A retired Massachusetts schoolteacher was charged with murder last week after being accused of poisoning her boyfriend’s coffee shakes with antifreeze.
Judy Church, 64, of Salisbury, appeared briefly in court on Friday, at some point after she was arrested on suspicion of poisoning Leroy Fowler, 55, with ethylene glycol, WCVB reported.
Church called emergency services shortly after 8 p.m. Nov. 11 to report that Fowler was in “medical distress,” based on records obtained by NBC Boston. Explaining to dispatchers that her boyfriend “should have ingested something,” Church alleged that he was “pulling the bedroom apart, and had a bloody nose.”
Fowler was transferred to a few different hospitals for care, where doctors eventually determined his kidneys were failing attributable to antifreeze poisoning. The invention prompted Fowler’s family to contact police.
Fowler was pronounced dead on Nov. 13. Investigators eventually discovered unidentified containers on surveillance footage around Church’s apartment.
Fowler’s stepson, Michael Hawkins, told investigators that Fowler suggested “out of the blue” that Church was poisoning him just two weeks before. Fowler allegedly said he “‘felt higher’” when he left Church’s home, but he still relied on her for many of his meals.
Fowler’s sister, Tammy Carbone, reported similar suspicions, telling police that her brother claimed Church is likely to be contaminating the coffee shakes she ceaselessly made for him.
Although Church’s motive stays unclear, Hawkins divulged to authorities that Fowler was known to “go backwards and forwards” between Church and a second girlfriend.
Citing court documents, NBC Boston alleged that Hawkins claimed to have overheard Church saying she “desired to murder” the opposite girlfriend. Church also reportedly took out a life insurance policy on Fowler one yr before his death.
A typical ingredient in antifreeze, ethylene glycol may be unknowingly ingested due to its syrupy texture and sweet flavor. Though symptoms of antifreeze poisoning can appear anywhere from half-hour to 12 hours after ingestion, even small amounts may be fatal.
In a temporary statement to the Each day Beast, Fowler’s son, also called Leroy, described his father as “an excellent guy.”
“Not perfect but he was an excellent guy,” he said, noting that Fowler was especially near his 8-year-old grandson.
Church was denied bail on Friday. She is due back in court on Jan. 23 for a probable cause hearing.
In a comment on Church’s Facebook page, Carbone expressed outrage over her brother’s fate.
“I can’t wait to see [Church’s] face tomorrow when she will’t walk out [of jail],” the grieving sister wrote before Church’s arraignment. “To think she thought she could get away with it.”
A retired Massachusetts schoolteacher was charged with murder last week after being accused of poisoning her boyfriend’s coffee shakes with antifreeze.
Judy Church, 64, of Salisbury, appeared briefly in court on Friday, at some point after she was arrested on suspicion of poisoning Leroy Fowler, 55, with ethylene glycol, WCVB reported.
Church called emergency services shortly after 8 p.m. Nov. 11 to report that Fowler was in “medical distress,” based on records obtained by NBC Boston. Explaining to dispatchers that her boyfriend “should have ingested something,” Church alleged that he was “pulling the bedroom apart, and had a bloody nose.”
Fowler was transferred to a few different hospitals for care, where doctors eventually determined his kidneys were failing attributable to antifreeze poisoning. The invention prompted Fowler’s family to contact police.
Fowler was pronounced dead on Nov. 13. Investigators eventually discovered unidentified containers on surveillance footage around Church’s apartment.
Fowler’s stepson, Michael Hawkins, told investigators that Fowler suggested “out of the blue” that Church was poisoning him just two weeks before. Fowler allegedly said he “‘felt higher’” when he left Church’s home, but he still relied on her for many of his meals.
Fowler’s sister, Tammy Carbone, reported similar suspicions, telling police that her brother claimed Church is likely to be contaminating the coffee shakes she ceaselessly made for him.
Although Church’s motive stays unclear, Hawkins divulged to authorities that Fowler was known to “go backwards and forwards” between Church and a second girlfriend.
Citing court documents, NBC Boston alleged that Hawkins claimed to have overheard Church saying she “desired to murder” the opposite girlfriend. Church also reportedly took out a life insurance policy on Fowler one yr before his death.
A typical ingredient in antifreeze, ethylene glycol may be unknowingly ingested due to its syrupy texture and sweet flavor. Though symptoms of antifreeze poisoning can appear anywhere from half-hour to 12 hours after ingestion, even small amounts may be fatal.
In a temporary statement to the Each day Beast, Fowler’s son, also called Leroy, described his father as “an excellent guy.”
“Not perfect but he was an excellent guy,” he said, noting that Fowler was especially near his 8-year-old grandson.
Church was denied bail on Friday. She is due back in court on Jan. 23 for a probable cause hearing.
In a comment on Church’s Facebook page, Carbone expressed outrage over her brother’s fate.
“I can’t wait to see [Church’s] face tomorrow when she will’t walk out [of jail],” the grieving sister wrote before Church’s arraignment. “To think she thought she could get away with it.”
