- “I wish I died in your stomach,” a Utah 15-year-old texted his mother months before she and her 8-year-old son were found fatally shot in bed on March 28
- Police found seminal fluid on 44-year-old Jessica Lyman’s body and on the adjacent sheets. Female undergarments and a note reading, “This is a murder story” were found in the teen’s room, per an unsealed search warrant affidavit
- No arrests have been made, and police have not publicly named a suspect or ruled out the possibility of more than one perpetrator
Newly unsealed warrants detail a series of increasingly aggressive messages a 15-year-old allegedly sent to his mother months before she and his younger brother were found shot dead — among suspicious items found in the teen’s room after the fact was a note that read, “This is a murder story.”
In July 2024, the teenager — who has not been named publicly — allegedly sent his mother, Jessica Lyman, several texts that investigators now cite as evidence of a deteriorating relationship and potential motive.
According to the search warrant affidavit, obtained by PEOPLE, a forensic download of Lyman’s phone on April 2 allegedly revealed the following text messages from her 15-year-old:
- “F— off h–”
- “I don’t like you go away”
- “Leave me the f— alone”
- “Shut the f— up please”
- “Do you need to learn how to shut your mouth”
- “I’m more happy when I’m not around you”
- “Shut the f— up can’t hear you womp womp”
- “You’re so f—— mentally ill”
- “Shut up witch”
- “Do you know how insignificant you are in my life? Very insignificant”
- “I wish I died in your stomach. Wouldn’t have to put up with you.”
On March 28, police were called to the Lyman residence after Lyman’s 17-year-old daughter returned home to find her mother and 8-year-old brother, Eli Painter, unconscious and “covered in blood” in her mother’s bedroom, per the document. Jessica was rushed to the hospital but died three days later; Eli died at the scene.
According to the warrant, two spent .22-caliber shell casings were found at the scene, but a murder weapon has not been recovered.
Lyman’s pants and underwear were pulled around her ankles, according to the warrant. Investigators used alternate light sources to detect bodily fluids on Lyman’s clothing and bedding, which were sent to the state crime lab for analysis.
“Sex toys and lubricant” were found in both Lyman and her teen son’s bedroom; one black, fishnet stocking was found in Lyman’s room, and the other in her teen son’s.
Also in the 15-year-old’s bedroom, officers recovered a range of other items: multiple masks, plate carriers, two BB-style guns, several pairs of female undergarments and handwritten notes — one of which read, “This is a murder story.”
Another note referenced forensic terms like “DNA,” “serology,” and “firearm testing.”
Surveillance footage from a neighbor captured a person in a white mask — which “resembles [one of] the mask[s]” found in the 15-year-old’s room, according to the warrant — walking near the home around 2:30 a.m.
No arrests have been made, and police have not publicly named a suspect. The investigation remains active, and the warrant did not rule out the possibility of more than one person being involved in the killings.
