Leroy Schmitz was responsible for the murder of his wife, Mary Ann Schmitz after the two had a heated argument on the night of June 18, 1999. He kept on putting immense pressure on her neck until she couldn't breathe anymore, leading to her death. Leroy was found by a patrolling officer from Whitefish PD in a rampant state, trying to give CPR to his wife, and crying.
When the paramedics arrived, they declared Mary dead. Leroy kept on claiming himself to be innocent, saying that the murder was completely unintentional. However, when investigators discovered more about his past history, they were shocked about the crimes he had committed.
The complete investigation behind the crimes committed by Leroy Schmitz is documented in Netflix's I AM A KILLER Season 6.
Episode 5 titled Time Bomb dives into the culprit's past and is added with a personal interview of Leroy Schmitz, who narrates the story behind his crimes. Leroy is currently incarcerated at Montana State Prison, awaiting his re-trial, which is set to take place in 2025.
5 key details about the crimes of Leroy Schmitz
1) Leroy Schmitz spent his childhood in and out of juvenile detention centers
Leroy was born in 1958 and was the eldest sibling, among the four children adopted by the Schmitz family. He spent his childhood in the town of Plentywood, Montana, and described it to be a traumatic experience. As per Leroy's testimony in the episode, he said he was bullied at school and was brutally beaten by his father.
However, as per his brother Gerald's testimony, this was a completely fabricated story. Gerald revealed Leroy always needed more attention from the rest of the siblings, as he had a history of getting in trouble with the law. He claimed that Leroy spent most part of his childhood, in and out of juvenile detention centers.
2) Leroy Schmitz was a drug addict
It was in 1977 when Leroy Schmitz left home at the age of 19. With the money provided by his father, he traveled from states across the country. He soon fell into drug abuse, doing cocaine, LSD, and heroin. Soon, he ran out of money and became homeless.
This was the time when he committed numerous instances of petty crimes and was incarcerated multiple times as per the documentary. Leroy's behavior soon turned more violent, and then took a grave turn when he met a 43-year-old woman named Barbara Seed.
3) Leroy Schmitz strangled Barbara Seed to death
In 1986, Barbara Seed was working as a nurse in Newford, Massachusetts, when she met a charming young man named Leroy Schmitz. Soon they came into a relationship with him and Leroy soon moved into Barbara's residence. This is when he started unveiling his true face.
In the episode, one of Barbara's close friends, who decided to remain anonymous, revealed that Barbara soon began to regret her decision to take him in. Leroy soon turned violent in his actions. Barbara told her friend that when she asked Leroy to leave her house, he threatened to kill her. She tried to inform the police, but they quickly dismissed the case.
It was on October 5, 1986, when the police discovered Barbara strangled to death. As per the episode, he claimed his innocence, directing it to be a case of self-defense. However, he was put on trial in September 1987, and Leroy was sentenced to 18 to 20 years in prison for manslaughter. However, he was released 10 years later on parole.
4) Leroy Schmitz killed Mary Ann Schmitz after he was released from prison
After spending his time in prison for the murder of Barbara Seed, he was released in 1997. He went back to his hometown in Montana, to start off a new life. It was in November 1998, when Leroy Schmitz met the 39-year-old Mary Ann Schmitz at a bar in Kalispell, Montana. The two soon got along and spent the night together. The next day, Mary declared she wanted to be with him.
It was in December 1998, when Leroy and Mary moved in together and three months later the couple got married. The couple celebrated their wedding on April 4, 1999, at Columbia Falls, but soon Leroy's actions turned violent. Mary went on to report her domestic violence to the police, however, Leroy was dismissed after a few days of interrogation.
As per Leroy's testimony in the episode, it was on the night of June 17, 1999, when he discovered Mary with a man at a bar in Kalispell, Montana. They came into a heated argument, after which the couple drove 18 miles to a secluded area. Leroy claims he lost control of his anger, and by the time he regained his consciousness, Mary was dead due to strangulation.
5) The investigation behind the crimes of Leroy Schmitz
Scott Meehan was a Patrol Officer, working for Whitefish PD back in June 1999, at the time of the murder. He was reported by a 911 call that a motorist was flagged down by a man on the road asking for help, to save his wife. By the time Scott reached the scene, he saw Leroy giving CPR to Mary, in a panic state.
Scott told Leroy to continue the CRP, for the next half hour. By the time the paramedics arrived, they pronounced Mary to be dead. Leroy Schmitz was arrested by the police, but he continued insisting that the murder was unintentional. When investigators looked into Leroy's past history, they found that the culprit had a history of drug abuse and violence against women.
The autopsy confirmed that Mary Ann Schmitz died of asphyxiation, which meant she had to be choked for more than 3 minutes. His trial took place at the Flathead County Justice Center in Kalispell, Montana, where the murder was found to be intentional.
As per the episode, it was on May 15, 2000, when Leroy was found guilty of first-degree murder. He was sentenced to 100 years imprisonment, without any chance of parole for 25 years.
Leroy is currently incarcerated at the Montana State Prison. He will be eligible to appeal for his parole in 2025.
To know more details about the crimes of Leroy Schmitz, watch the episode Time Bomb on Season 6 of Netflix's I AM A KILLER season 6.