The Murder of Gayle Isleib
For this case, I watched an episode of Forensic Files. It’s season 12 episode 10, titled ‘Catch 22.’
A beloved mother and grandmother is killed in her driveway.
Background
Gayle Isleib was only 54-years-old when she died. She had been married to her husband, Doug, for over 3 years. They each had children from previous marriages. Gayle was also a devoted grandmother, and loved spending time with her family.
At the time of her death, Gayle worked in the shoe department at Walmart, in Manchester, Connecticut.
Gayle and Doug Isleib
The Murder
On April 30, 1996, Gayle’s shift ended around 10pm. Doug heard Gayle pull up in the driveway shortly after. He then heard a commotion, and ran outside to find a man standing near Gayle’s car. Doug ran inside and called 911.
On the 911 call, Doug said that there was a robbery, and that the man was wearing a mask. Later, he would tell the police that the man was either Hispanic or light-skinned.
When the police arrived, Gayle was already dead. She had been shot at 7 times, 5 shots had been to her head at close range, with a .22 caliber. Several spent shell casings were found around Gayle’s car. Doug had been holding a .22 caliber revolver when the police arrived. However, he was ruled out as a suspect. He said he went to get his gun for protection before he called the police.
Gayle’s purse and jewelry were still inside her car. The police were able to rule out robbery as the motive. Several neighbors told the police that they had also heard the gunshots, and saw a white car speed away.
An Obsession
Gayle’s family said that she had no enemies. They did tell the police that Gayle had been acting strangely before her death. Gayle had put blankets over the windows, and she refused to let anyone drive her car.
When the police spoke to her c0-workers at Walmart, they learned why. They said that another employee named Tyrone Montgomery, who was 25-years-old, was obsessed with Gayle. He would often come in on his days off, and follow Gayle around the shoe department.
The police went to Tyrone’s house, but he wasn’t there. There was a white car at the house, which was registered to Tyrone’s step-father. Inside the car, the police found a burnt letter, and other notes that were still intact.
It seemed as if Tyrone had been planning to kill someone. He spoke of coming up with the excuse of returning a cake dish, wipe down weapons and get icepick from grocery store. In the notes, it said to subdue him, and “stick the icepick in his ear.” The police wondered if Doug had been the intended target.
The notes were compared to Tyrone’s employment application by a forensic document examiner. The samples were consistent.
The Evidence
The police learned that after Gayle died, Tyrone had checked himself into a psychiatric hospital. He had told the hospital that his friend had just died, and he was feeling suicidal.
Tyrone had made several advances towards Gayle, but she denied them. Tyrone was angry, and had even pulled a BB gun on Gayle. Gayle never filed an official report, but was obviously scared of him.
Tyrone agreed to an interview with the police. They asked him if he killed Gayle. He said no, and ended the interview. The police asked the hospital for the clothing that Tyrone had been wearing. The clothes had been laundered, but they were able to collect Tyronne’s boots.
On the sole of one of the boots, a piece of glass was found lodged. The refractive index, or speed of light, of the glass from the boot and from the glass of Gayle’s car were tested. They were described as being similar samples.
The police obtained a warrant for Tyrone’s house. Inside, the police found several books about being a hitman and committing crimes. One of the books was titled, ‘Methods of Disguise.’ The police now believed that Tyrone had been wearing makeup when he killed Gayle, which is why Doug described the gunman as masked.
Tyrone also had a makeshift firing range in his basement. Several .22 caliber casings were found in the wall and around the room. The shell casings in the walls were too damaged, but the casings on the ground were the same as the ones found from the crime scene. The casings had a series of distinctive scratches under the rim. This meant that the shooter hadn’t assembled the gun correctly after being able to transport it from place to place.
The Missing Weapon
The police had evidence against Tyrone, but they wanted the murder weapon. It wasn’t found anywhere in his home.
The police spoke to the manager of the gun department at Walmart. The manager admitted that Tyrone had purchased a .22 caliber revolver shortly before Gayle’s death. When the manager learned of the murder, he changed the logbooks.
The police were able to trace the serial number to find the gun. The gun had been purchased by a local man. The gun was tested, and was determined to have been the murder weapon. It hadn’t been assembled correctly when they found it.
It’s believed that Tyrone had planned to kill Doug with an icepick, and kidnap Gayle at gunpoint. He waited for her to come home from work, but panicked, and shot Gayle 7 times.
Tyrone was arrested and charged with felony murder. At his trial in October 1997, he was found guilty. He was sentenced to 65 years in prison.
Tyrone Montgomery
Tyrone in a more recent photo
FINAL THOUGHTS
Tyrone had an unhealthy obsession with Gayle. He somehow made it up in his mind that she liked him too, even though she rejected him time and time again. Gayle was taken away from her husband, children and grandchildren, all because Tyrone couldn’t take the rejection or didn’t believe that the rejection was real. He deserves to rot in prison, and will hopefully never get out.
Sources
https://thecinemaholic.com/who-killed-gayle-isleib-how-did-she-die-where-is-tyronne-montgomery-now/
