hit on the idea of an apparent hunting accident after he saved Mike from quicksand when the two were hunting in Arkansas. Winchester shot and killed Mike Williams in December 2000, according to the indictment, and went on to marry Denise Williams after the murder. [13], After North Florida Christian, he attended Florida State University, where he majored in political science and urban planning. Mikes assassination enabled the couple to pay in three life insurance policies totaling roughly $2 million. A Florida women caught in a deadly love triangle was given a life sentence Wednesday for plotting to kill her husband with his best friend. The Williams case has been ongoing since Mike Williams disappeared more than 20 years ago. The stipulated agreement was signed by Anslee Williamsin May, just over a year after her mother's arrest on the young woman's birthday. According to a friend who hunted with him frequently, including one week before his disappearance, Williams took safety very seriously, keeping his guns at work, away from his daughter, among other precautions. [4], Brian was arrested and charged with kidnapping, domestic assault, and armed burglary, with two of the charges being felonies. He and Denise took it slow after Mike's "accident", both to let the insurance money earn further interest and to allay any suspicion. Kathy Thomas, Winchester's first wife, told the jury that she had suspected the two of having an affair in the late 1990s, when they frequently double-dated with Mike and Denise. "Some things looked unusual right off the bat," said the FFWCC's Arnette, who had initially thought the situation was a typical case involving a missing hunter and a possible boating accident. In 2004 the Florida Department of Law Enforcement (FDLE) agreed to reopen the case after lobbying by Cheryl Williams and a friend. 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