Suvechha Sarkar
In June 2010, a quiet day in Palmdale, California, turned into a nightmare when LaNell Crystal Barsock was found dead in her home. Law enforcement initially suspected her live-in boyfriend, Louis Bonheur, based on the early findings. However, things took a turn when authorities discovered that the forensic evidence pointed them to a different killer. NBC’s ‘Dateline: The Breakup’ explores the circumstances surrounding the case, which ultimately revealed that a woman named La’Rene Eleanor Austin was the person responsible for LaNell’s death. It also features interviews with the officials who worked on the case and LaNell’s loved ones.
La’Rene Austin Attempted to Frame LaNell Barsock’s Boyfriend For the Murder
La’Rene Eleanor Austin was born on January 9, 1982. According to reports, she was struggling to find a stable job since 2008, and within the next two years, she was living with her mother. Her name came to the forefront on June 16, 2010, when her friend, LaNell Crystal Barsock, was killed at home in Palmdale, California. On that fateful day, La’Rene reportedly rushed to the sheriff’s office wearing bloodied clothes and blood on her feet. Reports state that she claimed that she entered through LaNell’s garage barefoot in the dark when she reportedly found LaNell’s remains and a bloody scene. Investigative reports state that during La’Rene’s interview, she alleged that she saw LaNell’s live-in boyfriend, Louis Bonheur, at the scene before she rushed out in a panic. As per official records, La’Rene claimed she was LaNell’s best friend for 10 years.
In her statements, La’Rene informed officials that she arrived at LaNell’s home around 10 am to finish LaNell’s hair weaving. She continued that LaNell and Louis then had an argument, following which LaNell and La’Rene went to a beauty supply store around 12 pm. Investigative reports suggest that the girls returned to LaNell’s home shortly after, where La’Rene claimed that Louis again began fighting with his girlfriend. La’Rene reportedly insisted that she then left the place around 1:25 pm to go to a park and allegedly stayed there until 6:45 pm before returning to find LaNell’s remains. Hence, the detectives reportedly focused on Louis as a suspect, but he informed them that he was away from home at the time of the murder. Reports indicate that Louis was initially taken into custody during the investigation of LaNell’s murder, but he was later released without any charges.
La’Rene Austin Was Arrested After Forensic Evidence Tied Her to the Murder
A breakthrough came when investigators obtained Louis’s cellphone data. As per official records, the data revealed that he was away from LaNell and his home around the estimated time of the murder. Furthermore, he was reportedly at LaNell’s mother, Bobbie Barsock’s, home when La’Rene claimed to have seen Louis. According to court records, detectives soon noticed red flags, wondering why La’Rene was at the park in the middle of June for over 5 hours. Additionally, during La’Rene’s initial interview, deputies had reportedly found two unfired bullets in her bag. Forensic experts reportedly discovered that the bullets matched the exact type of empty shell casing that was found at the murder scene.
The fingerprints and bloody footprints found at the scene also matched La’Rene, according to official reports. Investigative records suggest that the authorities soon discovered that La’Rene had bought a gun in February 2010, shortly before the murder. It was reportedly a 9mm caliber weapon that was also used for LaNell’s murder. As the investigation progressed, LaNell’s mobile data and messages revealed that she had actually connected with La’Rene through Craigslist, and their friendship soon turned into an intimate relationship. Police records indicate that LaNell ended their relationship just five days before the murder through a text message.
LaNell reportedly told La’Rene in that text that she wanted to continue their friendship and didn’t want anything sexual anymore, and La’Rene agreed. Further witnesses came forward, claiming that La’Rene took up LaNell’s middle name, Crystal, while going on dates and allegedly tried to impersonate LaNell. Ultimately, La’Rene was formally charged with first-degree murder in March 2011. However, by then, she had already left the county and had become a fugitive. The search for her continued until January 2012, when a tip about her location came in, reporting that she was living in Toledo, Belize. La’Rene was reportedly arrested there and was extradited to California.
La’Rene Austin is Incarcerated at a California Correctional Facility Today
After her extradition, La’Rene pleaded not guilty to the charge of murder in September 2012. Her jury trial finally began in August 2015, where the prosecution presented several DNA and other forensic evidence linking her to the crime scene. Those reportedly included bloody footprints and fingerprints along with her actions following LaNell’s murder. The prosecution claimed that La’Rene shot LaNell in the head after their brief romantic relationship ended, and she then attempted to frame Louis for the crime. They further emphasized that she wrote a breakup note to Louis, pretending to be LaNell.
On the other hand, the defense insisted that La’Rene was innocent and Louis was actually the killer. Ultimately, after deliberation, the jury found her guilty of first-degree murder. On August 26, 2015, La’Rene was sentenced to two consecutive 25-year-to-life imprisonment terms, effectively a 50-year-to-life sentence. Currently, her parole eligibility date is set for February 2032, while her parole consultation is set to happen in February 2027. As of writing, she is serving her time at the California Institution for Women in Chino, California.
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