Murderer who realised police found his victim's body on live TV has made a request to be freed from prison
It seems that convicted killer Stephen McDaniel still can't accept his fate 11 years after being sentenced to life behind bars.
Back in the summer of 2011, former Mercer University student McDaniel, from Georgia, US, let himself into fellow student Lauren Giddings' apartment early in the morning on June 26, wearing a mask and gloves.
McDaniel went on to strangle Giddings to death in her bedroom, before dismembering the body with a hacksaw the next day.
What made this particular case so strange though, was the fact Giddings' murderer casually spoke to a WGXA journalist about her disappearance, only to realise on live TV that the police had made significant steps forward in their investigation.
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Take a look at the chilling moment below:
Facing at least a 30-year stretch at Hancock State Prison, it's now been revealed that McDaniel has filed a handful of appeals, despite pleading guilty to the crime in 2014.
According to the WGXA News archive, McDaniel followed up a failed 2017 appeal with another one in mid-2022, alleging ineffective counsel and the theft of defense trial preparations by the state.
He even accused his defense attorneys, Floyd Buford Jr. and Franklin Hogue, of being in on it.
"Because of Defense Attorneys' incompetence and misadvice, Petitioner was deprived of the dismissal of his Indictment and given a life sentence due to an invalid plea caused by Ineffective Assistance of Counsel," claimed the murderer - going on to request freedom from prison and the barring of any further prosecution relating to the case.
In response, US District Court Judge Marc T. Treadwell said this appeal couldn't be considered because it was filed 'over a year late'.
McDaniel appealed for a third time on January 17, 2023.
As for McDaniel's aforementioned downfall, his defining mistake was to act as a 'concerned friend' in a TV report, suggesting to a journalist that his victim could've been snatched off the streets.
During the same broadcast it was later announced that Giddings' torso had been discovered behind an apartment complex, which completely altered McDaniel's behaviour on camera.
"I think I need to sit down," he said, getting teary-eyed. "I don't know anyone that would want to hurt her."
Police had already identified him as a person of interest by this point and soon enough, McDaniel was called in for questioning while officers searched his home.
A mask made from women's underwear; swords and guns were picked up at the property, as well as hacksaw packaging and a master key that allowed him to enter Giddings' place.
It took three years for the case to be closed.
Dan Seddon