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Katherine Schaffstall

Katherine Schaffstall is a Senior Writer, True Crime for Us Weekly and joined the team in December 2025. She previously worked at McClatchy with the In Touch and Life & Style team as an Associate Editor, where she covered all things entertainment, reality TV, pop culture and true crime. Katherine has also written for publications including The Hollywood Reporter, The Sun and Parade. Originally from Buffalo, New York, she moved to New York City in 2014 to attend Marymount Manhattan College. She was a double major in Digital Journalism and Communication Arts and graduated in 2018. Katherine is currently based in New York City.

Arkansas Teacher Arrested After He Allegedly Choked His Student Who Called Him ‘Bruh’

Arkansas Teacher Allegedly Choked His Student Who Called Him ‘Bruh’

An Arkansas teacher was arrested after he allegedly choked a student who called him “bruh” several times during a classroom spat, which was caught on camera. The West Memphis Police Department said that Tracey Matthews, who is a teacher at Wonder Junior High School in West Memphis, was charged with aggravated assault on April 15 […]

North Carolina Woman Arrested After She Allegedly Killed Her Husband, 93, by Hitting Him With a Vase

Woman Allegedly Killed Her Husband, 93, by Hitting Him With a Vase

A 93-year-old man in North Carolina has died after his wife allegedly struck him with a vase in the middle of the night. The Rowan County Sheriff’s Office said in a news release that Yorleni Shoff called 911 around 2 a.m. on April 9 saying her husband, Richard Shoff, was lying on the floor and […]

California Man Allegedly Shot Ex-Wife and Her New Boyfriend in a Crime of 'Passion,' Police Say

Man Shot Ex-Wife and Her New Boyfriend in a Crime of 'Passion,' Police Say

A man in California has been arrested after he shot his ex-wife and her new boyfriend after he allegedly lost his “temper.” The Dinuba Police Department arrested Miguel Angel Saldana Garcia and he was formally charged with two counts of murder on Wednesday, April 22. Police said that Garcia, 43, fatally shot his ex-wife, Irai […]

Everything the Reiner Kids Have Said About Parents Rob Reiner and Michele Singer Reiner's Murders

What Rob Reiner and Michele Singer Reiner's Kids Said About Their Murders

Rob Reiner and Michele Singer Reiner were found dead in their Brentwood, Los Angeles, home on December 14, 2025, after being stabbed to death. Their son Nick Reiner was subsequently arrested and charged with two counts of first-degree murder. He pleaded not guilty and is currently awaiting trial. A spokesperson for the family released a […]

Dad Arrested After His 3-Year-Old Son Fell From 11th Floor After Being Left Alone in Their Apartment

Dad Arrested After His Son, 3, Fell From 11th Floor After Being Left Alone

A Missouri man has been arrested after he allegedly left his 3-year-old son home alone in his apartment, leaving the child to wander into a hallway and fall to his death from the 11th floor. Tarvis T. Phenix Jr. was charged with one count of first-degree endangering the welfare of a child resulting in death […]

Tanner Horner Mom Breaks Down in Court Following His Arrest for Athena Strand Murder

Tanner Horner’s Mom Cries in Court Over Athena Strand’s Murder

After FedEx driver Tanner Horner pleaded guilty to killing 7-year-old Athena Strand, his mother broke down in court while discussing the crime. “I am so mad at him. I want to just tear his ass up,” Horner’s mother, who was referred to as Mrs. Horner by attorneys, said through tears during a hearing on Wednesday, […]

1 Teen Dead, 5 Injured in Shooting at Louisiana Mall, Several Suspects Taken Into Custody

1 Dead, 5 Injured in Shooting at Louisiana Mall, Several People in Custody

One teenager is dead and five are injured following a mass shooting at the Mall of Louisiana, while several people have been taken into custody for questioning. Police said that the shooting took place on Thursday, April 23, at 1:22 p.m. near the food court at the Baton Rouge mall, according to NBC News. Baton […]

Michigan Mom Allegedly Tried to Kill Her 5-Year-Old Daughter, Child Found Severely Injured in Woods

Mom Allegedly Tried to Kill Her 5-Year-Old, Child Found Injured in Woods

A mother in Michigan has been accused of allegedly trying to kill her 5-year-old daughter after the child was found severely injured in the woods behind their home. Christina Kay Crow was arrested on Monday, April 20, and charged with one count of assault with intent to murder and one count of first-degree child abuse. […]

Georgia Fugitive Found Hiding in Vent of Air Conditioner After Nearly 2 Years on the Run

Fugitive Found Hiding in Vent of Air Conditioner After Nearly 2 Year Search

After nearly two years on the run, authorities in Georgia have arrested a fugitive who was found inside of an air conditioner vent. The Grady County Sheriff’s Office confirmed in a statement that Kayla McKenzie was arrested in Moultrie, Georgia, on Monday, April 20. McKenzie was on the run for nearly two years after she […]

Dad Arrested for Child Abuse After 'Vigorously' Shaking Baby in Front of Young Siblings

Dad Arrested for Child Abuse After Shaking Baby in Front of Young Siblings

A father in Florida has been accused of abusing his 7-month-old son for months, and he allegedly shook the boy so hard that he caused a near-fatal brain bleed. Anthony Lamar Hester was arrested and charged with aggravated child abuse in connection to the injuries he allegedly caused his son to sustain, according to online […]

Rex Heuermann's Ex-Wife Reacts to His Guilty Plea: Everything She Has Said About the Case

Everything Murderer Rex Heuermann's Ex-Wife Has Said About His Guilty Plea

Asa Ellerup once insisted her husband was innocent. Then her ex-husband, Rex Heuermann, confessed — to her face — that he killed eight women. The journey from fierce defender to reluctant believer played out across Peacock’s docuseries The Gilgo Beach Killer: House of Secrets, which concluded with its fourth and final episode on April 23, […]

Colorado State Senate Candidate Arrested After 4-Year-Old Daughter Nearly Drowned When He Was at Bar

Politician Arrested After Daughter, 4, Nearly Drowned While He Was at Bar

Colorado state senate candidate Frederick Alfred Jr. was arrested after his 4-year-old daughter nearly drowned in a hotel hot tub at the same time he went out to the bar. Alfred, 38, was with his son, 6, and daughter, 4, at the Opal Key Resort and Marina in Key West, Florida, when he left them […]

Tennessee Teacher Arrested After Allegedly Dragging a Nonverbal Student, 9, Across a Rug

Teacher Arrested After Allegedly Dragging Nonverbal Student, 9, Across Rug

A teacher in Tennessee has been arrested after she was accused of dragging a nonverbal student across a rug, which caused the minor to be injured and have a “blood red mark.” Meg Day was arrested on April 16 and was charged with assault, according to McNairy County Sheriff’s Office records. The arrest took place […]

Husband Arrested After Allegedly Killing Assistant Principal Wife in 'Accidental Shooting'

Husband Arrested After Allegedly Killing Wife in 'Accidental Shooting'

An elementary school assistant principal in Texas was fatally shot inside of her home during an “accidental shooting,” and her husband has since been arrested and charged with manslaughter in connection to her death. Officers responded to Lindsay Velasquez’s home around 7:30 p.m. on April 17 following a report that someone had been accidentally shot […]

Shawn Licari Kendra Licari and Lauryn

Inside the Messages Kendra Licari Sent Her Teen Daughter Amid Catfish Scandal

Michigan high school student Lauryn Licari started to receive concerning text messages in 2021, which consisted of hostile and threatening messages about her relationship with her boyfriend, Owen McKenny. After Owen began to receive similar text messages of his own, police got involved in the matter. Following an intense investigation, Lauryn’s mother, Kendra Licari, was […]

Remains of 3 Young Children Found in Wooded Area in Memphis, Police Launch Investigation

Remains of 3 Young Children Found in Wooded Area in Memphis, Police Confirm

The remains of three young children have been found in a wooded area in Memphis, Tennessee, with police believing the bodies may have been there for years. The Memphis Police Department said in a press release shared on Wednesday, April 22, that the children were believed to be between 3 and 7 years old. Police […]

Maryland Man Arrested in Connection to Wife's Death 24 Years After She Disappeared

Man Arrested in Connection to Wife's Death 24 Years After She Disappeared

A Maryland man has been arrested in connection to the death of his wife 24 years after she went missing. Michelle Rust was just 24 years old when she went missing in July 2002 from her family’s home in Arbutus. More than two decades later, her husband, Dwight “DJ” Rust Jr., was arrested on Tuesday, […]

'The Gilgo Beach Killer: House of Secrets' Finale: Rex Heuermann’s Family Reacts to Guilty Confession

Rex Heuermann’s Family Reacts to Guilty Confession on 'House of Secrets'

Peacock’s The Gilgo Beach Killer: House of Secrets concluded with the fourth and final episode on Thursday, April 23, which gave an inside look into Rex Heuermann’s family’s reaction to his guilty plea in connection to eight killings. On April 8, Heuermann pleaded guilty to murdering seven women and admitted to killing an eighth. As […]

Dad Threatened Infant She Would Be 'Dead Baby' If She Kept Crying Before Suffocating Her

Dad Threatened Infant She Would Be 'Dead Baby' If She Kept Crying

An Ohio man has been accused of killing his 4-month-old daughter after he allegedly threatened that she would be a “dead baby” if she kept crying. Marcellaus Nekie Malone was taken into custody after he was charged with one count each of murder, involuntary manslaughter and domestic violence, as well as seven counts of endangering […]

Amish 'Healer' Charged With Trafficking, Forced Labor and More: Everything to Know About Case

Amish 'Healer' Charged With Trafficking and More: Everything to Know

A Missouri man who positioned himself as a “healer” within the Amish community now faces involuntary manslaughter charges in connection with the death of a 6-month-old boy — adding to a growing list of serious criminal allegations that include trafficking, kidnapping and sodomy. Sam Shetler was charged with involuntary manslaughter after he was accused of […]

Man, 73, Sentenced for Murder 40 Years After His Girlfriend's Disappearance and Death

Man, 73, Sentenced for Murder 40 Years After His Girlfriend's Death

An Oregon man has been found guilty after he was connected to the death of his girlfriend, who was last seen alive in 1983. Mark Sanfratello was arrested in June 2025 in connection with the murder of Teresa Peroni, who was 27 years old at the time of her disappearance. The Oregon Department of Justice […]

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