Tennessee Man Killed Girlfriend & Watched Cartoons With Her 2 Boys Before Killing Them, Too
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Soldier Admitted Killing Family, Investigator Testifies, Matthew Perkins Charged With Killing Girlfriend, Sons
A Coffee County district attorney investigator testified Friday that a former Army recruiter admitted to killing his 26-year-old girlfriend in September and then watched cartoons with her two sons before eventually killing them, too.
Images: Family Found Dead In Manchester Home
Sgt. 1st Class Matthew Perkins is accused of killing his girlfriend, Stephanie Hershman, and her two young sons in September in Coffee County. The state called three witness to the stand during Friday's hearing.
Lauren Nettles with the Coffee County Sheriff's Department testified Friday that when she entered Hershman's home during the investigation, she smelled a strong odor and saw white trash bags inside a bedroom closet. It was there that she found the bodies of the Hershman and her sons.
Nettles testified that baby powder and ice packs had been placed on top of the bodies, which were then covered with a shower curtain.
Investigator Jason Kennedy testified Friday that Perkins had barricaded himself inside a hotel room before his arrest in September. Kennedy said Perkins told him he wasn't ready to come out because he needed to finish writing his memoir.
A Coffee County district attorney investigator, Billy Cook, testified that Perkins told him that he stabbed Hershman to death after giving her drugs.
"They were at her house on Sunday, Sept. 18. He had just given her morphine, and she snorted," Cook said. "Perkins said that she didn't look herself; he said that she looked bad, like a bad person to him. That's when he said, then and there, he knew what he had to do."
Perkins then watched cartoons with her two sons, 3-year-old Jaython and 1-year-old Jaylon, before killing them, said Cook.
"Perkins said he put Jaylon in the bathtub and beat him real bad," Cook said. "He asked Jaylon if he was ready to go to heaven to meet his mother, and then he killed him."
In cross examination, Perkins' attorney asked if Perkins seemed to have mental issues or was on drugs. Cook replied no.
The hearing ended just after 10:30 a.m. The case goes to a grand jury Jan. 11. Another hearing is scheduled for Jan. 19.
Perkins is being held in Franklin County for security reasons.
"I've been better. I've been worse," Perkins told Channel 4 News last week.
Perkins served time as a military police officer in Iraq and Afghanistan. The Army has said that Perkins had two psychological evaluations that did not show any signs of post traumatic stress, but in testimony Friday, it was mentioned that Perkins had, at one point, been diagnosed with PTSD after an injury in Iraq.
Source Link HERE
Soldier Admitted Killing Family, Investigator Testifies, Matthew Perkins Charged With Killing Girlfriend, Sons
A Coffee County district attorney investigator testified Friday that a former Army recruiter admitted to killing his 26-year-old girlfriend in September and then watched cartoons with her two sons before eventually killing them, too.
Images: Family Found Dead In Manchester Home
Sgt. 1st Class Matthew Perkins is accused of killing his girlfriend, Stephanie Hershman, and her two young sons in September in Coffee County. The state called three witness to the stand during Friday's hearing.
Lauren Nettles with the Coffee County Sheriff's Department testified Friday that when she entered Hershman's home during the investigation, she smelled a strong odor and saw white trash bags inside a bedroom closet. It was there that she found the bodies of the Hershman and her sons.
Nettles testified that baby powder and ice packs had been placed on top of the bodies, which were then covered with a shower curtain.
Investigator Jason Kennedy testified Friday that Perkins had barricaded himself inside a hotel room before his arrest in September. Kennedy said Perkins told him he wasn't ready to come out because he needed to finish writing his memoir.
A Coffee County district attorney investigator, Billy Cook, testified that Perkins told him that he stabbed Hershman to death after giving her drugs.
"They were at her house on Sunday, Sept. 18. He had just given her morphine, and she snorted," Cook said. "Perkins said that she didn't look herself; he said that she looked bad, like a bad person to him. That's when he said, then and there, he knew what he had to do."
Perkins then watched cartoons with her two sons, 3-year-old Jaython and 1-year-old Jaylon, before killing them, said Cook.
"Perkins said he put Jaylon in the bathtub and beat him real bad," Cook said. "He asked Jaylon if he was ready to go to heaven to meet his mother, and then he killed him."
In cross examination, Perkins' attorney asked if Perkins seemed to have mental issues or was on drugs. Cook replied no.
The hearing ended just after 10:30 a.m. The case goes to a grand jury Jan. 11. Another hearing is scheduled for Jan. 19.
Perkins is being held in Franklin County for security reasons.
"I've been better. I've been worse," Perkins told Channel 4 News last week.
Perkins served time as a military police officer in Iraq and Afghanistan. The Army has said that Perkins had two psychological evaluations that did not show any signs of post traumatic stress, but in testimony Friday, it was mentioned that Perkins had, at one point, been diagnosed with PTSD after an injury in Iraq.
