Resolved in 2024

There are six cases featured on True Case Files that were resolved in 2024. Here is a complete list of those cases, with links to the full case write-ups.

The Murder of Courtney Phillips (2015)

Courtney Phillips was found stabbed to death inside a home in San Antonio, Texas on April 5th, 2015. The 23-year-old woman had planned to meet up with a man named Isaac Estrada that afternoon, for what she thought was going to be a first date. Unbeknownst to Courtney, Estrada had other plans. 

Text messages revealed that Estrada had arranged for Courtney to meet him at a house in 200 block of Edge Avenue. While there, Estrada stabbed her in the neck and back before fleeing the scene. After Courtney's body was found, Estrada was quickly identified as the main suspect. Unfortunately, investigators were unable to locate him - as he seemingly went on the run.

Estrada evaded police for eight years before he was finally located in Eagle Pass, Texas in March 2023. He was subsequently charged with first-degree aggravated robbery and first-degree capital murder. Estrada initially pleaded not guilty to the charges.

In July 2024, Estrada accepted a plea deal and was able to plead to the lesser charge of murder rather than capital murder. Estrada sentenced to 35 years in prison for the murder and an additional 5 years for aggravated robbery. He will be eligible for parole after serving half of his sentence.

Full story: The Murder of Courtney Phillips.

The Murder of Katelyn Markham (2011)

Katelyn Markham vanished under suspicious circumstances on August 14th, 2011. The then-21-year-old was last seen alive at her condo in Fairfield, Ohio. After Katelyn was reported missing, suspicions quick fell upon her fiancé, John Carter. Not only was he the last person known to have seen Katelyn before she vanished; Carter also told inconsistent stories about his actions that night. 

Carter denied involvement in Katelyn's disappearance. Professional searches for the young woman ended unsuccessfully. As months passed without any sign of Katelyn, her disappearance faded into a cold case. Then, almost two years later, on April 7th, 2013, human remains were found at Big Cedar Creek in Cedar Grove, Indiana - located approximately 30 miles from Katelyn's condo. Dental records later confirmed that those remains were that of Katelyn Markham.

Detectives soon shifted the investigation from a missing person to a murder case. Suspicions against John Carter had still not faded, but he continued to deny involvement in Katelyn's murder. Nearly a decade passed without any movement in the case. Then, just months away from the 10-year-mark, John Carter was finally arrested and charged with Katelyn's murder.

In June 2024, Carter accepted a plea deal that allowed him to plead guilty to involuntary manslaughter instead of murder; citing that Katelyn died during a misdemeanor assault. The prosecution reported that they feel satisfied that John Carter admitted to being responsible for Katelyn's death. However, the involuntary manslaughter conviction allowed John to receive a short sentence. On July 18th, 2024, he was sentenced to 3 years in prison - the maximum amount allowed for the charges he pleaded guilty to. 

Katelyn's family is upset by the sentence. Her father, Dave Markham, spoke at the sentencing, stating "I do not feel three years is justice, not for Katelyn; not for her sister; not for me, her friends or the entire community that has ached and grieved alongside us."

Full story: The Disappearance and Murder of Katelyn Markham.

The Murder of Ashley Smylie (2024)

The murder of Ashley Smylie is one of the most shocking murder cases from 2024 for several reasons. The 40-year-old woman was murdered by her teenage daughter, Carly Gregg, on March 19th, 2024. Carly, just 14-years-old at the time, shot her mother to death inside their Brandon, Mississippi home. 

Hours later, as Ashley's husband/Carly's stepfather, Heath Smylie, entered their home, Carly shot him, as well. Heath was struck in the shoulder by a bullet but was able to wrangle the gun away from Carly. The teen girl fled the home after that but was later found by police and taken into custody.

Despite her young age, Carly was charged as an adult with Carly was charged with first-degree murder, attempted murder, and tampering with evidence. While many cases take years to go before a jury, Carly's defense team opted for a speedy trial - which began in September 2024. 

Carly's defense team argued that she was not guilty by reason of insanity. Professionals for the defense testified that Carly suffered from improperly treated mental illnesses and has "no memory whatsoever" of shooting her mother and stepfather. In contrast, witnesses for the prosecution argued the opposite; that she appeared to be of sound mind in the events prior to the murder.

The jury ultimately sided with the prosecution and Carly was found guilty of all charges. She was sentenced to life in prison for both the murder and attempted murder charges, with an additional 10 years for tampering with evidence.

Carly’s life sentence at the age of 15 has sparked widespread debate. Some believe that she deserves to spend the rest of her life in prison, while others argue that she can be rehabilitated and should receive a lesser sentence. This debate continues to unfold on various online forums.

Full story: The Murder of Ashley Smylie.

The Disappearance and Presumed Murder of Aranda Briones (2019)

Aranda Briones vanished on January 13th, 2019. The then-16-year-old teen left her Moreno Valley, California home that day to spend time with a male friend, Owen Skylar Shover (pictured left). Aranda never returned home and was never seen or heard from again.

After Aranda was reported missing, suspicions quickly fell upon Shover, as he was the last known person to have seen her before her disappearance. Shover told investigators he dropped Aranda off at Moreno Valley Community Park between 6:00 and 6:30 PM that evening and never saw her again. However, surveillance footage and cell phone pings both contradicted his statements.

Investigators spent the following weeks gathering evidence before arresting both Owen Skylar Shover and his brother, Gary Shover (pictured right) on February 11th, 2019. Owen Shover was charged with both conspiring to commit murder and first-degree murder. Gary Shover was charged with first-degree murder and a special-circumstance allegation of lying in wait.

In 2022, a judge dismissed the first-degree murder and lying in wait charges against Gary Shover; instead, charging him with accessory to first-degree murder. He pleaded guilty to those charges in June 2024 and sentenced to a year in jail, plus another year of probation. 

In August 2024, Owen Shover's trial began. It was then that a motive was finally revealed. Both Aranda and Owen had been expelled from their school in February 2018 - a little less than a year before Aranda's disappearance. The expulsion followed a November 2017 incident in which Aranda and Owen were both caught skipping school. As a truancy officer approached them, Owen tossed Aranda a gun, and Aranda tossed the gun into a nearby canal. The officer witnessed the entire event, leading to disciplinary action for both teens. 

The prosecution believes that Aranda's murder was revenge for the expulsion. Evidence from text messages shows Gary's involvement after-the-fact. Although Aranda's remains have never been found, it is believed the Shover brothers buried her in the San Bernandino mountains.

A jury deliberated for less than a day before finding Owen Shover guilty on all charges. In October of 2024, he was sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole.

Full story: The Disappearance and Presumed Murder of Aranda Briones.

The Murder of Blaze Bernstein (2018)

Blaze Bernstein was had just completed his first semester of college when he vanished on January 2nd, 2018. The then-19-year-old was in his hometown of Lake Forest, California at the time of his disappearance. Blaze left his parent's house on the evening of his disappearance after being picked up by a former high school classmate, Samuel Woodward (then 20). Blaze never returned home and was never seen alive again.

Days later, on January 9th, 2018, Blaze's body was found in Borrego Park. He had been stabbed to death. It did not take long for authorities to zero in on Samuel Woodward as a suspect. Investigators eventually found DNA at the crime scene that linked Woodward to the murder. Woodward was arrested just days after Blaze's body was found. 

Soon, it became clear that this was more than just a murder case. In fact, investigators found evidence that Blaze's killing was a hate crime. Woodward was reportedly part of a Neo-Nazi group called the Attomwaffen Division. The group is described as “relatively small, but incredibly anti-Semitic and hateful.” Additionally, evidence from Woodward's cell phone and computer that included “a large number of texts and images that spew hate at every protected group.” 

Noting that Blaze was both gay and Jewish, Woodward was charged with murder with the special circumstance of a hate crime. He pleaded not guilty, however during his 2024 trial, Woodward defense did not deny that he killed Blaze. Instead, they argued that Woodward, conflicted by his own sexuality, acted in a fit of rage - but that the crime was not premeditated or a hate crime.

The jury ultimately sided with the prosecution. After deliberating for a day, the jury found Samuel Woodward guilty of first-degree murder and a hate crime in the killing of Blaze Bernstein. He was later sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole. 

Full story: The Murder of Blaze Bernstein.

The Murder of Milana Li (2022)

Milana Li was only 13 years old when she was found murdered near her family's Beaverton, Oregon home on May 10th, 2022. The young girl was reported missing 2 days earlier, after she left her family's home to go for a walk and never returned. Police initially classified Milana as a runaway, but the case quickly shifted to a murder case after her body was found in a small stream at Westside Linear Park. 

A little under two weeks later, on May 21st, 2022, it was announced that Daniel Ryan Gore had been arrested and charged with Milana's murder. Gore was only 16 years-old at the time of his arrest, but the state opted to charge him as an adult. He already had a criminal record and was on probation prior to his arrest. Gore violated said probation in February 2022 and was sent to live with his father and stepfather in Salem shortly thereafter. Two weeks later, Gore ran away. His family was unaware of his whereabouts until his arrest for Milana's murder.

Gore was charged with 3 counts total in Milana's case: murder in the first degree, rape in the first degree, and sexual abuse in the first degree. He pleaded not guilty to the charges. During his 2024 trial, it was revealed that, in May 2022, Gore was living in a tent in a wooded area near Progress Ridge. Milana, who wanted to become friends with an older crowd, had recently become acquainted with Gore. 

Milana and Gore agreed to meet up on the afternoon of May 8th, 2022. According to testimony/evidence presented at trial, the two spent that afternoon "aimlessly riding buses up and down Southwest Scholls Ferry Road" before Gore led Milana to a secluded area near his tent where he raped her and strangled her to death. 

After a two-week trial, Daniel Ryan Gore was found guilty on all charges. On December 2nd, 2024, he was sentenced to life in prison with possibility of parole after 38 years.

Full story: The Murder of Milana Li.

Thanks to everyone who continues to support True Case Files. Here's to hoping more of these cases are resolved in 2025!

Lists from previous years:

• Resolved in 2023: Part 1 & Part 2
• Resolved in 2022: Part 1 & Part 2