Nev. Woman Said She Decapitated Boyfriend After Marrying His Son — Now She Wants to Prove Her Innocence By Samira Asma-Sadeque

A Nevada woman is fighting to prove her innocence in a trial that began this week — more than a year after she pleaded guilty to the 2023 murder of her former lover.

Johnathan Willette’s beheaded body was found in a Henderson, Nev. home on Aug. 7, 2023, the Henderson Police Department said in a statement at the time.

His mother allegedly discovered his headless body next to bottles of bleach and ammonia, according to a police report cited by 8 News Now, FOX 5 Las Vegas and the Las Vegas Review-Journal.

Police arrested his girlfriend, Devyn Michaels, about a week later, per the police statement.

Michaels allegedly told police at the time that she hit him on the head with a wooden stick when he tried to coerce her into a sexual act, according to the police report, per the outlets.

She also said she didn’t intend to kill him, but just wanted to harm him so she could “figure out what she could do with her children” while he was at the hospital, FOX 5 reported, citing the report.

She pleaded guilty to second-degree murder last year, according to court docket information previously cited by PEOPLE.

At her sentencing in July, Michaels had a dramatic breakdown claiming her innocence, prompting Clark County District Court Judge Tierra Jones to grant her request to withdraw her plea, 8 News Now reported.

The jury trial, which Michaels said she hopes will prove her innocence, began on Wednesday, Nov. 5, per the outlet.

Related Stories

She Decapitated Her Ex and Threw Head in the Trash — and She Might Be Sprung from Prison in 15 Years

Nev. Woman Accused of Murdering and Decapitating the Father of Her Children, Then Putting Head in Trash

At the time of the killing, Michaels was married to Willette’s son, 8 News Now and the Las Vegas Review-Journal reported.

Michaels and Willette were, however, in the process of moving in together for the sake of the two children they shared, according to 8 News Now.

Michaels’ husband, who is Willette’s son, said their marriage was due to an arrangement so he could help her out with medical issues, per the police report, the Las Vegas Review Journal reported.

However, in this week’s trial, the jury was shown intimate photos of the married couple from when the son was in his teens, 8 News Now reported.

Michaels’ defense attorney, Robert Draskovich, pointed fingers at Willette’s son, telling the jury he had a motive to kill since Willette would be moving in.

“…he was no longer going to be in this relationship because dad, the dad he hated, was coming in and not only taking his home, but taking his wife,” Draskovich said, per the outlet.

If you are experiencing domestic violence, call the National Domestic Violence Hotline at 1-800-799-7233, or go to thehotline.org. All calls are toll-free and confidential. The hotline is available 24/7 in more than 170 languages.