True Crime

1:39 PM PT -- Palm Beach Gardens Police chief Dominick Pape just told reporters the incident looks like it was "a random act of violence."

"It does not appear that Boucher had any legitimate purpose for being at the golf course," Pape said.

The law enforcement official added that Boucher -- who has a lengthy history of arrests -- was also reported missing by his family less than one hour before the golf course confrontation occurred.

A Florida golfer was arrested for murder at a course on Monday ... after authorities say a witness saw him savagely beat a man with several clubs -- and then drown the guy in a nearby water hazard.

Erik and Lyle Menendez don't appear to be getting out of prison before the holidays ... because their upcoming resentencing hearing has been delayed.

The Menendez Brothers joined a status hearing Monday in Van Nuys from the San Diego area prison where they are serving a life sentence without the possibility of parole. They tried to join by video, but encountered technical issues and had to listen in over the phone ... but never spoke.

Still, it was their first time in court in decades.

The Menendez Brothers are taking their first big step toward possibly getting out of prison ... and their family is feeling good about their chances ahead of Monday's hearing.

We caught up with Bryan Freedman, the attorney representing Erik and Lyle Menendez's family, this morning outside the Van Nuys Courthouse, where he expressed optimism regarding their case ... teasing "some developments" are likely to come through after the controversial siblings appear, by Zoom, in court.

Watch the video, Freedman made it clear he was "feeling good," confidently predicting "success" for Erik and Lyle in their bid for release.

Susan Smith may've given a tearful plea before being denied parole this week, but many are left unconvinced she's completely changed her ways ... including yet another one of her former prison guards who knew her well behind bars.

Felicia Mungo, a former guard at Camille Graham Correctional Center in South Carolina, tells TMZ ... she isn't sold on Susan's tears, explaining to us that she felt the weeping during the hearing was a bit "disingenuous."

For those unfamiliar, Susan was arrested in 1994 after strapping her sons -- Michael, who was 3 years old,  and Alex, who was 14 months old -- into their car seats before pushing their vehicle into a nearby lake. She was convicted in 1995 and sentenced to life with the possibility of parole ... which she was first eligible for this week.

There's at least one household in America that won't tune in to the new JonBenét Ramsey Netflix documentary ... the folks who live in the home where she was found murdered.

Carol Schuller Milner and her husband, Timothy Milner, own the Boulder, Colorado house and Carol tells TMZ ... they were approached by producers of the new highly anticipated Netflix docuseries "Cold Case: Who Killed JonBenét Ramsey?" -- but they took a hard pass.

In fact, Carol says she and her husband have turned down all Hollywood offers that have come their way over the years, including one from Dr. Phil, and another worth 7 figures.

8:23 AM PT -- Boulder police have responded to disparaging comments from John Ramsey, telling TMZ in a statement ... "The killing of JonBenét was an unspeakable crime and this tragedy has never left our hearts. This investigation will always be a priority for the Boulder Police Department.”

The department is "committed to following up on every lead and we are continuing to work with DNA experts and our law enforcement partners around the country until this tragic case is solved."

John Ramsey remains hopeful that some significant changes in the police department could help catch his daughter JonBenét's killer ... while blasting how law enforcement mishandled the case over the past 28 years.

Convicted child killer Susan Smith's tears at her parole hearing were all BS, totally fabricated to sway the board ... this, according to a former guard who was fired and prosecuted for having sex with her in prison years ago.

Alfred Rowe -- a disgraced prison guard formerly employed at Camille Graham Correctional Center in South Carolina, where Smith served until 2000 -- tells TMZ ... the parole board made the right choice by keeping her in prison.

Rowe says he doesn't think Smith has changed ... and getting emotional at the hearing was all for show -- with AR saying someone must've bottled some tears and brought them in for her to use, 'cause she's not capable of that level of emotion on her own.

Charlie Hunnam’s officially gotten the full Ryan Murphy treatment -- he was spotted on set for the first time filming as serial killer Ed Gein for the third installment of Netflix’s "Monster" anthology.

Peep the pics from Tuesday -- Charlie’s transformation into Ed was spot-on in a red plaid jacket over a brown plaid shirt, perfectly channeling the 1950s, when the notorious murderer went on his killing spree in Wisconsin.

Ed infamously mutilated his victims, fashioning skin into masks, gloves and furniture, and making bowls out of skulls -- his crimes were so disturbing the press slapped him with nicknames like "The Plainfield Butcher" and "The Plainfield Ghoul."

Killer mom Susan Smith will not taste freedom after her plea to a parole board was unanimously denied following an emotional hearing.

The controversial convict, who has spent nearly 30 years behind bars for the drowning of her sons, Michael and Alex, appeared before a parole board in South Carolina via a video call Wednesday ... tearfully begging those hearing her case to let her go free. Michael was 3 years old and Alex was 14 months old when Smith killed them.

As Smith relayed in her testimony ... she now knows what she did "was so horrible" and claims she'd "give anything to go back and change it."

10:44 AM PT -- Jose Ibarra, an undocumented Venezuelan immigrant, has been sentenced to life in prison without parole for the murder of Georgia nursing student Laken Riley.

The judge in the case just issued the sentence ... Ibarra was found guilty on 10 charges, including malice murder, kidnapping and aggravated assault. Both the defense and the prosecution had opted for a bench trial, with a judge deciding Ibarra's fate, forgoing a jury trial.

The prosecution did not seek the death penalty in the case.

Jose Ibarra -- the man standing trial for nursing student Laken Riley's murder -- has been found guilty.

The verdict was announced minutes ago ... with a Georgia judge deciding Ibarra is guilty after the prosecution and defense agreed to a bench trial instead of a trial by jury.

Video and audio evidence played a key role in this trial ... with video of Ibarra unable to tell cops how he ended up with fresh scratches and marks on his arms just hours after Laken's death played in court earlier this week.

Laken Riley -- the nursing student prosecutors claim was killed by an undocumented immigrant back in February -- may have used her phone to call 911 before she died ... and, the audio is harrowing.

Special Prosecutor Sheila Ross played the call in court in Athens, Georgia Friday ... saying it came in about 8 minutes after Riley began her morning run -- and, captures the sound of her final moments.

There's not much to hear in the actual audio ... just what sounds like heavy breathing and the sound of nature, then some thumping -- before prosecutors say someone on the other end hung up.

Erik and Lyle Menendez and their legal team are making a full court press for freedom at next month's hearing ... and we've learned their star witnesses are people inside the prison.

Sources with direct knowledge tell TMZ ... the Menendez Brothers lawyer, Mark Geragos, will call six key witnesses to the stand at their Dec. 11 resentencing hearing ... and they all work for the California Department of Corrections.

The witnesses are two correctional officers, one education officer, a prison guard, a correctional lieutenant and another employee from the Dept. of Corrections ... all of whom have crossed paths with Erik and Lyle during their three-plus decades behind bars.

Incoming Los Angeles County District Attorney Nathan Hochman says one of his first orders of business is tackling Erik and Lyle Melendez's bid for freedom ... and the clock's ticking.

Hochman, who just defeated incumbent George Gascón at the ballot box, tells TMZ ... if the Menendez brothers' resentencing case lands on his desk on his first day as D.A., on December 2, he will hit the ground running, poring over documents and talking to all parties involved.

While Gascon has recommended resentencing, Hochman says he's got to review the case and the law before coming to a decision ... but time is of the essence because the resentencing hearing is set for Dec. 11 ... giving Hochman a little over a week to work with.

Gypsy Rose Blanchard had a point to make -- and she made it loud and clear by posting the results of her paternity test.

In an IG post Tuesday, GRB shared a screenshot of her results, confirming with 99.9% certainty that her BF, Ken Urker, is the father of her unborn child -- something she explains in her caption she knew right from the beginning, despite public speculation that her estranged ex, Ryan Anderson, might be the baby's father.

Gypsy explained, "There's been a lot of chatter around the paternity of our baby and while we've known for sure from the beginning, I feel that it's finally time to put all these theories to rest."

Los Angeles County D.A. George Gascón is setting the record straight, saying his push to recommend resentencing for the Menendez brothers isn’t about public buzz or winning an election -- it’s about doing what he personally believes is right.

On "TMZ Live," Harvey didn’t hold back on grilling Gascón about all the renewed public interest playing into the Menendez brothers’ case -- saying the considerations of their case are purely based on the evidence.

Gascón shot down the hype factor, telling us his decision came down to what he feels is right -- and not because of public opinion, or an effort to win votes.

Judge Mathis says Erik and Lyle Menendez deserve to be free men ... telling us new evidence they were allegedly molested by the father they killed totally changes things.

We got the TV judge Thursday at the Fairmont Century Plaza in Los Angeles, and our photog asked him about the Menendez brothers and their bid to get out of prison after nearly 35 years behind bars.

Judge Mathis says if he was handling their resentencing case, he would reduce the length of their punishment on account of the molestation claims and send them home ASAP.