Kriti Mehrotra
When 51-year-old mother of two Amy Fanion was found shot to death in the dining room of her farmhouse in Westfield, Massachusetts, it left all her loved ones baffled to the core. After all, as explored in CBS’ ’48 Hours: The Detective’s Wife,’ while her husband Brian Fanion claimed she pulled the trigger on herself, he was soon arrested, tried, and convicted of her murder. However, even though this entire ordeal is a tragedy, Amy and Brian’s two adult children have always stood by their father as they wholeheartedly believe in his claims of innocence.
Amy and Brian Fanion’s Kids Grew Up in a Far From Ordinary Environment
It was in 1983 when 16-year-old high school sophomore Amy Hansen first came across 19-year-old Brian Fanion by chance, just for them both to feel an undeniable spark. They thus began dating despite their 3-year age gap, unaware their romance would be quite a whirlwind as they would end up tying the knot merely two years later in 1985. The couple subsequently settled down in their hometown of Westfield, where the former decided to primarily care for their household and kids, whereas the latter followed in his ancestor’s footsteps and joined the police force.
Therefore, when Amy and Brian eventually welcomed two children into their world, they were absolutely over the moon – Travis Fanion was first, followed by Victoria “Tori” Fanion. By all accounts, with a stay-at-home mother and a police officer father who carried on his family’s legacy, their childhood was nearly idyllic, as they always had everything they could have ever wanted. Yet, behind closed doors, their situation was much different as their mother was allegedly controlling and a bit of a perfectionist when it came to her kids, leading to many familial arguments.
Travis and Tori Fanion Testified for Their Father During His Trial
While Amy was found shot to death with her husband’s duty weapon on May 8, 2018, it wasn’t until November 6, 2019, that her husband was arrested for her murder before being indicted. Then, it took roughly five more years for him to stand trial in early 2023, during which not only did both of their kids but also several of Amy’s family members stood by Brian. According to their accounts, it wasn’t unlike Amy to be dramatic as she had a short temper that only ever came to the surface in front of her immediate family, that is, her husband, as well as Travis and Tori.
In fact, Travis went as far as to testify that although he loved his mother, she had a bit of a violent streak in her that came out in private when she was extremely frustrated or angry. He actually gave an example of this, revealing that when he and his sister were younger, the family often took road trips, during which Amy was the navigator since they didn’t have GPS at the time. He added that while some days were great, others were filled with violence if a single turn was missed because she would get so angry she would swing at their father and them. In fact, he alleged that they were so hard that they almost always either drew blood or left nasty bruises.
As if that’s not enough, Travis then added that because of all this, he spent most of his teenage years at his grandparents’ house three doors down because he didn’t want to consistently argue or fight with his mother. Coming to Victoria, she essentially reiterates Travis’ sentiments before conceding that it was indeed “my way or the highway” for their mother, which never really worked out great. Moreover, and more importantly, she claimed that she had once talked about suicide with her mother, just for Amy to say she believes it to be “selfish” as it “causes more harm to the loved ones.” Yet, Travis asserted his belief that his mother probably did point Brian’s weapon to her head following an argument, but je beleives she never inteded to kill herself and was likely just hoping to be dramatic, unaware that a lack of safety feature on the weapon would drive it to fire and immediately take her life.
Travis and Tori Fanion Have Gradually Moved Forward With Their Lives
While the loss of their mother has continued to hang over their heads like a dark cloud, it appears as if Travis and Tori are now doing their best to move forward while still standing by their father. This entire ordeal has understandably been extremely difficult for them, considering they were both adults and far from home when it actually transpired, but they are choosing to believe in Brian. This is significant considering the seriousness of the matter, yet they maintain that there is no way their father could have taken their mother’s life as he loved her. They truly believe Amy mistakenly shot herself after she and her husband argued about what their future would look like.
Coming to their personal standings, starting with Travis, it appears as if he is simply thriving at the moment. The Wentworth Institute of Technology Mechanical Engineering graduate (2004-2008) began his career at a company called Tell Toll. Then, upon graduation, he worked at Danaher – Jacobs Vehicle Systems before really finding his calling in the Aerospace industry. He started out as a Senior Engineer of Tool Design at UTC Aerospace Systems in 2010 before evolving into Manager of Tool Engineering and Manager of Tool Control. Yet, in late 2018, Travis decided to make the jump to Collins Aerospace, where he initially served as a Tool Control Manager before being promoted to Senior Manager of Tool Engineering, Production Support, and Non-Product Supply in 2020. He actually maintains this position even today, and is extremely proud of everything he has achieved, all the while continuing to grow personally as a travel enthusiast and adventure sports lover.
As for Tori, like her brother, she continues to reside in Westfield, Massachusetts, to this day, but her focus these days is primarily on her growing family. After all, she is currently engaged to be married to a man named Randy Pomeroy, with whom she shares an adorable little son and two pet dogs. She is also an outdoor enthusiast, with a special interest in fishing, kayaking, and everything related to water, and can often be found spending downtime there with her loved ones. In other words, both Travis and Tori seem happy at the moment, which is all that matters in the long run, and so, we wish them all the best for the years to come too.
Read More: Cori Hasty: Where is Brian Fanion’s Ex-Girlfriend Now?
