In a quiet home on Bobwhite Road in Amherst County, Virginia, the life of 92-year-old Doris T. Puleio was brought to a violent end on June 25, 2019. On that day, she was tragically shot and killed. Her daughter, 74-year-old Trudy Goetz, was also shot and seriously injured in the attack but survived.
In July 2019, a suspect, 18-year-old Justin Sales, was arrested and subsequently charged with first-degree murder and malicious wounding.
However, the path to justice for Puleio's family proved to be fraught with complications. In December 2021, the charges against Sales were dismissed. This was due to a combination of factors, including a key witness being unable to testify because of the long-term effects of COVID-19, issues with the chain of custody of evidence, and the loss of body camera footage in a cyber-attack.
Following the dismissal of the charges, Justin Sales moved to New Hampshire, where he was later convicted in a sexual assault case in 2023. Despite the initial setbacks in the Virginia case, a special grand jury re-indicted Sales in October 2023 for the murder of Doris Puleio. The new indictments included charges of first-degree murder, aggravated murder, aggravated malicious wounding, shooting into an occupied dwelling, and attempted robbery.
Justin Sales was extradited back to Virginia to face these charges. His trial took place, and in June, a jury found him guilty of aggravated murder and aggravated malicious wounding, among other charges. Prosecutors argued that Sales had a 'terrible plan' to rob the two women. Though the defense highlighted a lack of DNA evidence linking Sales to the crime scene, the jury was convinced by the prosecution's case. Subsequently, Justin Sales was sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole, plus an additional 38 years.
