On a crisp autumn day in Farwell, Michigan, the life of Zachary A. Salminen, a 36-year-old male, was abruptly and violently cut short. It was Wednesday, October 20, 2021, and Salminen, a carpenter by trade, was at a home in Grant Township with a coworker, Wade Bacon, to repair a roof. This act of service turned tragic when they became victims in a deadly shooting spree that claimed four lives.
The perpetrator was Judy Marie Boyer, then 55, who used a.
22-caliber rifle to kill her father, 85-year-old Henry Boyer, and her sister, 61-year-old Patricia Boyer, before turning the weapon on Salminen and the 39-year-old Bacon. Reports indicate that before Salminen and Bacon arrived, Judy Boyer had already shot and killed her father and sister, concealing their bodies in a shed. Unaware of the horrific events that had already transpired, Salminen and Bacon entered a scene of unfolding horror.
Ryan Beatty, the son of Patricia Boyer and nephew of the shooter, arrived at his grandfather's home to find Salminen and Bacon, who were there to fix the roof. Sensing something was amiss when he couldn't find his mother or grandfather, Beatty went to the back of the house. It was then that he heard the gunshots that killed Salminen and Bacon. He emerged to find his aunt holding the firearm. Fearing for his own life, he convinced her to hide the weapon and leave. Once she was gone, he informed her son of the shootings, and the authorities were called. Investigators later revealed that Boyer had a list of other potential victims.
In the aftermath of the killings, Judy Marie Boyer was arrested. On September 21, 2022, she pleaded guilty to two counts of first-degree premeditated murder for the deaths of her father and sister, and two counts of second-degree murder for the deaths of Zachary Salminen and Wade Bacon. Subsequently, on November 29, 2022, she was sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole for the first-degree murder convictions and 60 to 100 years for the second-degree murder convictions, with the sentences to run concurrently. Ryan Beatty was initially charged as an accessory after the fact, but these charges were later dismissed after a thorough investigation determined he acted under duress and his information was crucial in recovering the murder weapon and locating his aunt.
