The Murder of Nicole Lovell
Warning, this case discusses crimes against a child.
For this case, I watched an episode of American Justice. It’s season 16 episode 16, titled ‘Strangers Online.’
Background
Nicole Madison Lovell was born on May 3, 2002. She was described as a typical fun and happy teenager.
Nicole had dealt with several illnesses in her short life. When she was only about 10 months old, she had a liver transplant. The transplant was successful, but Nicole had to take medication every day. When she was about 4 or 5, she was diagnosed with lymphoma. Nicole’s illnesses and transplant left her with scars. Nicole was bullied in middle school which led her to have low self-esteem.
Despite everything, Nicole was described as very spunky and sassy. Nicole loved to dance and sing and post videos online. Nicole also began to communicate with strangers online mostly through the app, Kik.
Nicole Lovell
The Disappearance
On January 27, 2016, Nicole’s mom, Tammy Weeks-Dowdy said it was a typical morning. She had woken up around 4:30 am for work. Before leaving at 6:30, Tammy went into Nicole’s room to check on her.
Tammy tried opening the door but realized that Nicole’s nightstand had been pushed against her door. When she was able to enter, she noticed that the window had been left open, and Nicole must have snuck out. Tammy said Nicole had never done anything like that before.
Nicole’s phone and Minions blanket were the only items missing from her room. Nicole’s medication had been left behind which absolutely terrified Tammy.
By 7:15 am, Tammy contacted the Blacksburg, Virginia police department. Due to Nicole’s age and medical condition, the police contacted the FBI and all local law enforcement agencies. The Montgomery County courthouse assisted with granting search warrants and affidavits.
The Problem with Social Media
The police learned that Nicole had left her house and snuck out. But it was clear that she hadn’t been planning on being gone for a long period of time since she only had taken her blanket and phone.
The police interviewed anyone in Nicole’s life that she could have had contact with before she left her house. This included her friends, people in the neighborhood, and even convicted sex offenders.
While speaking to one of her friends, the police learned about a secret date that Nicole was supposed to have with an older boy whom she met online. Nicole referred to this person as her boyfriend.
Tammy was surprised to learn that Nicole had been communicating with an older boy on Kik as she monitored her social media. Tammy said she had put parental control on Nicole’s phone. However, Kik is known for being a site where it’s easy to delete conversations.
Luckily, while searching Nicole’s bedroom, the police found a piece of paper taped in her closet that listed her social media passwords. The police contacted Kik hoping to track down the screen name and user information of anyone who had contacted Nicole.
The Person of Interest
On January 29, the police heard back from Kik. Nicole’s last message exchange had been at 12:30 am on January 26. The user’s screen name was dr_tombstone. Nicole had been communicating with this person in the days leading up to her disappearance.
The user’s real name was David Eisenhauer. David had been an 18-year-old freshman at Virginia Tech at the time. He was described as a good student who ran cross country and had been a star of his high school track team.
On January 30, David was brought in for questioning. David was immediately told that the reason he was there was because Nicole was missing. David told the police that he was willing to help.
He admitted that he started talking to Nicole around mid-December. He said he had been bored in his dorm room and went to a website called Omegle, a site where you can enter chat rooms anonymously. Nicole had asked David to chat with her on Kik which he agreed to. David said Nicole had told him that she was 16 or 17.
David and Nicole agreed that he would pick her up on January 26. David said when he arrived, he saw Nicole and believed that she was around 11. He said he immediately drove back to campus alone and went to talk to a friend.
The police told David that they didn’t believe him as Nicole was missing. David was adamant that he drove away alone. But, he slipped up and made a comment about how the police should be looking for a body instead of talking to him.
David was arrested for the abduction of Nicole.
The Friend
The police went back through the statements that David had made about going to see a friend after leaving Nicole’s home. David identified his friend as Natalie Keepers, another Virginia Tech freshman.
On January 30, Natalie was interviewed and gave the police permission to search her phone. Natalie told the police that David had gone to meet a girl and found out that she wasn’t of legal age.
The police downloaded the contents of David and Natalie’s phones. They found disturbing messages between them about missing kids, things being traced, and “when your life is on the line.”
Natalie was confronted about the messages between her and David. Natalie had written that she smelled like cleaning supplies and talked about being near a lot of blood and the smell of it.
Natalie admitted that Nicole was dead. She said David had forced her to help him move Nicole’s body.
Natalie claimed that Nicole and David had met once before January 26 at a party. Natalie said that David had been drinking at this party, and was worried that he slept with Nicole and gotten her pregnant. Natalie said that Nicole had told David that she wanted to be in a relationship with him and he didn’t want that. David was worried about Nicole exposing him and needed to get rid of her.
On the night of Nicole’s disappearance, Natalie said she and David met at a fast food restaurant. The plan was to pick up Nicole and take her to a secluded location. Natalie said she went back to her dorm room while David went to pick up Nicole. Natalie said David stabbed Nicole in the woods.
The next night, they went to Walmart and purchased baby wipes and bleach. Nicole’s body was in the trunk, and they drove into North Carolina, which was about an hour and 45 minutes drive from Blacksburg. They also disposed of Nicole’s clothing in a McDonald’s dumpster.
Natalie told the police that she felt special and loved that David wanted her to help him.
The Arrests
David knew about the location in North Carolina from spending time there with his grandparents. Nicole’s body was discovered just off the road going down the side of a cliff. Nicole had been stabbed and tossed down the side of the cliff. No murder weapon has ever been found.
A first-degree murder charge was added to David’s list of charges. Natalie was charged with concealing a body and being an accessory before the fact of first-degree murder.
On February 5, 2018, David’s trial began. The prosecutors focused on how Nicole and David met online and about their secret date. David’s defense team blamed the entire plan and murder on Natalie.
Nicole’s autopsy revealed that she was not pregnant. However, it seemed like David was so worried about her being pregnant and that she would expose him.
In David’s police interview, he claimed to believe that Nicole was 16 or 17. However, the prosecutors had digital evidence to prove that he knew she was 13, and that David and Nicole had met once before the night of January 26.
David had threatened to hurt Nicole if she ever revealed their relationship. In messages between David and Natalie, they spoke about disposing of Nicole’s body and other evidence in different places.
A Garmin brand GPS device was located in David’s car. David’s movements were tracked from Nicole’s home to where her body was found. There was blood found in the back passenger seat and on the right rear tire. David’s DNA was found under Nicole’s fingernails.
The Convictions
On the 4th day of the trial, David changed his plea to no contest. This meant that he was not going to admit that he had killed Nicole, but couldn’t argue with the evidence.
David was sentenced to 50 years in prison followed by 20 years of probation.
Natalie’s trial took place on September 17, 2018, 3 months after David was sentenced.
The prosecutors argued that Natalie was willing to help David and was as guilty as he was.
Natalie’s statements from her police interview were included in the trial. Natalie spoke about how David brought out a psychopathic side to her. Natalie also said she got excited about being involved and that she felt like she was part of a “special club.” It’s believed that Natalie was in awe of David. They may have also been in a romantic relationship or Natalie wanted to be.
In text messages, it was clear that Nicole’s murder was premeditated. In early January, they wrote about different ideas of killing Nicole. They spoke about swapping Nicole’s pills with cyanide caps and about disposing of dead bodies.
On January 26, the night of Nicole’s murder, Natalie and David were seen on surveillance at the fast food restaurant, The Cook Out. They went to Walmart on January 27 and purchased cleaning supplies. In Natalie’s dorm room, the police found Nicole’s minion blanket.
The defense argued that the police caused a false confession from Natalie. A doctor testified that Natalie struggled with mental health issues.
The jury deliberated for about an hour and 15 minutes. Natalie was found guilty of being an accessory before the fact. She was sentenced to 40 years in prison followed by 10 years of probation.
Nicole’s family continues to share her story and speaks about the dangers of social media.
Natalie Keepers and David Eisenhauer
Other
Natalie’s appeal has been denied by the Virginia Supreme Court.
FINAL THOUGHTS
I had heard about this case before but didn’t know all the details. It’s absolutely sickening that they spoke about killing anyone let alone a child who had already been through a lot in her short life. Not only did they kill Nicole, but they ruined their lives too. They also took a 13-year-old girl away from her family. Tammy doesn’t believe justice was served and I agree with her.
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