She was reportedly on her way from Denver to Pueblo to discuss the pregnancy with Lucas. Now, follow one mother's crusade for justice in this true crime investigation. Kelsie Schelling case details texts with Donthe Lucas upon disappearance Schellings friends said they remembered her relationship with Lucas was often tumultuous, with the two constantly fighting and making up -- then the unthinkable happened. She confirmed for us Donthe admitt[ed] it was him in the Walmart surveillance video that [he] had dropped Kelsie's car off and then returned the next day and picked it up, Torres said. Lucas tells her to, Just stop wasting time and come.. Lol, Torres said Donthe replied. 11:55 a.m.: Laura Saxton, Kelsie Schelling's mother, was the first witness called to the stand by prosecutors. Police say her death does not appear to be related to the trial, but instead a possible result of domestic violence. Saxton said she remembered asking investigators if these items were in the vehicle when it was recovered and she was told they were not. I dont want to fight at all, I want to give you this, he wrote. You dont have an obligation to me. She said shed have to think about it and drove home. That Saturday morning, Saxton said her whole world just unraveled., All of her friends started contacting us saying, We've been trying to reach Kelsie and we can't reach her, Saxton said. Wish you would have told me you knew it was very likely to happen so I could be prepared. Donthe Lucas Now: Where Is Kelsie Schelling's Ex Today? - Heavy.com I felt like I was [in] pretty deep. Opening statements were set to begin just after 8 a.m. Wednesday, and. The Pueblo landfill said there was evidence of a car at the dump and Lucas' cell phone data suggest he could have been there the night of Feb. 4, 2013. After Torres, the prosecution called to the stand Jennifer Walker, the executive director of the Crisis Center a nonprofit organization in Douglas County that address domestic violence. In addition to this, Schelling's phone records indicated a call was made from her cell to a woman who Schelling reportedly didn't know, and whom Lucas was romantically involved with even though Lucas could not explain the call. Donthe Lucas, 28, was found guilty on Monday in the killing of his missing girlfriend, Kelsie Schelling, according to the Denver Post. We received the information from the Pueblo landfill that there was some video evidence of a vehicle being there. I mean, who wants that for their child to be the final resting place? Sinnema said Lucas also did not mention dropping Schellings vehicle off at St. Mary-Corwin Medical Center on Feb. 7. "We're very thankful for this outcome, but in the end I didn't get Kelsey back, and that's what I wanted more than anything," said Schelling's mother, Laura Saxton shortly after the verdict was read. The theory would explain the lack of a murder weapon. If its really what happened Im so sorry you had to go through that alone, Lucas said in a text to Schelling. Over the course of the following weeks, she became close with Lucas and had the opportunity to speak with him about Schellings disappearance. Ultimately, after hearing the prosecutors say that the most intimate and personal way to extinguish a life is wrapping two hands around a persons neck gripping their trachea, restricting their air, restricting their oxygen, the jury agreed with their arguments. She also said Schellings medical paperwork indicated that she self-reported discontinuing her birth control in October 2012. But it soon became clear that Schelling had disappeared without a trace and no one knew where she was. Prosecutors said he also admitted to that in 2017. Its hard to explain, Torres said, Its definitely a person, emotional bond. She questioned her daughters boyfriend Donthe Lucas on the phone herself, organized community searches as the case went cold and followed up on leads through the Help Find Kelsie Facebook page -- including one that claimed the young expectant mother was still alive. Saxton called Lucas, asking if he knew anything about her daughters disappearance. Doctor's records confirmed that she was eight weeks pregnant, with the presumed father being. (PDF) Abandoning Art in the Name of Art: Transpositional Logic in Schelling was eight weeks pregnant when her friends and family last heard from her on February 4, 2013, when [] PUEBLO, Colo. CBI Investigator Kevin Torres remembers it like yesterday. Daily Briefing Oh my god, Torres said Sara Lucas replied. Saxton still doesnt have all the answers shes searched tirelessly for. She texts him at 10:20 p.m., saying shes arrived and Lucas replies that hell be there shortly. 17 Jan 2023 Amber: The Girl Behind the Alert (2023 film) . Get the Android Weather app from Google Play. She was happy. Criminal defense attorney Danielle Iredale joins host Ana Garcia. She said she first reached out to him on Facebook and they exchanged numbers. @KOAA, Kelsie Schelling's mother is called to the stand again. She said based on her evaluation, Schelling was, in fact, pregnant at the time of her disappearance. Eight years after his girlfriend went missing, a Colorado man has been convicted of first-degree murder in her death. Sinnema said Lucas told him that he and Schelling went to Parkview Medical Center later that day and that Schelling emerged from the hospital a short time later saying she was no longer pregnant. If you or anyone you know is struggling with addiction issues, help is available. Though they have strong suspicions thats where Kelsie Schelling is, authorities say it would be next to impossible to conduct a systematic search of the landfill for her remains. Then you can take her back home., Sara Lucas allegedly responded: What happened? and, Are you OK? to which Lucas responded, Yeah. The community organized search efforts to try and find Schelling with her family filing a lawsuit in 2015 against the Pueblo Police Department and the Lucas family. Lucas also told police that he and Schelling went to the Walmart to get snacks before she made the drive back to Denver. 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. She reached out to a private investigator, but they were also stonewalled by PPD. 21-year-old Kelsie Schelling was two months pregnant when she drove from Denver to Pueblo to see her former boyfriend Donthe Lucas. Then, in December 2020, the murder trial was set to start on Jan. 25, 2021. Laura Saxton, Schelling's mom, took the stand again and testified that Schelling's car was never in California. Love you Donthe.. XLSX www.oupjapan.co.jp On Dec. 1, 2017, two weeks after his arrest for the robbery, Lucas was arrested and charged with first degree murder. Back in 2013, Kelsie Schelling felt like she had her whole life ahead of her. Investigators have said he took $400 out of her account on that day. He said that Schelling had called him early that morning from a private number and said he told Schelling she needed to get in touch with her family members because they were worried about her. Donthe Lucas Convicted In 2013 Killing Of Kelsie Schelling | Crime News The Parkview Medical Center, however, did not have any record of Schellings supposed visit. They never found anything on those searches. Mom fights to bring pregnant daughter's killer to justice 8 years after Johnston also uses iek's combination of . According to Lucas' account,the couple drank alcohol together and used marijuana and cocaine that night, the latter of which Lucas alleged was a surprise gift to Schelling. Severe Weather Forget Im pregnant, seriously., Just before 3 a.m., according to Torres testimony, Schelling texted Lucas, You dont have to be in a relationship with me. In the recording, Lucas tells Binet the last time he heard from Schelling was the previous day, Feb. 9. Colette Bordelon reports that the District Attorney has confirmed to her that Martinez was going to testify for the prosecution this week that Lucas confessed to her that he killed Schelling. She said the plan, orchestrated by one of her close friends, was to get close to Lucas. Some of her friends testified to the physical abuse, and cell phone data showed Kelsies phone was in the same area as her killers in the days after authorities believed she had been killed. Text messages show he first instructed her to go to a specific Walmart on the south side of town. Schelling goes to work that evening and she and Lucas continue to argue over text. She wanted to be a mom.. kelsie schelling murder, mollie tibbetts murder, true crime series. Help Find Kelsie/Facebook. I know that my testimony could potentially help take him down, and that was realistically why I wanted to testify, she said. Schelling and Lucas met at Northeastern Junior College in 2010. Give Light and the People Will Find Their Own Way, Opening statements in murder trial begin in case of Kelsie Schelling's disappearance, Donthe Lucas murder trial will begin Wednesday, Long-awaited murder trial to begin in the case of Kelsie Schelling's disappearance, Previous coverage: The Kelsie Schelling Case. : The UN in Libya; 3. In December 2019, the judge postponed the trial until May 2020, as a new lawyer joined the defense team. Schelling, 21, went missing in 2013 after driving from Denver to Pueblo to see Lucas. How to Build a State? Kelsie Schelling disappearance: Second witness says she became intimate with Donthe Lucas They continued to press Lucas about the vehicle, and he several times denied moving it after parking it. Eighteen hours later, an unknown man is seen getting in the car and driving away. From the. He said theyd spoken early that morning when Schelling arrived in Pueblo and their interactions continued through the following morning. I do not.. Schelling texted Lucas at 8:50 p.m., saying, Im coming now. Hours later she vanished. Ryan Rivera said that Lucas once told him while they were about to play a game of cards that investigators would never find Schelling's body. The defense pushed a narrative that Schelling was addicted to drugs. In the following days, her parents and friends said Schellings texts continued to contain uncharacteristic punctuation and curt responses. They instructed Saxton to bring the money to a specific McDonalds restaurant in Vancouver, Washington, and to hand deliver it to a person named Marcus who would be wearing a red hat. However, in January of 2019, both the prosecution and defense said they would not be ready to go to trial by early April 2019, because of an additional 125 witnesses who could possibly be called to testify. 21-year-old Kelsie Schelling was two months pregnant when she drove from Denver to Pueblo to see her former boyfriend Donthe Lucas. "We're doing everything in our power. Plus, a baggage claim sticker leads to an arrest after human remains were found in two suitcases on the side of a Denver road in December (30:07). Romantic interest of Lucas' retakes stand: Lauren Suhr, who now lives in Washington but lived in Colorado Springs in April 2016, took the stand virtually again Wednesday morning. Donthe Lucas. But tragically, Kelsie Schelling went missing soon after she revealed her pregnancy to her partner, Donthe Lucas. According to the State Department of Corrections records, because Donthe is to spend the rest of his natural life behind bars, his estimated sentence discharge date is December 31, 9998. Kelsie Schelling Murder Trail Guilty Verdict Update | Westword Suspect in death of woman scheduled to testify in Kelsie Schelling Torres said Lucas never took the car to Denver. One minute, he had no involvement. On Feb. 25, 2021, 31-year-old Roxann Martinez was preparing to testify for the prosecution when she was shot and killed. Some of Schellings close friends also testified that Lucas was abusive. Lucas was found guilty of first-degree murder in connection to the death or disappearance of Schelling. Watch the full story on "20/20" FRIDAY at 9 p.m. On the day she reportedly disappeared, GPS on her phone showed it traveled to the same location in Pueblo as Lucas' phone. Donthe Lucas (credit: Pueblo Police Dept. Moreover, only a day earlier in Denver, Schelling's doctor had told her that the baby was healthy. Kelsie Schelling was eight weeks pregnant when she vanished. I wont tell you about my appointment. Hear from those closest to the victims, including family, friends, local journalists and law enforcement. But Lucas claimed when they spoke later, Schelling ended up telling me shes not pregnant. Testimony in the trial is set to resume Tuesday, with Schelling's older brother, Colby Schelling, on the witness stand. A case 8 years in the making: The team that solved Kelsie Schelling's Police found surveillance video showing Lucas driving her car at an ATM 12 hours after Schelling arrived in Pueblo. Kelsey Ann Smith (May 3, 1989 - June 2, 2007) was an Overland Park, Kansas teenager who disappeared on June 2, 2007 and was murdered that evening. In 2011, when Kelsie Schelling enrolled in Northeastern Junior College, she met and began dating Donthe Isiah Lucas. Deputy District Attorney Kyle McCarthy then skipped ahead to the communications exchanged the following day and asked Torres to read from texts that allegedly were exchanged between Donthe Lucas and his mother, Sara Lucas. At 11:29 a.m. on Feb. 5, Torres said Lucas texted his mother, Going to make sure she didnt leave anything in the house. During the hearings, while the defense called upon no witnesses, the prosecutors invited Kelsies friends, family members, investigators, along with other experts to take the stands and highlight how Donthe could have slain Kelsie. One of the crucial pieces of evidence was Lucas text messages, which the prosecution argued showed his intent and plan to lure her to Pueblo. Movie Reviews and Spoilers - Page 2 of 12 - Reviews and spoilers for Lucas appears to have asked Schelling to come down to Pueblo after she got off work the evening of Feb. 3, and expresses disappointment she will not drive down. It was the most emotional moment in the courtroom today by far, watching a mother look at these remnants of her daughter. Lucas had pleaded not guilty to first-degree murder charges. No blood was found on two knives collected. She regularly made the 220-mile drive from her home in rural Yuma, Colorado, to Pueblo. There's no body, no murder weapon, no crime scene. Police could not definitively say he was Lucas. Donthe Lucas was found guilty of murdering his then-pregnant girlfriend, Kelsie Schelling, in 2013. Terms of Service | Privacy Policy | Community Guidelines | KRDO Jobs | FCC Applications |, KRDO FCC Public File | KRDO FCC Applications, Breaking News He was within 20 minutes of getting on a plane for Tucson, Arizona, when he was arrested.. It was tense because the time was ticking away, and the tires were turning on the road, Chostner said. If Get browser notifications for breaking news, live events, and exclusive reporting. Donthe Lucas trial: Lucas admits to moving Kelsie Schelling's car In February 2013, Kelsie Schelling was very happy to find out she was eight weeks pregnant, according to ABC News. Tatesaid her evaluation of Schelling showed no indication of prior pregnancies, miscarriages of abortions. Although some initially believed it seemed suspicious that Martinez died just before her testimony, investigators determined the shooting was completely unrelated to the trial. He said they got in an argument and he exited her vehicle, but Schelling stayed in Pueblo that night. Schelling didnt show up to work on Feb. 5, and her worried co-worker Savannah Heggie tried calling her. As he told Sinnema, Lucas told Binet the last time hed seen Schelling was Tuesday, Feb. 5. I just get mad and I dont want to fight with you. They quickly learned about Lucas relationship with Suhr, and a crucial bit of information that he had revealed to her. Yet, in November 2017, he confessed to being the one who had abandoned her vehicle at the St. Mary-Corwin hospital, where it was eventually found. Re-examine a current true crime case where unanswered questions remain and the mystery is still unraveling. Lucas said Schelling then dropped him off at his house and left. Strangely enough, around the same time, the family of another missing woman 1,200 miles away in Portsmouth, Ohio, had been receiving similar messages. Donthe Lucas was charged with killing his 21-year-old girlfriend, Kelsie Schelling, who was pregnant at the time. Read More: Where is Kelsie Schellings Mother Now? You couldn't see what kind of vehicle, you couldn't tell who was in the car, Pueblo police Capt. However, nothing was found. Lucas said that he would help support the baby, according to Saxton. I have found that if you do it the right way, justice finds its own way. Ryan Rivera, a former Pueblo County Jail inmate and a friend of Lucas, also testified. Kelsie Schelling was only 21 years old when she vanished. Our Colette Bordelon will be there every day and will have coverage both online and over the air. However McCarthy said, there was no deals made about charges he would get to plead to, time he would get to serve. So-called jailhouse snitches are often considered to be not credible as jurors often ask what that witness may have received in return for testifying. Visit the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration website or contact SAMHSA's National Helpline at 1-800-662-HELP (4357). The suit criticized the way the investigation was handled but was ultimately dismissed. The search for Tibbetts and the . After 13 days of trial, the defense surprised many when they announced they would not call any witnesses and immediately rested their case. No one.. By Feb. 7, Saxton said her calls to Schelling were going directly to voicemail. At 9:56 p.m., she texts again, saying, Almost there. He said Lucas confessed to the killing. Torres said texts showed Schelling eventually agreed to come to Pueblo. S43 E19 Finding Kelsie A young woman goes missing. I deliberated on it and I looked at the practicalities of it, Chostner said. A murder conviction without a body is an instance of a person being convicted of murder despite the absence of the victim's body. COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (CBS4) -Donthe Lucas was found guilty of murdering his pregnant ex-girlfriend Kelsie Schelling in 2013. Torres said in the surveillance video showing the cash withdrawal, Schelling cannot be seen in the vehicle. Her family also received a message from someone who claimed to know where Lancaster was. In the back of my mind, I always kept that he is potentially a murderer.. On February 4, 2013, Schelling went to a local Walmart in the town of Pueblo, Colorado, where she planned to meet up with Lucas and tell him about her new pregnancy but according to interview footage taken in 2017, Lucas told investigators that the night had taken a different turn (via Fox 21 News). Finding Kelsie l 20/20 l PART 1 - YouTube Donthe was found at DIA. I felt like I got to see a side of him that maybe most people didnt, she said. The. Former jail inmate says Donthe Lucas claimed Kelsie Schelling - KRDO Messages on Schelling's phone showed she texted Lucas that she was pregnant, and his replies indicated he was unhappy. Though Lucas denied his involvement in anything to do with Schelling in what eventually became a criminal case, things took a turn in 2017 after local authorities brought him in for questioning, per The Pueblo Chieftain. Suhr said Lucas had lied to police when he claimed he was with Schelling in her car after the evening of Feb. 4, 2013 -- he had moved her car himself, Suhr said. Suhr said during her testimony that Lucas characterized Schelling as a "best friend" because she basically paid for everything. He also told Suhr that a man he did not know picked Schelling up the last time he saw her. Disturbing Details About Kelsie Schelling's Partner And Murderer Lucas insisted to the man, who later testified about the incident in court, that he wouldn't be convicted of that crime but in the end, it seemed to seal his fate. At that point I was kind of done, Suhr said. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. List of murder convictions without a body - wikizero.com Though Schellings family got the verdict they wanted, they were still unable to bring her home for a proper burial. In this week's True Crime Daily Podcast: An update to the Colorado cold case murder of missing pregnant woman Kelsie Schelling (1:50). Police decided then that they would write an arrest warrant for the robbery to catch him before he left town. They began to suspect the text messages werent coming from Schelling at all. Schelling left work shortly after 8:40 p.m. and drove two hours to see Lucas in Pueblo. On 4 February, Kelsie got confirmation of her pregnancy from her doctor and sent the scan pictures to Lucas. Morning Forecast Kelsie Schelling was only 21 years old when she vanished. She said that domestic violence does not always escalate from mental and emotional abuse into physical abuse, but said changes in power dynamics such as a new pregnancy could lead to an escalation of abuse.