Overview
- Jurors in Salem Superior Court found Judy Church, 67, guilty of first-degree murder on Monday, with sentencing set for Thursday, April 2, and a possible life-without-parole term.
- Prosecutors said she laced Leroy Fowler’s fruit punch Powerade with ethylene glycol, and police later found a Powerade bottle at the home with residue that tested positive for antifreeze.
- Investigators and hospital staff concluded Fowler died of ethylene glycol poisoning after his organs showed severe damage, and he was pronounced dead on Nov. 13, 2022.
- Jurors saw photos and videos from Church’s phone showing Fowler in distress and heard her 911 call in which she said, “My boyfriend must have ingested something.”
- The state argued jealousy in a long, tense triangle as motive, citing diary notes, phone entries, and a photo of a handmade “voodoo doll” of the other woman.