A Georgia woman serving a life sentence for fatally stabbing her wife in 2018 has now been convicted of killing her ex-girlfriend in 2011, a case that went cold for seven years, according to authorities.
Court rulings
Joyce Marie Pelzer, 47, was found guilty on Friday in the kidnapping and murder of Shawndell McLeod, 35, on September 25, 2011, shortly after the victim left an alleged abusive relationship with Pelzer, the Dekalb County District Attorney’s office said in a statement.
A judge sentenced her to life without parole.
Pelzer is already serving a life sentence after pleading guilty to the fatal stabbing of her wife Rosalyn Lewis, who herself was allegedly involved in the kidnapping and killing of McLeod, a witness told authorities, according to the statement.
Weeks before Lewis was murdered
A few months before Lewis’ killing, Pelzer’s ‘newest girlfriend’ notified Dekalb police that Pelzer was planning to kill Lewis, who had filed for divorce.
Lewis was found with numerous stab injuries in a motel room a few days after police were warned.
When found, she told officers Pelzer had stabbed her, and she later died from her injuries, according to the statement.
Following a police chase, Pelzer was arrested and eventually pled guilty to the charges in 2021.
Now, more than a decade after McLeod went missing and police found her car abandoned with a tarp inside, Pelzer has been found guilty in the killing of the 35-year-old woman, the D.A.’s office announced.
