True Crime

The Bryan Kohberger plea deal in Idaho is not the first controversial bargain struck by the same District Attorney's Office ... because the top prosecutor made a similar deal nearly 29 years ago to the day ... and it also involved murders and the death penalty.

TMZ did some digging and we found out that back in July 1996, Latah County Prosecutor Bill Thompson -- who still holds the same position today -- struck a deal to spare the life of a man who admitted to killing two people.

The parallels here are eerie ... because in that case, two Chinese nationals were stabbed to death in their Moscow, ID apartment ... and a former University of Idaho student copped to the murders.

The family of Kaylee Goncalves is pissed over the plea deal offered to accused murderer Bryan Kohberger ... and they are taking shots at prosecutors.

The Goncalves family tells TMZ ... "The death penalty is merely an illusion in the criminal justice system. When available, it serves as a bargaining tool for the State, and when rarely applied, it’s never enforced due to a highly inefficient appellate process."

As we reported ... Kohberger will plead guilty to four counts of first-degree murder, but prosecutors will take the death penalty off the table and recommend life without the possibility of parole.

Wess Roley -- the man accused of setting a brush fire and launching a sniper-style ambush on firefighters in Idaho this weekend -- once had dreams of becoming a firefighter himself, according to investigators.

Kootenai County Sheriff Bob Norris revealed the 20-year-old's ambitions at the Monday press conference -- but says it's unclear if that had anything to do with Sunday's deadly incident.

Officials also revealed Roley died from what appears to be a self-inflicted shotgun wound. So far, no manifesto, no confirmed suicide note ... and no clear motive.

The man accused of sparking a forest fire and then ambushing firefighters in a calculated sniper-style attack in Idaho has been identified as 20-year-old Wess Roley, TMZ can confirm.

A law enforcement source tells TMZ Roley's body was not taken to the Kootenai County Coroner’s Office in Coeur d'Alene, Idaho, because they don’t actually hold bodies. Instead, his remains were transferred to the Spokane, Washington Medical Examiner’s Office, which handles cases from Kootenai County just across the state border.

Since his ID, a haunting photo has surfaced -- showing Roley staring straight into the camera with a chilling, almost sinister glare.

Luigi Mangione, the charged killer in the Brian Thompson murder case, enjoyed a privileged life ... but folks who know him say he also had a dark side.

We go inside Luigi's mind in a TMZ documentary that is now officially up on YouTube ... and if you haven't seen it yet, now's your chance to catch up on some shocking details.

Sources close to Luigi told us how Mangione became radicalized before quietly plotting to kill a healthcare CEO ... allegedly turning into an assassin despite a charismatic personality.

Cops are investigating a campsite found in the Washington state woods where Travis Decker is believed to have gone on the run after allegedly killing his three young daughters -- this according to Chelan County Sheriff Mike Morrison.

Sheriff Morrison tells TMZ the abandoned campsite was discovered while an associate was on a hike in central Washington ... but there's a major problem -- they can't tell if the mystery equipment was left by lazy campers or if it's a spot where Decker sought shelter while on the lam.

Morrison says investigators are DNA-testing several pieces of evidence found throughout the intense search for "killer dad" Decker ... but it's not a quick turnaround like people are used to seeing on crime shows like "CSI."

Luigi Mangione's defense team says he's not a terrorist, as the feds would have you believe ... and they're telling it to the judge.

The alleged killer of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson is facing a murder as an act of terrorism charge ... but Luigi's attorney Karen Friedman Agnifilo is laying out a slew of reasons why they feel the terrorism charge is unwarranted.

In new legal docs, obtained by TMZ, Luigi's defense says prosecutors have failed to adequately make the case for the terrorism charge from their indictment ... arguing terroristic intent cannot be inferred from Thompson's murder.

The Minnesota lawmaker and his wife -- who survived being shot by a masked man dressed as a cop who allegedly targeted them -- have spoken out about the suspected politically motivated attack ... and the details of the scenario are harrowing.

In a statement released to media ... State Sen. John Hoffman and his wife Yvette said they are continuing to recover after both were struck with a combined 17 bullets when the cop-impersonator opened fire at the front door of their house last weekend.

The state senator was shot nine times ... and he remains in critical but stable condition. Yvette, shot eight times, was released from the hospital Thursday.

Law enforcement in Washington state says Travis Decker is likely still alive and hasn't taken his own life while on the run like Brian Laundrie, but the trail has gone cold ... and there's no info about an imminent threat to the public.

Chelan County's Sheriff Mike Morrison tells TMZ ... they still believe Decker is alive since there are still tips coming in regarding potential sightings.

We're told the tips have not panned out yet, but Sheriff Morrison is thankful for all the civilians who call in, as well as all the extra law enforcement personnel who are still vigorously trying to locate Decker while juggling their duties to their own territories.

The Karen Read documentary series -- which provided a BTS look at her first trial, and her preparation for the retrial for the murder of her Boston cop boyfriend -- was a big hit ... but TMZ's learned the creators won't be rolling the cameras on her life after acquittal.

Terry Dunn Meurer, who directed "A Body in the Snow: The Trial of Karen Read," tells TMZ ... her team has NO plans to follow Karen after the trial. Terry believes Karen's story has been told.

Terry tells us her documentary series will get a small update now that Karen's been found not guilty of second-degree murder in the 2022 death of Boston police officer John O'Keefe ... a text update card will be added to the end of Episode 5, explaining what happened during the trial and the jury verdict this week.

Karen Read -- the Massachusetts woman accused of murdering her Boston police officer boyfriend John O'Keefe in 2022 -- has just been found not guilty of murder.

Read was charged with second-degree murder, manslaughter while operating under the influence, and leaving the scene of an accident causing injury or death. The jury found her guilty of a single count of OUI Wednesday ... misdemeanor Operating Under the Influence.

Prosecutors alleged in January 2022, Read got into a heated drunken argument with O’Keefe before backing up and hitting him with her SUV, killing him ... then fleeing the scene, leaving him to die in a friend's snow-covered front yard in Canton, Mass.

A woman went through absolute hell -- sprinting to dive into a pool after her drunk partner set her on fire while she was holding their 3-year-old son.

It’s all caught on chilling video -- the 22-year-old woman from rural Cuparaque, Brazil is seen literally engulfed in flames as she dashes to a neighbor’s garden and dives into their pool ... all while her partner chases her down, with their terrified son caught up in the chaos, trotting closely behind.

The woman hurls herself into the water, and the flames are instantly snuffed out in a cloud of steam. A second man -- believed to be the pool owner -- rushes to help.

Disturbing notebooks found in the vehicle of Vance Boelter -- the man accused of targeting and shooting Minnesota lawmakers this weekend -- reveal just how strategic he was in allegedly planning the brutal killings.

The acting U.S. Attorney for Minnesota released images of Boelter's alleged notes ... and they appear to show meticulous planning, including a list of websites offering addresses and other info about the alleged targets' homes -- and even how long the websites' free trials lasted.

Authorities confirmed more than 45 Minnesota individuals -- state and federal officials, many of whom support abortion rights -- were named in these notebooks ... and several had their addresses listed as well.

Vance Boelter -- the suspected killer of Minnesota State Representative Melissa Hortman and her husband -- allegedly texted his family, "Dad went to war last night," in the wake of his shooting spree ... according to the feds.

Prosecutors say Boelter fired off the text hours after his alleged deadly rampage across four towns in Minnesota, where law enforcement says he visited the homes of four state lawmakers with the intention of killing them.

The feds say Boelter texted his family around 6:15 AM Saturday ... "Dad went to war last night ... I don't wanna say more because I don't wanna implicate anybody."

A former NFL star is blaming Minnesota Governor Tim Walz for allowing chaos to reign in his state ... just after two local lawmakers were shot.

Jack Brewer -- a four-year player in the league who played two seasons with the Minnesota Vikings -- spoke to Fox News Digital about the current state of Minnesota ... and, he called it the "Capital of Chaos in America."

Brewer says it breaks his heart to see the demise of one of the nation's great states, adding he lived there a long time between going to school at the University of Minnesota and playing for the Vikings ... and, he says it wasn't always this dangerous.

2:51 PM PT -- Boelter's alleged vehicle -- a Buick sedan -- was just towed away from the scene ... and, now law enforcement is searching homes in the surrounding area.

Police have discovered a car they believe Vance Boelter -- the suspect in the shootings that left one Minnesota politician dead and another gravely injured -- was driving ... abandoned far from the scenes of the crimes.

The Sibley County Sheriff's Office told CNN ... they found the car they believe Boelter was driving about 50 miles southwest of the Twin Cities Sunday morning. The shootings occurred in Brooklyn Park and Champlin -- two suburbs of Minneapolis.

CBS reports that a discarded cowboy hat was found near the vehicle. Remember, a photo obtained by law enforcement yesterday showed Boelter in a Minneapolis business with a cowboy hat on. Unclear if this is the same one.