Date August 29, 2009 Weapon Unknown blunt object Non-fatal injuries 1 | Attack type Familicide Deaths 8 | |
Location Brunswick, Georgia, U.S. | ||
The Glynn County mass murder was discovered on August 29, 2009, when seven dead bodies were found at the New Hope Mobile Home Park in Glynn County, Georgia, near Brunswick, Georgia. There were also two people found injured, one of whom later died of their injuries.
Contents
Murders
At around 8:05 am on Saturday, August 29, 2009, police received a 911 call from a 22-year-old man, Guy Heinze, Jr., claiming that his whole family and three cats were dead. On arrival at the trailer park, they found seven people dead and two others critically injured. One of those injured, 19-year-old Michael Toler, died the following day in hospital. On September 8, police stated that the victims had been beaten with a large instrument. They believe that three people committed the crime.
The murders gained international attention and have been referred to as the worst mass murder case in Georgia state history.
Arrest of Heinze
Police arrested Heinze on suspicion of tampering with evidence at the crime scene and on drug possession charges. Glynn County Police gave a press conference on August 30 in which they would not identify the other victims, but stated their ages ranged from "older than infants to their mid-40s". Regarding Mr. Heinze, police chief Matt Doering said, "I wouldn't call Mr. Heinze a suspect, but I won't rule him out either." On September 4 he was charged with the murders.
Trial
On September 14, 2009, Heinze was indicted by a grand jury, and prosecutors intended to seek the death penalty. In 2011, defense attorneys were given permission to observe DNA testing of a broken gun stock and other items recovered from the scene of the crimes. The judge originally assigned to the trial resigned in 2011 for reasons unrelated to the case. Heinze pleaded not guilty at an arraignment hearing on February 23, 2012. On October 25, 2013, Heinze was convicted of all eight murders and sentenced to life imprisonment with no chance of parole. Prosecutors decided not to seek the death penalty as part of the deal with the defence when juror 152 was removed and replaced by a substitute.
Media documentary
On March 24, 2014, parts of the trial were included in a televised UK BBC 3 documentary about the case; Judgement (Life and Death Row, part 2).