Nancy Ann Seaman (née D'Onofrio; born May 13, 1952) is an American woman and former teacher at Longacre Elementary School in

Farmington Hills, Michigan Farmington Hills is a city in Oakland County, Michigan, Oakland County in the U.S. state of Michigan. A northwestern Metro Detroit, suburb of Detroit, Farmington Hills is located roughly from downtown Detroit. As of the 2020 United States censu ...

, who was convicted of

first-degree murder Murder is the unlawful killing of another human without justification or valid excuse committed with the necessary intention as defined by the law in a specific jurisdiction. ("The killing of another person without justification or excuse ...

in 2005 for killing her husband with a

hatchet A hatchet (from the Old French language, Old French , a diminutive form of ''hache'', 'axe' of Germanic origin) is a Tool, single-handed striking tool with a sharp blade on one side used to cut and split wood, and a hammerhead on the other side ...

. Jurors rejected her argument that she killed her husband in

self-defense Self-defense (self-defence primarily in Commonwealth English) is a countermeasure that involves defending the health and well-being of oneself from harm. The use of the right of self-defense as a legal justification for the use of Force (law), ...

and decided that the murder was

premeditated Malice aforethought is the "premeditation" or "predetermination" (with malice) required as an element of some crimes in some jurisdictions and a unique element for first-degree or aggravated murder in a few. Insofar as the term is still in use, ...

. She is currently serving her

life sentence Life imprisonment is any sentence of imprisonment under which the convicted individual is to remain incarcerated for the rest of their natural life (or until pardoned or commuted to a fixed term). Crimes that result in life imprisonment are c ...

at the Women's Huron Valley Correctional Facility.

Early life and marriage

Nancy Ann D'Onofrio was born on May 13, 1952, in

Lincoln Park, Michigan Lincoln Park is a city in Wayne County, Michigan, Wayne County in the U.S. state of Michigan. The population was 38,144 at the 2010 United States Census, 2010 census, down from 40,008 at the 2000 United States Census, 2000 census. With a populati ...

, to Lenore and Eugene D'Onofrio. She was the

valedictorian Valedictorian is an academic title for the class rank, highest-performing student of a graduation, graduating class of an academic institution in the United States. The valedictorian is generally determined by an academic institution's grade poin ...

of her high school class. She met her husband Bob Seaman in 1972 and they married a year later. Bob worked at

Ford Motor Company Ford Motor Company (commonly known as Ford) is an American multinational corporation, multinational automobile manufacturer headquartered in Dearborn, Michigan, United States. It was founded by Henry Ford and incorporated on June 16, 1903. T ...

while Nancy stayed home. In 1979, Nancy and Bob had their first son Jeff, followed by son Greg in 1981. In 1995, she began working as an elementary schoolteacher.

Marital abuse

Shortly into the couple's marriage, Nancy cites her first incident of

spousal abuse Domestic violence is violence that occurs in a domestic setting, such as in a marriage or cohabitation. In a broader sense, abuse including nonphysical abuse in such settings is called domestic abuse. The term "domestic violence" is often use ...

, where her drunken husband attempted to push her out of a moving car. She later claimed that other incidents of

physical abuse Physical abuse is any intentional act causing injury or trauma to another person or animal by way of bodily contact. In most cases, children are the victims of physical abuse, but adults can also be victims, as in cases of domestic violence or ...

occurred in her marriage sporadically, but intensified after her husband lost his job at Borg Warner Automotive. She stated that "Bob would shove. That's what he liked to do, shove and push against walls. Most of my bruisings were either that he would grab me by an article of clothing or an arm. He would squeeze my arm and push me against the wall. Sometimes I'd get knocked down." Nancy's younger son Greg stated that he saw his father both physically and mentally abuse his mother; however, her older son Jeff denies that any abuse ever occurred.

Murder and investigation

By 2004, Nancy and Bob Seaman was planning to divorce. They were living on different floors of their home. In February, Nancy was planning to move out of the couple's home and into a

condo A condominium (or condo for short) is an ownership regime in which a building (or group of buildings) is divided into multiple units that are either each separately owned, or owned in common with exclusive rights of occupation by individual own ...

, which she told her husband was for their younger son, Greg. Nancy claimed that on Monday morning May 10, 2004, after Bob had been away for the weekend, an argument ensued over her moving out. She claimed that her husband was holding a kitchen knife, became enraged and chased her into their garage. According to physical evidence, Nancy grabbed a hatchet in the garage and struck her husband with it at least 20 times. Following the murder, Nancy went into school that day after she failed to find a

substitute teacher A substitute teacher is a person who teaches a school class when the regular teacher is absent or unavailable; e.g., because of illness, personal leave, maternal leave and so on. "Substitute teacher" (usually abbreviated as sub) is the most c ...

. Nancy Seaman was arrested by police on the Wednesday following the murder. A relative of Bob's informed police that Bob was missing and when police went to question Nancy, they found Bob's body wrapped in a tarp with

duct tape Duct tape or duck tape is cloth- or scrim-backed pressure-sensitive tape, often coated with polyethylene. A variety of constructions exist using different backings and adhesives, and the term "duct tape" has been genericized to refer to all o ...

in the back of her

Ford Explorer The Ford Explorer is a range of Sport utility vehicle, SUVs manufactured by Ford Motor Company since the 1991 model year. The first five-door SUV produced by Ford, the Explorer, was introduced as a replacement for the three-door Ford Bronco II ...

. Police also found the knife that was used to stab Bob to death inside the tarp. Despite Nancy's claims of self-defense, police had a different version of events. Instead of Bob attacking Nancy, police alleged it was the other way around, claiming that Nancy ambushed her husband in their kitchen with the hatchet, then dragged his body into the garage where she stabbed him with a knife and beat him with a

sledgehammer A sledgehammer is a tool with a large, flat, massive, often metal head, attached to a long wooden or solid handle. The long handle is combined with a heavy head which allows the sledgehammer to pick up momentum during a swing and applying a large ...

. The police had evidence to support their claims. Just a day before the killing,

video surveillance Closed-circuit television (CCTV), also known as video surveillance, is the use of closed-circuit television cameras to transmit a signal to a specific place on a limited set of monitors. It differs from broadcast television in that the signal ...

captured Nancy purchasing the hatchet at the

Home Depot The Home Depot, Inc., often referred to as Home Depot, is an American multinational corporation, multinational home improvement retail corporation that sells tools, construction products, appliances, and services, including fuel and transportat ...

, which she said was used to cut down a stump in their front yard. The following day, Nancy returned to Home Depot, where she purchased duct tape, the tarp,

bleach Bleach is the generic name for any chemical product that is used industrially or domestically to remove color from (i.e. to whiten) fabric or fiber (in a process called bleaching) or to disinfect after cleaning. It often refers specifically t ...

, and other cleaning products. A third trip to Home Depot revealed that Nancy shoplifted a hatchet, and then attempted to return it with the

receipt A receipt (also known as a packing list, packing slip, packaging slip, (delivery) docket, shipping list, delivery list, bill of the parcel, Manifest (transportation), manifest, or customer receipt) is a document acknowledging that something h ...

she received after purchasing the first hatchet. On the Friday following the murder, Nancy was formally charged with

; she pleaded not guilty to the charge.

Trial and conviction

Six months after the murder on November 29, 2004, Nancy Seaman's murder trial began. She had spent the last six months in the Oakland County Jail. While Nancy claimed that she had killed her husband in

prosecutor A prosecutor is a legal representative of the prosecution in states with either the adversarial system, which is adopted in common law, or inquisitorial system, which is adopted in Civil law (legal system), civil law. The prosecution is the ...

Lisa Ortleib-Gorcyca alleged that Nancy killed her husband out of rage, stating how Nancy was angry that although she planned to leave her husband, Bob was about to leave her first. Ortleib-Gorcyca also stated how Nancy believed that her husband was having an affair with another woman, although this wasn't the case. She alleged that after a marital fight, Nancy went straight to

where she purchased the hatchet she would use to kill her husband. Despite the prosecutor's statements, Nancy persisted in her arguments of self-defense. She testified in her own defense on December 7, 2004, saying that she and Bob got into "the grand finale of all fights" on May 10 because she planned to leave. Nancy went on to describe the violent struggle that ended in Bob's death. In the end however, Nancy was convicted of first-degree, premeditated murder, which in Michigan carries an automatic life sentence. Following this conviction, trial judge John McDonald reduced this conviction to

second-degree murder Murder is the unlawful killing of another human without justification or valid excuse committed with the necessary intention as defined by the law in a specific jurisdiction. ("The killing of another person without justification or excus ...

, citing a lack of evidence to support a

conviction. This decision was later overturned by the

Michigan Court of Appeals The Michigan Court of Appeals is the intermediate-level appellate court of the state of Michigan. It was created by the Michigan Constitution of 1963, and commenced operations in 1965. Its opinions are reporter (law), reported both in an officia ...

back to first degree murder. She is serving her sentence in Women's Huron Valley Correctional Facility.

Appeals

After Nancy Seaman's appeals in state court were exhausted, she petitioned for a new trial in federal court. On November 4, 2010, her conviction was overturned by

United States federal judge In the United States, a federal judge is a judge who serves on a court established under Article Three of the U.S. Constitution. Often called "Article III judges", federal judges include the chief justice and associate justices of the U.S. S ...

Bernard A. Friedman Bernard Alvin Friedman (born September 23, 1943) is a Senior status, senior United States federal judge, United States district judge of the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan. Education and career Born in Detroit, ...

on the basis that her defense attorneys were not fully able to develop their theory of battered woman syndrome. A new trial was ordered, until January 19, 2011, when another federal judge ordered a

stay of proceedings A stay of proceedings is a ruling by the court in civil and criminal procedure that halts further legal process in a trial or other legal proceeding. The court can subsequently lift the stay and resume proceedings based on events taking place ...

in her appeal. However, on November 25, 2012, it was announced that a three-judge panel for the Sixth Circuit of the United States Court of Appeals denied Nancy's motion for a new trial, citing that: "Battered spouse syndrome (

Battered person syndrome Battered woman syndrome (BWS) is a pattern of signs and symptoms displayed by a woman who has suffered persistent intimate partner violence—psychological, physical, or sexual—from her partner (usually male). Although the diagnosis has mainly ...

) is not itself a defense under Michigan law."

References