Woman arrested for 2011 cold case murder of Iowa real estate agent
Kristin Ramsey, 53, is charged with first-degree murder in the death of Ashley Okland. (West Des Moines Police)
(WEST DES MOINES, Iowa) — A woman has been arrested in the 2011 cold case murder of an Iowa real estate agent, authorities said.
Kristin Ramsey, 53, was arrested on Tuesday for first-degree murder in the death of Ashley Okland, the West Des Moines Police said.
Police and prosecutors did not elaborate on what led to Ramsey’s arrest, but Dallas County Attorney Matt Schultz said at a Wednesday news conference, “After hearing the evidence, a Dallas County grand jury issued a true bill indicting Kristin Ramsey with the murder of Ashley Okland.”
Okland was shot and killed while working at a model townhouse on April 8, 2011, according to the Iowa Attorney General’s Office Cold Case Unit.
Okland’s death sent “shockwaves” throughout the state and “haunted” the real estate community, West Des Moines Police Assistant Chief Jody Hayes said at the news conference.
“That Friday afternoon when Ashley was taken from us seems so long ago. We had lost our hope in finding answers and having any justice,” Okland’s sister, Brittany Bruce, told reporters.
She thanked the detectives and prosecutors for their relentless work on the case.
“We have full confidence in their abilities to see this through,” she said.
U.S. President Donald Trump speaks to reporters and members of the media at Mar-a-Lago on February 1, 2026 in Palm Beach, Florida. Al Drago/Getty Images
(WASHINGTON) — U.S. Judge Aileen Cannon on Wednesday sentenced Ryan Routh to spend the rest of his life in prison for attempting to assassinate President Donald Trump on his Florida golf course in September 2024.
Prosecutors argued that Routh, 60, should get a life sentence after a jury last year convicted him on five counts for allegedly plotting “painstakingly to kill President Trump, and [taking] significant steps toward making that happen.”
“Routh’s crimes undeniably warrant a life sentence — he took steps over the course of months to assassinate a major presidential candidate, demonstrated the will to kill anybody in the way, and has since expressed neither regret nor remorse to his victims,” prosecutors argued in a court filing.
After a two-and-a-half-week trial in September, a jury quickly found Routh guilty on five felony counts, including attempted assassination of a major presidential candidate and assaulting a federal officer.
Routh allegedly hid in the bushes of the Trump International Golf Club in West Palm Beach and pointed a military-grade SKS rifle towards Trump and a Secret Service agent.
“Routh’s crimes of conviction reflect careful plotting, extensive premeditation, and a cowardly disregard for human life,” prosecutors wrote. “Routh’s motive for his crimes was unconscionable – preventing the American people from electing the candidate of their choice for President. Routh’s gloss on his crimes has always been that anything he may have done was justified by events in Ukraine or American domestic politics.”
Routh represented himself at trial and attempted to argue that he never intended to harm Trump or the Secret Service agent, framing his actions as a form of protest against the president’s policies. After he was found guilty, he attempted to harm himself in front of the jury by stabbing himself with a pen.
Since his conviction, Routh was appointed an attorney and has requested a 27-year sentence that would allow him to “experience freedom again as opposed to dying in prison.” His lawyer argued that Routh could not have a fair trial because he represented himself, even though Routh made that decision after repeated warnings about the potential consequences.
“Defendant recognizes that he was found guilty by the jury but asserts that the jury was misled by his inability to effectively confront witnesses, use exhibits, or affirmatively introduce impeachment evidence designed to prove his lack of intent to cause injury to anyone,” his defense lawyer wrote.
Routh had attempted to bolster his push for a lighter sentence by submitting multiple letters from friends attesting to his character and undergoing a psychiatric examination, which suggested he suffers from narcissistic personality disorder and bipolar II disorder.
“Ryan has already shown, through his actions, that he is an asset to his community, not a threat. He deserves the chance to one day return home, where he can continue to be a loving father, partner, and a peaceful, contributing member of society,” wrote Darya Trotsenko, a Kyiv resident who said she met Routh when he attempted to volunteer to support Ukraine’s defense.
But prosecutors argued that Routh continues to show little remorse for his actions, pointing to recent writings in which he referenced an earlier attempt on Trump’s life and wrote, “I hate our dictator missed the trial, can my appeal be heard in 30 years when he is gone.”
In another court filing, Routh suggested he prefers that Trump personally punish him for his actions.
“If the President wished to pummel the defendant just for good measure, put on the handcuffs and shackles and give it your worst. No cameras, no complaints, no charges/charges. Just good fun. Don’t be a p—-. (Can I say p—- or coward – sorry),” Routh wrote.
Cannon, a Trump-appointed judge, dismissed the criminal case against the president in 2024 related to his handling of classified documents. Routh unsuccessfully attempted to have Cannon removed from the case by arguing her appointment by Trump is a conflict of interest.
In this photo released by the Norfolk Police Department, first responders are shown at the scene of a shooting at Old Dominion University in Norfolk, Virginia, on March 12, 2026. (Norfolk Police Department)
(NORFOLK, Va.) — A person was killed and two others were wounded in a shooting at Old Dominion University in Norfolk, Virginia, on Thursday.
The school shooting was allegedly committed by a former Army National Guardsman who was convicted of giving material support to ISIS, an FBI official told ABC News.
The gunman opened fire in Constant Hall, an academic building, around 10:43 a.m. and was found dead minutes after officers arrived, Old Dominion University Police Chief Garrett Shelton said during a press briefing.
The suspected gunman was identified as Mohamed Jalloh, who was previously convicted in 2016 of attempting to provide material support to the Islamic militant group.
Two of the victims were members of the university’s Reserve Officers’ Training Corps (ROTC) program, according to U.S. Army Cadet Command.
Students in the ROTC class fought the shooter, an Army official told ABC News.
Jalloh, a former member of the Army National Guard, was sentenced to 11 years in prison in 2017 and released in December of 2024, according to Bureau of Prisons records.
He allegedly walked into a room and asked if it was an ROTC class, and when someone answered, “yes,” he shot the instructor several times, according to sources.
When he pleaded guilty in 2016, Jalloh admitted he had communicated with a member of ISIS who was located overseas who introduced him to an individual in the U.S. who was actually an FBI confidential informant.
The ISIS member was believed to be actively plotting an attack and believed Jalloh would assist the informant in carrying it out. During one meeting with the FBI informant, Jalloh was asked about a timeline for an operation and commented that it was better to plan an attack for the month of Ramadan, court records say.
Prosecutors had recommended Jalloh serve 20 years in prison. It’s not immediately clear why he was released before the end of his 11-year sentence, though it is not unusual in the federal prison system for inmates to be released before serving their full term of imprisonment.
A sophomore named Jennifer told ABC Hampton, Virginia, affiliate WVEC that she was waiting for a midterm exam when she heard a group of people saying, “get out, get out, get out.”
“All of a sudden, we heard a commotion. A lot of people rumbling, starting to get up,” she said. “The guy next to me, we looked at each other, we started running, and that’s when we heard, you know, gunshots.”
She commended the university’s quick communication through alerts, saying, “I’m very, very proud of how quick the situation was handled.”
Shelton told reporters that the investigation is still ongoing and they were combing through the campus for clues.
“We now have to search every single room in that facility. There were students that we found that were hiding and faculty and staff,” he said.
The police did not say how the gunman died.
FBI Director Kash Patel said in a statement that the bureau is treating the shooting as “as an act of terrorism,” and the FBI’s Joint Terrorism Task Force will be working with local police in the investigation.
There’s no longer a threat, the university said, adding that classes are canceled for the rest of the day and Friday.
“Today was a tragic day for the campus of Old Dominion University,” Old Dominion President Brian Hemphill told reporters.
Donna Massey, the mother of shooting victim Sonya Massey, is comforted during a press conference at New Mount Pilgrim Church on July 30, 2024 in Chicago, Illinois. Scott Olson/Getty Images
(SPRINGFIELD, Ill.) — Sean Grayson, the former Sangamon County sheriff’s deputy, is set to be sentenced on Thursday after his convicted in October 2025 of second-degree murder for the July 2024 fatal shooting of Sonya Massey, a Black woman who called 911 to report a possible intruder at her home in Springfield, Illinois.
Grayson could be sentenced to four to 20 years in prison or he could be sentenced to probation, according to prosecutors.
Sontae Massey, Massey’s cousin, told Springfield ABC affiliate WICS in an interview that aired ahead of the sentencing on Wednesday that her death “shattered” her family and they are now bracing for Grayson’s sentencing.
“I’m a little anxious. I think I speak for the family when I say that. You know, there’s a lot of feelings involved, particularly her children,” Sontae Massey said.
She noted that family members, including Massey’s teenage children Malachi and Summer, are expected to deliver impact statements during the sentencing hearing.
Family representatives for the Massey family told ABC News on Wednesday that the family will hold a press conference after Grayson’s sentencing hearing.
Ahead of sentencing Grayson, the judge denied on Thursday morning Grayson’s request for a new trial.
Grayson’s attorneys filed a motion for a new trial on Dec. 2, 2025, arguing that “several erroneous rulings” “resulted in prejudice to the defendant.”
The motion, which was reviewed by ABC News, cited alleged “errors” that include “incorrectly” focusing on Grayson’s “obligations as a police officer” when determining not to release him pre-trial, as opposed to “the danger he posed as a private citizen.”
Grayson’s attorneys also argued in the motion that the judge should not have admitted into evidence the body camera video that showed Grayson’s “statements and actions” after he fatally shot Massey.
Grayson’s attorneys did not respond to ABC News’ requests for comment.
Sangamon County State’s Attorney John Milhiser, who prosecuted Grayson, told ABC News on Thursday that his office filed a motion asking the judge to deny Grayson’s request for a new trial.
Body camera footage of the July 6, 2024 incident shows Grayson, who was inside Massey’s home, pointing to a pot of boiling water on her stove and says, “Walk away from your hot steaming water.”
Massey then appears to pour the water into the sink and repeats the deputy’s phrase before saying, “I rebuke you in the name of Jesus,” according to the video.
Grayson threatens to shoot her and Massey apologizes and ducks down behind a counter, covering her face with what appears to be a red oven mitt, the video shows. As she briefly rises, Grayson shoots her three times in the face, the footage shows.
During Grayson’s testimony, he told the jury he believed Massey was going to throw the scalding water on him and was scared.
The assistant state attorney said that Massey’s final words before being shot with her hands up were, “I’m sorry,” according to WICS.
Grayson was initially charged with three counts in connection to Massey’s death — first-degree murder, aggravated battery with a firearm and official misconduct. He pleaded not guilty to all counts.
Following the seven-day trial in October 2025, the jury was given the option of considering second-degree murder instead of first-degree murder.
ABC News’ Mariama Jalloh and Sabina Ghebremedhin contributed to this report.
