In the late summer of 2017, the quiet community of Hillsboro, Missouri, was disturbed by the violent death of one of its own. Steven D. Pettit, a 49-year-old male, was found deceased in his home on August 17th, a victim of gun violence. The circumstances of his death pointed to a deeply personal and tragic betrayal.
Investigations into the homicide soon focused on a suspect intimately known to Pettit. His girlfriend, 58-year-old Laurel L. Leeker, was arrested and charged with the murder.
Authorities alleged that Leeker had fatally shot Pettit while he was asleep in the bed they shared, a shocking act that reverberated through the local area.
The case, however, would not proceed to trial. On the morning of October 8, 2017, corrections officers at the Jefferson County Jail discovered Laurel L. Leeker deceased in her cell. The cause of death was determined to be an apparent suicide by hanging, bringing a somber and unexpected end to the legal proceedings and leaving a community to grapple with the layers of tragedy that unfolded.
