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Emma Walker's murder at the hands of her boyfriend, Riley Gaul, remains one of the most twisted cases ever seen in Knoxville, Tennessee. Dating back to 2016, 16-year-old Emma Walker seemed to be living her teenage dream, dating a boy on the football team and being an active part of the cheerleading team. But things changed rather drastically for the young girl over the course of their relationship.
Riley Gaul and Emma Walker had started dating two years before the murder, when Gaul was a junior and Walker was still a freshman. Their initial great relationship turned sour soon as Riley showed a hidden controlling side to his character, something that led to a lot of breakups and fights between them.
In 2016, roughly two weeks before Emma's murder, she ended things with Riley Gaul for good, something that the 18-year-old college freshman could not digest. After a series of failed and ludicrous attempts at winning Emma back, Gaul allegedly shot her to death by firing two shots at her from outside her bedroom.
Though Gaul denied his involvement, he was charged with murder and a jury found him guilty of first-degree murder, as well as stalking, felony murder, tampering with evidence, reckless endangerment, possessing a firearm during a dangerous felony, and theft. He was sentenced to life in prison with the possibility of parole after 51 years.
Gaul remains in prison as of now, with his multiple appeals for a re-trial turned down over the years.
What happened between Emma and Riley?
Emma and Riley's main issues arose during their two years together, where Riley's controlling nature became a problem for Emma. Though they seemed like a good fit at first, with even Emma's parents approving of the handsome young man, their constant fights and Riley's outbursts changed his impression completely.
Though they still kept in touch for a while after this one particular incident where Emma's parents took away her phone and forbade her from seeing him, around Halloween of 2016, Walker ended things with Gaul for good. Shortly after, Riley Gaul showed his desperation by faking his own kidnapping.
After all this failed, he resorted to killing her. Riley's friends also noticed his changed behavior and some suspicious activities, which led them to help the police in getting Riley to admit through an elaborate sting operation.
Where did Riley Gaul go to college?
During the murder of Emma Walker, Riley Gaul was already a college student, having just started at Maryville College that year. Emma was still a cheerleader at Central High School at the time.
When they met, both were studying at Central High School.
What was the cause of death of Emma Walker?
Emma Walker's cause of death was determined to be a fatal bullet wound behind her left ear. Emma was found by her mother on November 21, 2016, unresponsive in her bedroom. She immediately called the police.
Though it was initially mistaken for suicide, police soon discovered a hole in the bedroom wall that seemed to tell a different story.
Knox County Sheriff’s Deputy Nikki Bules said to ABC:
"There was a hole in the wall… It appeared to be a bullet hole. At that point, I knew that it probably was not a suicide."
Ultimately it was determined that the perpetrator had fired two bullets inside the room, with one hitting Emma behind the ear.
This remains a case that is highly debated and discussed in true crime circuits, both in shows and podcasts all around America. Riley continues to serve his life sentence.
