US2 min(s) read
A murderer who infamously conducted a television interview posing as a concerned neighbor in 2011 went viral after it transpired that he had actually killed the young woman in question, but what has come of him since? Well, aside from being in prison, of course...
Stephen McDaniel broke into his neighbor's apartment, Lauren Giddings, a fellow Mercer University law school graduate, before murdering her and dismembering her body.
Just days later, Giddings was reported missing by her family and friends. Following increasing concern around her whereabouts, local television station WGXA sent a reporter and camera crew to Giddings residence, where they interviewed McDaniel, an apparently worried neighbor.
"We don't know where she is," McDaniel claimed. "The only thing we can think of is that maybe she went out running and someone snatched her. One of her friends had a key; we went inside and tried to see anything that was amiss. She had a door jam that was sitting right by it, so there was no sign that anyone broke in."
McDaniel described Giddings as "nice as can be" and a "very personable" neighbor, but it was when he learned that a "body" had been found that his demeanor drastically changed.
His charade as a concerned friend evaporated into sheer stress as he claimed that he had to sit down due to the news.
Police eventually named McDaniel as a potential suspect before he was arrested, interviewed, and charged with the murder of Giddings.
McDaniel had been vocal about his disdain for women, posting online about his hatred for them and his desire to torture them, perhaps born out of his failure to lose his virginity at age 25, or diminishing success on the dating site eHarmony.
When questioned by police, he declined to allow detectives to search his apartment, explaining that this was due to the "lawyer in him", and that he was "always just protective of my space."
McDaniel was eventually charged, and in 2014, he pleaded guilty to the murder of Giddings and was handed a life sentence with the possibility of parole in 2041.
Now 41, McDaniel has lodged several unsuccessful appeals against his conviction due to legal incompetence, misadvice, and ineffective counsel, but this was ultimately dismissed on the grounds that it was "over a year late".
As recent as 2023, McDaniel has appealed again, but currently remains in prison. While he may be eligible for parole in 2041, it is reportedly unlikely.
