On a spring day in Fairfield, Maine, the life of Leslie Anne Harding Bullock, a 46-year-old Caucasian woman, was tragically cut short. On May 2, 2003, she was killed by her ex-husband, Gregory Warmke. The couple had divorced about a year prior to the fatal encounter.
The investigation into Leslie's death quickly focused on Warmke, a former landscaper. During his trial, it was revealed that the act was premeditated.
Evidence presented included letters Warmke had written to Bullock, which were never sent, stating his intention to shoot her twice. He ultimately used a 12-gauge shotgun to carry out the act. Warmke's defense attorney characterized him as a passive man who had fallen into a deep depression following the end of his marriage. In a chilling testimony, Warmke claimed he believed he was instructed by God in a dream to kill his ex-wife and then himself.
The prosecution, however, painted a different picture, with Assistant Attorney General Andrew Benson stating, "This is a case where premeditation in fact rises to levels I have never seen." Benson had argued for a life sentence for Warmke. In 2004, Gregory Warmke was convicted of murdering his ex-wife and sentenced to 37 years in prison. He remained incarcerated until his death at the age of 64 on a Saturday morning in October 2023 at the Maine State Prison in Warren. His earliest possible release date would have been in April 2035.
