Luke Woodham (born February 5, 1981) is a convicted American murderer, and a former resident of Pearl, Mississippi who in 1997 killed 3 people, including his own mother, and wounded 7. He is serving life in prison.

Murder of Mother

On the 1st of October 1997 Luke Woodham, then 16, brutally beat and stabbed his mother, Mary Woodham to death. When put on trial in court, he claimed to have not remembered killing his mother.

October 1: Shooting at Pearl High School

Woodham drove his mother's car to his high school, wearing a long coat to hide his rifle. When he entered the school, he began firing rampantly, killing his ex-girlfriend Chrtistina Menefee and her friend Lydia Dew, and wounding 7 others before a teacher retrieved a pistol from his car and subdued Woodham. When the teacher asked Woodham of his motive, he replied "Life has wronged me, sir".

Charges

Woodham confessed to shooting his classmates, but as before mentioned, he claimed to not remember killing his mother. He pleaded insanity, but the jury rejected the insanity defense, and instead found him guilty.

A separate jury in Philadelphia, Mississippi, convicted Woodham of murdering his mother, 50-year-old Mary Woodham, who was beaten and stabbed. He was sentenced to life in prison for that killing. Defense attorneys argued in both trials that Woodham was legally insane at the time of the slayings.

Rejecting an insanity defense, a Mississippi jury found 17-year-old Luke Woodham guilty Friday night of two counts of murder and seven counts of aggravated assault for a shooting spree last October at Pearl High School.

Woodham was accused of killing two classmates -- ex-girlfriend Christina Menefee, 16, and her friend Lydia Dew, 17 -- and wounding seven others during the attack, the first of a series of deadly mass shootings at U.S. schools. Jurors deliberated about five hours before returning their verdict.

Judge Samac Richardson immediately sentenced Woodham to two consecutive life sentences for the murder convictions and seven 20-year sentences for the aggravated assault convictions.

After being sentenced, Woodham spoke briefly to the court.

"I am sorry for the people I killed and hurt. The reason you see no tears anymore is because I've been forgiven by God," Woodham said.

"If they could have given the death penalty in this case, I deserve it."

The mother of one of the girls stood up in court and said, "You have stolen from me. ... You have stolen any chance I will ever (have) to hold grandchildren."

Last week, a separate jury in Philadelphia, Mississippi, convicted Woodham of murdering his mother, 50-year-old Mary Woodham, who was beaten and stabbed. He was sentenced to life in prison for that killing, which prosecutors say happened several hours before the attack at Pearl High.

Woodham confessed to shooting his classmates, but said he did not remember killing his mother. Defense attorneys argued in both trials that Woodham was legally insane at the time of the slayings. The school-shootings trial began Tuesday.

Tearful Woodham: 'I'm so sorry'

On Friday, the defense rested its case after Woodham completed his testimony. He began in a calm, restrained mood, but, by the final minutes, he had broken down into sobs. He apologized for his actions and acknowledged they were unjustified.

"I'm so sorry. I'm so sorry," he sobbed. "It wasn't me. I didn't want to do it."

Woodham said revenge against Menefee was the primary motivating factor behind the school shootings. He said he was devastated when Menefee broke up with him a year earlier.

"I didn't eat. I didn't sleep. I didn't want to live," he sobbed. "It destroyed me."

Egged on by alleged cult member

Woodham also insisted that his friend, Grant Boyette, encouraged him to murder his mother and Menefee during more than five hours of telephone conversations on the day before the murders.

Boyette, 19, and several other alleged members of a cult-like group known as "the Kroth" have been charged with conspiracy in the school shootings.

Woodham testified that Boyette pushed him on with insults, calling him "gutless ... [and saying that] he had never done nothing."

"The reason all this happened is that I was heartbroken," Woodham said. "I could have gotten over it, but Grant wouldn't let me ... he told me I had to kill my mama ... I had to get my revenge on Christina."

"I shot Christina," Woodham said. "I never really knew why the others got shot. It just happened."

But under cross-examination, Woodham admitted that his desire for revenge against his ex-girlfriend outweighed Boyette's influence. When asked to explain why he did Boyette's bidding, he replied: "acceptance."

Prosecutor John Kitchens suggested that most of Woodham's problems -- the breakup with his girlfriend, his lack of friends and his problems with his parents -- were common to most teen-age boys.

The prosecution rested its case against Woodham on Thursday morning, closing with a videotaped confession the teen gave less than an hour after the shootings.

Mississippi v. Luke Woodham

CourtTV.com

This question has haunted the residents of Pearl, Miss. and many other victims of several separate incidents that have involved teen-agers who have gone on shooting sprees in their high schools over the past several months. From West Paducah, Ky., to Jonesboro Ark. to the most recent incident at Springfield, Ore., shooting sprees at high schools have become all to common.

This trial out of Hattiesburg, Miss. finds Woodham, 17, accused of murder in the shooting spree that killed his former girlfriend and another fellow student on October 1. Prosecutors believe that Woodham participated in a conspiracy with six other teen-agers to launch the attack on their school. The defense claims that Woodham was insane at the time of the shootings and did not realize what he was doing. Woodham, 16-years-old at the time of the incident, already has been convicted and sentenced to life in prison for the stabbing death of his mother. He will not be eligible for parole until he is 65-years-old. If convicted for murder, aggravated assault, and conspiracy to commit murder in this separate trial he faces the same punishment.

Haunted by Demons, "Kroth" Strikes

Prosecutors say that on the morning of October 1, Woodham beat his mother, Mary Woodham, with a baseball bat and stabbed her to death with a butcher knife while she was sleeping. Then three hours later, Woodham took a rifle, placed it under his trench coat and drove to Pearl High School. Once he arrived, Woodham pulled the gun from under his coat and unleashed a hail of gunfire that killed Christina Menefee, his former girlfriend, a classmate, Lydia Dew, and wounded seven other students. Assistant principal Joel Myrick grabbed a pistol from his car and subdued Woodham at gunpoint. According to reports, as Myrick asked Woodham why he had shot his classmates, the teen allegedly said, "Mr. Myrick, the world had wronged me."

Days after Woodham's arrest, it was revealed that he may not have been alone in his attack on Pearl High School. Apparently, Woodham was the member of a satanic group called "The Kroth" with six friends and allegedly, Woodham's attack on the high school was part of a vague, yet larger, conspiracy to kill other members of the Pearl community. (The other teens charged in the murder conspiracy are Grant Boyette, Wes Brownell, Donald Brooks II, Allen Shaw and Justin Sledge. The sixth teen-ager is a juvenile whose name has not been revealed to the public. He will be tried in juvenile court. Boyette, who is believed to be the mastermind of the scheme, and the other Kroth members will face trial on a future date.) "The Kroth" allegedly also planned to murder Brooks' father, a local firefighter.

At his mother's murder trial on June 4, 1998, a tearful Woodham testified that he woke up on the morning of the incident haunted by demons. These demons, Woodham said, told him that he would be nothing unless he went to school and killed his targets. He also claimed that he tried to resist the demons but he kept hearing his friend Boyette's voice in his head telling him "to do something." Woodham, however, never specifically said that Boyette told him to kill and did not remember the actual slaying of his mother.

Uphill Battle for the Defense

Because of Woodham's alleged infatuation with demons and voices at the time of the murders, his defense attorneys are expected to claim, as they did during his previous trial, that he was insane and incapable of knowing the gravity of his actions. Despite the supportive testimony of defense psychiatrists, prosecutors at that trial presented psychiatrists who testified that Woodham indeed was sane at the time of the murder and that his actions were deliberate and planned.

Before trial, one of Woodham's attorneys, Leslie Roussell, attempted to stipulate that Woodham indeed brought the gun to the school and opened fire. This would have reduced the amount of emotional testimony from victims at the trial and the likelihood that the jury's emotions would be stirred. It also would have reduced the focus of the trial to Woodham's mental state. But prosecutor John Kitchens rejected the defense's offer, saying that he can prove his case and that he intends to call more than a dozen of Woodham's classmates and teachers to the stand. He also said that the victims deserve to testify at Woodham's trial.

During jury selection, 80 potential jurors were interviewed before a panel of nine men, six women and three alternates were seated. Thirteen prospective jurors said they could not be fair because they already had formed an opinion on Woodham's guilt. Only 11 people said they had head no media reports about Woodham's previous trial and conviction. This trial was moved from Pearl to Hattiesburg because of pretrial publicity.

Woodham has been seen carrying a Bible with him to court during his trial. Reportedly, he has found religion during his time in prison. No doubt, if he is convicted of two more murders for his satanic rampage last fall, Woodham will have two more life sentences to get acquainted with God. As he said at the conclusion of prior conviction, it may be God's will.

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School Shooting Trial Opens

HATTIESBURG, MISS., June 10 -- Testimony was emotional in the first day of Luke Woodham's school shooting trial as eyewitnesses to the incident relived the rampage.

Jurors heard chilling testimony from 19 witnesses, mostly students, who described how Woodham entered the commons area of Pearl High School on Oct. 1, 1997 and opened fire on the students in the area. One of the most dramatic moments of the day came from assistant principal Joel Myrick, who subdued Woodham at gunpoint after the incident. Myrick described how he had heard gunshots that day and saw students running as bodies lay everywhere. He said he went to his car, retrieved his handgun, and loaded it. When Myrick returned, he waited until Woodham exited the school and went to his car. Woodham then ran the car into a tree. According to the witness, he then approached Woodham, pointed his gun at him, told him to drop his weapon and exit the car. Myrick then searched Woodham for other weapons and asked him why he had gone on his shooting rampage.

"Mr. Myrick, the world has wronged me," Woodham allegedly told Myrick. "And I just can't take it anymore." Then, in a bizarre twist, Woodham reminded Myrick that he had given the assistant principal a discount on his pizza a few nights earlier. (Woodham worked in a pizza restaurant.)

One male student's came to the stand and suggested that Woodham's friend (and co-defendant) Justin Sledge knew about Woodham's plans before the shooting. This student described how just before the incident, Woodham approached Sledge and whispered in his ear. Then Sledge walked away, took the student with him and told him not to look behind him, no matter what happens next. Moments later, the student said, he heard gunfire.

Another student, Jerry Safeway, testified that he dove to protect his girlfriend when Woodham started firing. As Safeway lay on the ground, he felt a stinging in his leg; he had been shot. Woodham, Safeway said, stood over him and apologized for shooting him. He did not mean to hit him. Then, Safeway testified, Woodham reloaded his rifle.

Perhaps the most emotional testimony came from a friend of Christina Menefee, Woodham's ex-girlfriend and one of the casualties. She described how Woodham was allegedly obsessive about Menefee and how he became angry when she hung out with her girlfriends. At one point during her testimony, when asked to identify Woodham and rifle he used, the female student could not face Woodham or stare at the murder weapon without breaking into tears. Many of the shooting victims showed the jury the wounds they suffered.

Despite the emotion of the courtroom, Woodham appeared stoic, staring directly at the jurors and witnesses. While members of his family were not present in court, the mothers of Menefee and the other casualty, Lydia Dew, sat together and consoled each other.

The final witnesses called today were three officers who arrived at the scene and arrested Woodham. One officer testified that Woodham appeared "excited," as if he had just won a fight after the shooting. According to the officer, when asked why he had fired upon his fellow students, Woodham said that he was tired of being called a "fat motherf___er." One officer also revealed for the first time that Woodham allegedly said he intended to kill a student named Alan Westbrook, who apparently liked to tease the defendant.

The jury may see Woodham's videotaped confession to police when court resumes Thursday morning. Woodham's defense concedes that he is responsible for the shooting but was insane at the time of the incident.

Reported by Court TV's Helen Lucaitis and Laura Citrin.

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HATTIESBURG, MISS., June 11 -- School shooting defendant Luke Woodham took the stand against the advice of his attorneys and told the court that his rampage was driven by his anger over the breakup with his girlfriend and shooting victim, Christina Menefee.

"I couldn't eat, I couldn't sleep...I didn't want to live," a sobbing Woodham testified. "It just wasn't fair. She [Christina] didn't love me."

Woodham also told jurors about his involvement with demons and that he and an older friend of his had conjured spells with demons. He said that he believed, despite the beliefs of others, that he could send demons to carry out acts and talked about feeling a sense of power with demons. According to Woodham, he has witnessed the power of demons and seen them act.

Before Woodham took the stand, prosecutors rested its case, but not before showing jurors his videotaped confession to police. In the videotape, which was given one hour after the shooting, Woodham tells police that anger motivated his shooting rampage and that he was fully aware of his actions.

"I'm not insane. I knew what I was doing," Woodham told police. "It's been building up for some time now, and no one at school likes me...The world is going to hear from me now. I'm probably going to be very famous."

In the confession, Woodham also says that he was still in love with his ex-girlfriend; he had wanted to kill her previously but thought that it was not the "right thing to do."

Until the videotape was played, Woodham was composed and had stared directly at every witness who came to the stand. But once prosecutors started playing the tape, Woodham refused to look and the video. By the end of the tape, Woodham was sobbing loudly in the courtroom.

Woodham's defense attempted to prove that he was insane through the testimony of a forensic psychologist, Dr. Michael Jepsen. This witness said that he believed that Woodham suffers from a personality disorder and that despite his confession, he was insane and not aware of his actions at the time of the shooting. (This defense failed Woodham during his trial last week for his mother's murder. He was convicted and sentenced to life in prison.) Defense lawyers also called Grant Boyette, the leader of Woodham's cult group "The Kroth" whom they believed strongly encouraged Woodham to go on his shooting spree. However, Boyette took the Fifth Amendment because he still faces murder conspiracy charges in his own upcoming trial.

Woodham will return to the stand to continue his testimony when court resumes Friday morning. The defense is then expected to rest its case, and then both sides will present closing arguments. The jury could start deliberating by the afternoon.

Reported by Court TV's Helen Lucaitis and Laura Citrin.

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Woodham says he's "so sorry" as he is convicted again

HATTIESBURG, MISS., June 12 (Court TV) -- A jury took about five hours Friday evening to find Luke Woodham guilty of two murders in his second murder trial in as many weeks.

He already faces a life sentence after being convicted last week of killing his mother, and was given two more life sentences for his double conviction today in the deaths of his former girlfriend, Christina Menefee, and another Pearl, Mississippi high school student.

The jury also found him guilty of wounding seven other students, and he will receive an additional 20 years for each aggravated assault charge.

Shortly before the jury began to consider his fate, a sobbing Woodham returned to the stand Friday morning, apologizing to the families of victims he wounded and killed during his shooting spree last October.

"I am so sorry. I am so sorry," Woodham said, staring at the onlookers in the gallery. "I think everyone deserves to know what happened, especially those whose sisters and daughters were sent to school that day and they didn't come back...Nothing can justify the taking of those two lives."

Despite his apology, Woodham blamed his friend Grant Boyette for the shooting , saying that his influence inspired his actions. Boyette, the reputed leader of Woodham cult group "The Kroth," still faces a separate trial for murder conspiracy.

During cross-examination, Woodham conceded a few key points. He admitted to the prosecution that the main reason for his shooting rampage at Pearl High School was to get revenge on his girlfriend, Christina Menefee, for breaking up with him. When asked whether that motivation outshined Boyette's alleged influence over him, Woodham answered, "Yes." Woodham could not explain why he fired at the other students. With those admissions, the prosecution ended its cross-examination, and Woodham's defense rested.

Prosecutors closed their case by pointing out that Woodham himself admitted on the stand that he was more responsible for his motive in the shootings than the influence of Boyette. Woodham's lawyers told jurors to use common sense in their deliberations and to avoid being swept away by the heavy emotions that have pervaded the case.

Jurors began their deliberations just before 6:00 p.m. ET. Their verdict was delivered by about 11:00 p.m. ET.

Prosecutors also put two mental health experts on the stand during a brief rebuttal case to counteract the defense's claim that Woodham was insane at the time of the shooting. One forensic psychiatrist testified that Woodham likely had a personality disorder, but did not seem to suffer from any form of psychosis. Another psychologist also testified for prosecutors that during an exam of Woodham, the teenage boy appeared to have no psychotic tendencies, seemed coherent and had a high average intelligence.

Woodham's insanity defense may have been jeopardized not only by the testimony of the state psychiatrists, but by his own words, particularly his videotaped confession where he told police that he is not insane and was aware of his actions.

Court TV's Helen Lucaitis contributed to this report.