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Her mouth covered with a breathing apparatus and several machines attached to her monitoring her condition. But Griffin Police Chief Michael Yates said, Officer Boynton was not the shooter and trusts the investigations outcome. Theres a lot of speculation and a lot of theory, but evidence is not there to cause me to do that., When told The GRIP had received information that the Griffin Police Department had contact the GBI Friday morning prior to Boyntons arrest, and asked the basis of that call, Yates said, That would be just to let them know what were doing.. She's moaning.. "I know for a fact that Jessica was not suicidal," said the neighbor. In fact, 68 text messages are exchanged between him and his mistress. provided images. Or was it? Matthew claims they returned home just after 11 p.m. His proof? She's having suicidal thoughts. It's like I tell them, they make it twice as bad because I'm a cop, Matthew said. "I left the location, I'm back en route, I'm on Carver Road right now. 11Alive reached out to Officer Matthew Boynton, however, phone calls were not returned. Hewrote a letter to Jessicas attorneyon June 10, in which he questioned the finding that Jessicas head injury was a self-inflicted gunshot wound, indicating that there was no investigation conducted by authorities at the hospital. The subsequent investigation was short-lived, with it having been deemed a civil matter. However, with the later discovery of previously-unknown evidence, it evolved into an Internal Affairs investigation resulting in two felony charges against the former law enforcement officer. A tactical sweep finds an 8-month-old baby screaming. Matthew met Jessica during her sophomore year of high school at open house in 2012. Do you think Matthew did something? he asked her bluntly. Everybody clear out, says Jones, who has Keys call for an EMT. If he's willing to cheat on his wife, he's willing to cheat the law., She wanted to file for divorce, says Kshywonis. That's the last thing the 19-year-old remembers. Jessica, on a few occasions, hit and slapped him, he tells the GBI. The only person who truly knows what happened behind that closet door was jessica -- and she's now out of her coma. I know that we got into an argument, but that's about all," she said, not remembering much of what had happened on April 15. Matthew says that he told Jessica, I'm not happy anymore and I can't. Her head wound soaked into the green and white pillow, where her head rested. Matthew begins calling his brothers in blue, telling them Jessica is physically abusing him -- not a standard way of reporting domestic abuse. She made a full recovery, but doesn't remember a thing. "I was with the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department for 33 years," said Tim Miley. Running across the parking lot and up the stairs, responding officers head toward the apartment. If the phone was found by the GBI in the kitchenif the phone is on police body camera footage sitting on the counter by the microwave, and he was outside never returning insidehow is it possible for Matthew to text his girlfriend, while he's calling in shots fired while outside of the apartment? Griffin Police officer Matthew Boynton was cleared in his wife's shooting, but his interrogation still cost him his job. On May 11, Will Sanders met withYancy and Sgt. That bastard is so guilty every time they show the door knob and any badge that doesnt know that shouldnt have one. An officer tries to console his grieving coworker. This couldn't happen man. No, never. Lt. Curtis Keys is dispatched to the scene. Join our naturalist on a short walk and learn about the history of the once-prosperous town of High Falls. Matthew Boynton allegedly deprived ex-wife Jessica Lester of her belongings and lied to the authorities about doing so, Griffin police Lt. Michael Natale said in a statement. "If he would have just been a regular person he would have been taken to jail," said Jessica. It is unknown what effect his arrest may have on Boyntons criminal cases. The 20-year-old says he's heading to Waffle House for a late night food run with on-duty cop and best. Womens clothing items and an orthodontic retainer turned in to the Griffin Police Department by Will Sanders has been established to have belonged to Jessica Lester, the former wife of Matthew Boynton. Dr. Vernon Henderson, chief of Trauma and Critical Care at Atlanta Medical Center was on-call the morning Jessica came in and treated her for the next month while she was in the hospital. Matthew runs inside to the closet where he keeps his service gun. The next action noted in the case occurred nearly two months later. There's so many useless words thrown in there, then there's so many words left out, she said. Geez, im no cop , no investigator and know absolutely nothing on how investigations are even done but if the doctors say she wasnt shot what more do they need..that little punk got away with it.please tell me im missing a story and he has been arrested for the attempted murder of his wife.please.and please tell me that every stupid ass cop that had any involvement with this case is no longer a cop..oh and his Grandpa, well i think he needs a little jail rehabilitation as well..i could go on and on, but obviously they wouldnt understand anyway..what a disgrace to all REAL POLICE OFFICERS, https://the-grip.net/2016/10/18/gbi-completes-boynton-investigation-requested-by-gpd/ this says she was SHOT!!! Im not sure about that. Fast forward to May 11, the day numerous items that reportedly belonged to Lester were turned in to the Griffin Police Department. Do you think Matthew did something? he asked her bluntly. "How did his phone get in there? One of those bullets went through the roof, the other lodged into the baby's bedroom wall. Haha I'm sorry I didn't think about that lol, he sends to her after receiving a text from her after his text from Jessica. an officer questions the others. Terms of Use | Officer Boynton hung up and did not respond to multiple messages, while the GBI refused to talk about the closed case. Minutes later, at around 10:45 p.m., Jessica storms out. The ambulance pulls away with Jessica in critical condition, to the fire station located on Carver Road, where the medical helicopter picks her up and takes her to an Atlanta hospital. Then-Griffin Police Department officer Matthew Boynton was arrested on July 28, 2017, for giving a false statement to his own department stating he was not i. A grandson of the county sheriff, a career in law enforcement was in his genes. But Jessica's trauma surgeon, a 30-year veteran in the field, had a few thoughts of his own about what could have happened and what likely did not happen that night. Excessive force. "Most people would not view it as such, I don't believe," said Sheila Mathews. But here's the thing that has everyone shaking their heads: In the bureau's final report, dated months after Jessica was released from the hospital, they still declare Jessica dead. She's breathing, but unresponsive. GRIFFIN, Georgia, April 15, 2016: Police are breathlessly racing to save a life. I can't even get it out of its case, she replied. The agent then probes Matthew, asking if he has a girlfriend. After getting Matthew's phone records, Sanders discovers during that same time Matthew was making calls to 911, he was texting his mistress. "He believed that the shots he heard fired were fired from his duty weapon," said Sheila Mathews, publisher of The Grip. "The stuff that he was texting her was, you know, 'LOL's," said Sanders. But as luck would have it, suddenly he's right across the street on police business. But this wasn't the end of Jessica's story, rather a new beginningbut not the one she was hoping for. Hike also includes a rare chance to tour inside the old powerhouse which provides great photo opportunities of the Towaliga River. And the doctor in the emergency room didn't find any bullet holes. He tells Trammel he left Walmart without Jessica. When asked if Boyntons arrest has led him to believe that case should be reopened, Yates said, No. Her complaint, which she checked on, was never filed. I mean he might have grabbed my arm before, but I don't think he would intentionally do anything to hurt mebut like I said, he's changed so much here, lately, she said. Despite their problems, Matthew tells investigators he still loved Jessica and the boys, and he offers an explanation for why he didn't run in the apartment that terrible night to save them. A lot of times, what happens, especially if theyre involved in something very serious, they throw in the towel before it can go through the citys process of termination.. But they have no idea what's waiting for them behind a locked closet door. By the time Jessica was twenty, she'd had enough of Matthew, and their crumbling marriage had driven her to a dark place. No, never. Dr. Vernon Henderson, chief of Trauma and Critical Care at Atlanta Medical Center was on-call the morning Jessica came in and treated her for the next month while she was in the hospital. Cops find 8-month-old Tyler visibly upset but thankfully uninjured. Ironically Jessica first met that man while she was out scouting for a wedding venue to marry Matthew. "According to my interview with Griffin police chief, that second shot had to have been fired while the gun was either on the floor or almost on the floor very close to that wall.". A lot, she said, doesn't add up. The air is thick with mystery, as the officers approach the locked closet. Making his way outside, he calls for assistance over his radio. There's no way I could have shot myself in the top of the head and not kill myself. He later tells investigators that he heard Tyler crying, and then, POP-POP!. "Happy," said the neighbor. But DeMarco insisted to Mathews during their phone conversation, that the timeline was not relevant. "Another reasonable explanation is that there was a fight over the gun and during the course of that she was injured, Matthew thought she was dead and put the gun underneath.". Matthew makes it back to the apartment before help arrives and hears baby Tyler crying -- and then heartbreak. Example video title will go here for this video. It's back in the headlines with the "Mystery in the Closet" story on the HLN network s well as "The Officer's Wife" podcast from Vault Studios.. But Jessica still can't remember what happened that terrible night in the closet, and she's says there is only one person with the answers. Officer Robert Brian Jones is also dispatched to the Ashford Way apartment building. The chain of custody on that stuff is messed up. Collectively, they examine the bullets' trajectory from the closet, into the bedroom wall and ceiling. A bunch of CLOWNS!! I didn't try to wash my hands, anything, because I knew GSR and all that would be involved.. Her mouth covered with a breathing apparatus and several machines attached to her, in an effort to monitor her condition. If someone from the GBI does not reopen this.. well, I have to get my ducks in a row before I open another huge can of worms.. In fact he's collected almost every piece of evidence from the case. In April 2016, the wife of a Griffin, Ga. police officer is found inside a locked closet. Stay out, Matt, one the officers advises his fellow officer. provided images. "Nobody would shoot themselves like this," said retired homicide detective Tim Miley. He's not a cop or even a private investigator. She wants to give her new employers the right impression, since tomorrow is her first day at a chiropractor's office. I just came up the stairs, two rounds," Boynton says on the recorded call. The devil is in the details. GBI director Vernon Keenan wrote a letter indicating the gunshot wound was self-inflicted by Jessica, closing the case. In turn Jessica begins keeping a so-called "dirty divorce diary," a red notebook she kept carefully hidden in a closet. The odd thing is a few pages have been ripped out. And they said yes," the neighbor said. At that exact point the interviewing officer detected something fishy, forced him to stop giving himself away and ended the interview and therefore night of investigation. Boynton was released from the Spalding County Jail Friday night on a $4,806 cash bond. They hit the top of the stairs knowing somebody's got a gun. I mean he might have grabbed my arm before, but I don't think he would intentionally do anything to hurt mebut like I said, he's changed so much here, lately, she said. Her husband is cheating on her with another woman, reveals Browning, who said, they called dispatch a few nights earlier because he took the kids. She told me to take care of the boys, so I'm trying to hurry up and get back home just to make sure nothing is going to happen to them. Crime Watch Daily's security team tracked the email address, only to find it was from an anonymous server. She's got good pulse. Those properties obtained during the marriage would be considered community property.. Once established as her personal belonging, this one piece of physical evidence contradicted Boyntons January written civil statement in which he denied possessing any of Lesters property. She grabs his arm with her left hand, while her other arm falls to the ground. Jones eyes a small child sleeping on a bottom bunk bed in the back bedroom. The shooting occurred on the evening of April 14, 2016. 2023 Telepictures Productions Inc. "The second shot that was fired, it entered the back wall of the closet approximately a foot, no more than a foot off the ground. They're saying it was self-inflicted, she said. Lester recovered from the shooting but doesn't remember any of it. I didn't wash may hands, nothing like that either, that way for GSR., There's a possibility that we might collect your clothes, OK. For the wife of a Georgia police officer, answering that question is unfortunately turning out not to be so simple. "I have occasional headaches, but other than that everything's good," Jessica Boynton said. Five days after his wife was shot, Matthew talked with the GBI again. Two-year-old Tollin is sleeping soundly in his bed as cops try not to wake him in the chaos. A Griffin Police Officer's wife herself, the reporter called DeMarco, on Sept. 28, the investigator who was in charge of the investigation for the GBI, to question him about the case and the photo that nagged her, and that for her, called into question how anything they investigated was trustworthy. However, she was NOT shot. It appears to be either an assault or maybe something accidental," said Miley. But she doesn't buy it, especially since her head was perfectly laid on a pillow, she said after watching the bodycam footage. You want to start recording me, and started quoting me, you'd better let me know ahead of time, or we're gonna have a problem. Then he drops a shocker, claiming he wasn't the only one cheating, "She finally told me, she said 'Yeah, I had an affair,'" Matthew Boynton says in the GBI interview. Jessica Boynton was just 19 years old when she was found inside a locked closet with a gunshot wound to her head. The babys muffled cry echoes, getting louder as the officers sweep their guns back and forth, searching for the shooter. She had always kept it hidden, but now, there it is for everyone to see. Sheila Mathews publishes The Grip, an independent newspaper in Griffin. I don't know why. I didn't know if I was dealing with a possible active active scenario where she still had the gun and she had shot Tyler, he replies. He also reported hearing two gunshots and. I'm sure as you've heard, I'm getting a divorce. That's what Jessica and Matthew Boynton thought would happen when they said "I do.". The gun then landed underneath," said Tim Miley. Here recently she did confirm that the second baby's not mine. Matthew Boynton allegedly deprived ex-wife Jessica Lester of her belongings and lied to the authorities about doing so, Griffin police Lt. Michael Natale said in a statement. Dispatcher: Any weapons inside the house? In any case GPD/GBI are an absolute embarrassment to the state of GA! Ultimately, it came down to orthodontia Lesters retainer. According to the report, GBI investigators never conducted a re-canvass of the apartment complex, and did not talk with the immediate next door neighbor for four and a half months, despite reports from other residents that they heard a single gunshot hours earlier than the officers call claiming shots had been fired. Above Jessica, pinned to the wall, is a large black letter B for Boynton. Earlier that night Jessica's husband Matthew headed to Waffle House for a late-night bite with a fellow officer, leaving his service. Law enforcement was in his genes. Of course the Grandfather could not be reached for a comment, he had it covered up. That's what they're all assuming, Matthew said. "They did not. She's like 'I got you where I want you and you're gonna go down for this,' and he pulls his gun out and she runs into the closet to hide, and instead of shooting her, he hits her on the head with a baton," said the neighbor. Eventually, the Georgia Bureau of Investigation concluded what they believe happened inside that closet; Matthew Boynton was never charged with any connection in harming his wife. FOLLOW THE EVIDENCE FOR YOURSELF, CLICK HERE. It sounded like a gunshot. The dispatch operator notified Matthew on Facebook, Browning says. A Griffin cop finally arrives to take Matthew's formal domestic violence complaint. I don't think he meant to do it, or at least that's what I like to think.". "Very explicit conversation," said the neighbor. (whit his baton I would guess) ..is every person in the police department total idiots? "He told 911 that he was so worried and he was trying to get back to the house as fast as possible. Jessica Boynton says she's free as a bird'. So if there is no gunshot wound, what really happened inside that closet? (South Florida Sun Sentinel/TNS) This case stinks to hi-heaven of a cover-up..if not, its a group of the most incompetent people ever to wear a Law enforcement uniform. Jessica Boynton was just 19 years old when she was found inside a locked closet with a gunshot wound to her head. God damn it, man! Inside the closet they also discover Jessica's red "divorce diary." (He resigned) about the time they brought him in. But Yates told 11Alive, Matthew was not the shooter and trusts the investigation's outcome. One, investigators said penetrated Jessica's head and the other the wall. He calls out for Jessica, but no answer. I was excited I wasn't going to have to put up with him anymore because honestly I felt like his maid, and that's all I felt like.. Id be afraid to luve in that town until that poluce brotherhood is abolished. Dispatch notifies Spalding County Sheriff Wendell Beam, who is also Matthew's grandfather and police notify Jessica's family that she has died. Crime Watch Daily investigates what really happened to Jessica Boynton, something even Jessica herself wants to know. I never wanted to hurt myself before, she said, going on to say that she's never handled a gun, nor shot one. After establishing her retainer was not community property, Boynton was arrested on two felonies false statements and writings and violation of his oath of office. And, she said, she wouldn't have told him that she loved him. Her shoulder-length, blonde hair is saturated in red. And I could have been the next target.. Matthew's fellow officers try to shield him from the sight of his gravely injured wife. I do not have any other items of Jessicas.. However, this does not surprise me how they covered this up and they wonder why good citizens dont come forward when a crime takes place.HUMMMMM, https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2019/10/07/what-if-your-abusive-husband-is-a-cop. ', Do you know how it was that you got shot?, Have you ever had any type of thoughts about hurting yourself?. HERE IS THE NEWS STORY OF THE SHOOTING.. https://www.11alive.com/article/news/investigations/trigger-over-and-out/85-8ab82530-da07-492b-9a3c-c20d5e7f50b3. GBI conducts canvas and begins interviewing neighbors. [I miss] getting to see them every day and getting to watch them grow more and more into the boys and men that they're going to be someday, Jessica said sobbing. December 20022 so heartless to show this right before Xmas. The ceiling fan's light shines down on Jessica's eyes. Minutes later, just as Matthew pulls into the Waffle House parking lot, he says he receives a chilling message from Jessica, what he calls a "suicide text," that says: "I can't do this anymore. No it wasn't. I can't keep doing this.. Matthew sends another text to his girlfriend, a Spalding County dispatcher, Give me a few. When facts are wrong, evidence altered to fit theories and threats made, how does the GBI remain the last word on the case? Published: 7/28/2017 6:16:14 PM. Jessica Boynton is found unconscious, her body on top of her husband's service revolver. If America is really a first-world country, it will enact legislation that takes this issue seriously, and fund more studies and programs to preventing domestic violence and identifying and protecting victims. He calls out for Jessica, but no answer. And now Jessica is telling a completely different story. They were calling me the miracle child Because what I went through, not a lot of people survive through it, she told 11Alive's Brendan Keefe, nearly six months after the incidenther golden blonde hair now growing back. It doesn't sound like anything I would say. Am I recording it? It could, but it wont necessarily do it, Yates said. Her limp body is on the floor, just behind the door. Boyntons statement, dated Jan. 9, said, I was advised to complete a statement on a previous date by Lt. Yancey. "If they put out a report I spend a lot of time fact-checking it and making sure what they're telling is the truth," said Sanders. RE-open the case Georgia!!!!!! She thinks he found it before the incident. Get him downstairs. [Im] gonna have to kick that door in Jones relays to the other officers standing on the other side of the closet, barreling through it in just two swift and deliberate kicks. The paramedic begins accessing her head wound, but they're having a hard time finding it through her hair and thick blood. Then he hits investigators with a jaw-dropper. She found a photo on Snapchat of another woman wearing nothing but a towel, with the caption: Shower time.. Reliving his steps inside the apartment after he heard gunshots fired, he said, My whole upper body went numb. Having previously learned of the new evidence that was turned in to the Griffin Police Department May 11 and the Internal Affairs investigation that resulted, The GRIP on July 7 submitted an Open Records request for information in the case. They're forced to kick it in. Because she owned the retainer prior to her marriage, it would not be considered community property. That's fine. Aft. Then-Griffin Police officer Matthew Boynton was arrested on July 28, 2017 for giving a false statement to his own department about having possession of a gym bag full of clothes, underwear. Matthew, a police officer in a small town called Griffin, in Georgia, rushed home. He checks the closet where he keeps his police-issued firearm, but the door is locked. Example video title will go here for this video. Matthew Boynton is the grandson of Sheriff Beam. She's even fighting with EMS, dude, the fellow officer tells Matthew. Yates said, Yes, but that doesnt overcome the civil side of it whether it was or was not marital property, and even if it was, it would have been a misdemeanor as opposed to the two felonies.. I havent listened to the actual investigation, but I dont believe so, that he gave any explanation that made any sense.. "That was when approximately 24 minutes into the conversation, his demeanor changed and everything flipped," she recalled. A lot of times its two or three or more days, Yates said. Six months later, everything would changefor everyone. Honestly, I have no idea. I never wanted to hurt myself before, she said, going on to say that shes never handled a gun, nor shot one. GBI agents, however, have closed her case. He's asked me to go get it out before. Jessica's husband and high school sweetheart is Griffin Police Officer Matthew Boynton. The shooting occurred on the evening of April 14, 2016. The doctor said the second most striking observation while assessing Jessica was that neither of her hands had any evidence of gunpowder. said Sheila Mathews. She alleged that many of Lesters belongings remained in Boyntons residence. She was hit over the head. Griffin Police officer Matthew Boynton was arrested and taken to the Spalding County Jail on multiple charges. Jones passes by a framed portrait hung on the wall. And the second bullet went up at 25-degree upward angle 1'10 off the floor. This all follows a Georgia Bureau of Investigation case that ultimately ruled Lester had attempted suicide in April 2016. Just minutes after Jessica is airlifted to an Atlanta trauma center, Sheriff Beam asks deputies to deliver the devastating news to Jessica's family that she's dead of an apparent self-inflicted gunshot wound. I didn't, I didn't, I didn't try to brush off anything. I would have said, 'I can't do this anymore, comma, take care of Tolin and Tyler, period.' Around 9 o'clock on the night of Thursday, April 14, 2016, Matthew Boynton calls a lieutenant on duty and reports Jessica is hitting him again. It's a question 11Alive investigators asked a few months ago, when Griffin Police Officer Matthew Boynton's wife, Jessica, allegedly shot herself in the head with his service weapon,. "There was no testing done on his clothing," said Sheila Mathews. It could have been simply that um, all his, he left his stuff there. And he said 'Yeah, we did.'". Security camera captures the family walking in around 10:15 p.m. I mean you can't prove that," DeMarco. He later tells investigators that he heard Tyler crying, and then, POP-POP!, Jones advises Matthew over the radio, Stay outside. Thats what took so long to get it sorted out.. While Jessica believes someone tried taking her life from her, she refuses to allow anyone to take her kids away from her. Her ex-husband and former Griffin police officer Matthew Boynton was investigated in the case, but was only charged with making . When asked if Boynton had explained why he allegedly kept his ex-wifes belongings, Yates said, No. Jones checks on a locked closet door between the master bedroom and hallway, across from the bathroom. What did Matthew do that he needed covering up? The neighbor believes Matthew Boynton discovered the divorce diary and simply snapped. Especially because of my children. His phone was given to someone else at Griffin PD, they put the phone in the thing because they knew GBI wanted it, and that's where we're gonna be while he was taken to the police department. His flashlights beam reveals a smiling family of four. While Trammel's body cam is out of juice tonight, Jones's bodycam spots Trammel as the other officers enter the apartment. He's meeting his buddy at the local Waffle House. He was going to clean his gun and he asked me to go get it for him. In it, she logs Matthew Boynton's every move, including his unexplained disappearances with their two boys. provided images. Matthew's mistress worked as a dispatch officer, reporting to Sheriff Wendell Beam, who just happens to be Matthew Boynton's grandfather. In response to 11Alives questions about the case, the GBI said, We are confident in the investigation that was conducted., RELATED: Jessica Boynton says she's free as a bird', MORE | Watch the Facebook Live with Brendan Keefe. 478-993-3053. Jessica Boynton, once declared dead, is alive and talking. This chilling police body camera footage shows the moment a cop's wife was found barely alive suffering from a gunshot wound to her head. This is who he's sleeping with, points to the Facebook post that she says she was holding for Jessica for her divorce. The purpose of it, is when you're fighting with somebody to keep the weapon from coming out of your holster, but it's certainly easy to take it out under most cases. And, the first officer on scene, as recorded by body cam footage, was not interviewed by the GBI for months after the incident. But someone else did. Her head shaved. Stay outside.. He was there to tell the court that he wanted to keep Jessica away from him and their two sons, because he said, he feared for their safetybecause she allegedly fired his gun in the house while their boys were home. No one may have ever done anything to question this case again if not for Will Sanders. Boynton in January denied being in possession of any of Lesters personal property. He cautiously went into the residence to try to make sure that the children were OK. Furthermore, she said, there were too many errors and discrepancies for her to have sent a text like that.