Man who served 36 years for wife’s murder forgives confessed killer in rare reconciliation

Leo Schofield served 36 years in prison for his wife’s murder – and he forgave the man who confessed to the killing.

Leo Schofield and his daughter Ashley were in a serious motorcycle accident in January 2025. Schofield, who had been released on parole in April 2024 and had maintained his innocence, found himself in a critical situation.

Pulitzer Prize-winning author Gilbert King, investigating Schofield’s case for his podcast “Bone Valley,” visited him after the accident. A convicted murderer named Jeremy Scott, who previously claimed to have killed Michelle Schofield in 2017, unrelated to his current prison sentence, reached out to King.

Leo Schofield was accused of killing his wife, Michelle Schofield, in 1987, but no physical evidence tied him to the crime. This lack of evidence has raised questions about the validity of the charges against him.

Scott lived less than two miles from where Michelle’s body was found.

“He was off the radar, but he shouldn’t have been,” said King. “… When they found those fingerprints in the car that didn’t match anybody like Leo or Michelle, they should have gone to known suspects in the area, and they never did that. These fingerprints remained mysterious for 17 years until they finally came back to Jeremy.”

Due to a lack of forensic technology at the time, the fingerprints couldn’t be matched until 2004. They belonged to Scott. King said that initially, Scott denied having anything to do with Michelle’s murder, claiming he had only stolen the stereo speakers from her car.

A close-up of Jeremy Scott's mugshot.

Jeremy Scott initially claimed that he had just stolen the stereo speakers from Michelle Schofield’s car. (Lava for Good)

“Six years after he denied killing Michelle, he came out and wrote a letter to Leo’s lawyer, saying, ‘I’m the one that did this. You got the wrong guy in prison,’” said King. “That’s when he started talking about it in 2016.”

Jeremy Scott in court wearing an orange jumpsuit looking at a file folder.

Jeremy Scott looks at a letter he wrote shown to him by Assistant State Attorney Victoria Avalon as he testifies. (Ernst Peters/The Lakeland Ledger-USA Today Network IMAGN)

“He said to me, ‘That man never belonged in prison. I took his life away from him,’” said King. “He felt bad about that. … I think he’s one of those people who is trying to do something right with what little time he has left on Earth. He’s never going to be outside the prison walls.”

A close-up of Leo Schofield in an orange jumpsuit.

Leo Schofield listens during an evidentiary hearing in court in Bartow, Florida on May 6, 2010.  (Ernst Peters/The Lakeland Ledger-USA Today Network/IMAGN)

The New York Times reported that Scott had confessed to the murder “a number of times.” 

Leo Schofield playing the guitar in casual wear.

Leo Schofield turned to faith while he was behind bars. It helped him forgive Jeremy Scott. (Lava for Good)

“[Scott] spoke out before and nobody believed him,” said King. “They just beat him up on the stand and said he was a liar and unreliable. . . . I think that stayed with him. He’s thinking, ‘I’m trying to do the right thing here. I’m confessing to a murder.’ And the state instead just decided to attack his credibility.”

“But I reached out to him,” said King. “I said, ‘I’m willing to listen. I believe that you’re telling the truth.’ We spoke many times, and I’ve continued to stay in touch with him. He’s never wavered from what he’s told me. He’s never wavered from his confession.”

During his time in prison, Schofield immersed himself in faith. He mentored fellow inmates. He also found love again. He married Crissie Carter, a social worker he met while serving time, in 1995.

Crissie and Leo Schofield taking a selfie in a parking lot.

Leo Schofield married Crissie Carter in 1995. (Lava for Good)

According to The New York Times, the state hasn’t moved forward on additional murder charges against Scott. 

In a statement sent to Fox News Digital, Polk County Sheriff Grady Judd wrote: “The jury found Leo Schofield guilty of murdering Michelle Schofield. Multiple courts have upheld that verdict.” 

The outlet shared that Schofield is currently working to overturn his conviction. If denied, he could be on parole for another four to six years.

“Being on the outside, you’re reminded that you’re not free – that’s what Leo’s life is like,” said King. “… He was offered two deals that would’ve had him out of prison in the early ‘90s if he would’ve just taken them. He refused. He said, ‘It’s much easier for me to serve time than it is for me to admit something I didn’t do.’”

Gilbert King hugging Leo Schofield

Leo Schofield hugs “Bone Valley” host Gilbert King, hours after Schofield was released from prison after serving 36 years. (Kara Kornhaber)

“Leo is trying to get that exoneration – that’s his life today,” said King. “Fortunately, there are some very powerful people in Florida who also believe him and are fighting for him, too. I have hope for him. I really think something is going to happen.”

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