Naman Shrestha
In the spring of 2019, a well-liked 44-year-old EMT named Kelly Levinsohn met her untimely demise in Georgia, sending shockwaves across the entire community. As the detectives began digging deeper into the case, they tied the homicide to an unlikely perpetrator with ties to the local law enforcement. All the intricate details of the case and the ensuing investigation are explored in Investigation Discovery’s ‘The Murder Tapes: Blue Nightmare,’ which also features insightful interviews with Kelly’s loved ones and the officials who solved the case.
Kelly Levinsohn Was Found Dead in Her Home
Born on April 14, 1975, Kelly Susanne Levinsohn was the beloved daughter of Wylma and Bill Levinsohn. She and her brother, Gary Levinsohn, were raised in Columbus, Georgia, where she went to Reese Road Leadership Academy, Fort Middle School, and Hardaway High School. For higher education, she attended Columbus State University and earned an Associate’s Degree in Criminal Justice. After graduating from college, she relocated to Jackson Hole, Wyoming, for several years before returning to Columbus in 2005. Kelly then began attending Columbus Technical College to pursue an EMT degree, while serving as a paraprofessional in special education at Allen Elementary School. Once she earned her degree, she became an EMT and later an Advanced EMT at Station 8.
In 2017, Kelly suffered a huge loss when her father, Bill, passed away. Residing on Pratt Avenue in Columbus, she had been working as an EMT for Care Ambulance in the late 2010s. Known for her compassionate and friendly nature, the 44-year-old woman met her unexpected demise on May 11, 2019. On the fateful night, the police received a 911 call about a shooting incident at the paramedic’s Columbus home. Upon entering Kelly’s property, they found her dead and her car missing from the garage. The cause of her death was determined to be a single gunshot wound. Immediately, a homicide investigation was launched to get to the bottom of the case.
Kelly Levinsohn’s Killer Was Having an Affair With Her at the Time
As part of the investigation, the detectives spoke with neighbors and witnesses to gain a clearer picture of what transpired inside Kelly Levinsohn’s home. They claimed that the suspect fled the scene in her pickup truck after shooting her to death. As they tracked down her vehicle, they found a Georgia Police Sergeant named William Leonard Talley driving it and crashing it off I-185 at the Hopewell Church Road exit in Harris County. After the accident, the injured suspect threatened to kill himself during a standoff with law enforcement. Once the Muscogee County Sheriff’s Office Special Response Team handled the situation, William was arrested and taken to the hospital, where he recovered and was placed under guard.
The suspect was then fired by the Columbus Police Department and held at the Muscogee County jail after being charged with the killing of Kelly Levinsohn. It turned out that William was having an extramarital affair with Kelly, who had previously reported a domestic violence incident against him in March 2018. After finding him intoxicated, the police suspended him for one day. His wife was reportedly aware of the affair and was the one who called the police to report Kelly’s death.
William Talley is Currently Incarcerated at a Georgia Prison
After remaining on suicide watch for a while, William Talley was eventually declared competent to stand trial after a thorough psychological examination. On November 19, 2019, he was officially indicted on malice murder and felony murder charges in connection with the shooting death of Kelly Levinsohn. In addition, he was also reportedly indicted on charges of possession of a firearm during the commission of a felony, aggravated assault, and violating his oath as a public officer. Less than a year later, on September 28, 2020, the fired Columbus Police Sergeant pleaded guilty to the felony murder charge, aggravated assault, and possession of a firearm during the commission of a felony, in order to receive a lesser sentence.
Due to the COVID-19 pandemic at the time, William attended the hearing via Zoom from the Muscogee County Jail. After his guilty plea, he was sentenced to life in prison with the possibility of parole after serving 30 years. Kelly’s best friend, Tyeise Wetzel, attended the hearing virtually from Wyoming and recounted her memories with Kelly. Describing William as a cowardly murderer, she added, “She was killed by a real-life monster – a police officer at that. He was trained to protect. And he shot her in the back of the head where she had no way of defending herself.” As of today, the 57-year-old killer is serving his sentence at the Long Unit State Prison in Ludowici, Georgia.
Read More: Hadas Winnick Murder: Where is Jesse Winnick Now?
