Ellie Nesler
Encyclopedia
Elena Starr "Ellie" Nesler (August 2, 1952 – December 26, 2008) shot and killed her son's accused molester in a Jamestown, California
, courtroom during the preliminary hearing on the charges against him. She served 3 years of a 10-year sentence and was released after an appeal based on jury misconduct. Rather than opting for a retrial, she pleaded guilty to a lesser charge and was paroled with time served. She later went back to prison after a conviction on drug charges, for which she served more than 3 years. During her first term in prison, she developed breast cancer
, which ultimately caused her death in 2008 at the age of 56.
Nesler made headlines when she killed Daniel Driver, the man accused of molesting four boys (including her then-6-year-old son, William) in 1993, in the courtroom of the Jamestown Justice Court. She fired five shots into Driver's head, killing him instantly. In 2002, she was convicted of selling and possessing methamphetamine
. She was released from a woman's facility near Chowchilla, California
in 2006.
Jamestown, California
Jamestown is a census-designated place in Tuolumne County, California, United States. The population was 3,433 at the 2010 census, up from 3,017 at the 2000 census.A scene from the movie Hidalgo was filmed in Jamestown...
, courtroom during the preliminary hearing on the charges against him. She served 3 years of a 10-year sentence and was released after an appeal based on jury misconduct. Rather than opting for a retrial, she pleaded guilty to a lesser charge and was paroled with time served. She later went back to prison after a conviction on drug charges, for which she served more than 3 years. During her first term in prison, she developed breast cancer
Breast cancer
Breast cancer is cancer originating from breast tissue, most commonly from the inner lining of milk ducts or the lobules that supply the ducts with milk. Cancers originating from ducts are known as ductal carcinomas; those originating from lobules are known as lobular carcinomas...
, which ultimately caused her death in 2008 at the age of 56.
Nesler made headlines when she killed Daniel Driver, the man accused of molesting four boys (including her then-6-year-old son, William) in 1993, in the courtroom of the Jamestown Justice Court. She fired five shots into Driver's head, killing him instantly. In 2002, she was convicted of selling and possessing methamphetamine
Methamphetamine
Methamphetamine is a psychostimulant of the phenethylamine and amphetamine class of psychoactive drugs...
. She was released from a woman's facility near Chowchilla, California
Chowchilla, California
Chowchilla is a city in Madera County, California, United States. Chowchilla is located northwest of Madera, at an elevation of 240 feet . It is a principal city of the Madera–Chowchilla Metropolitan Statistical Area. The population was 18,720 at the 2010 census, up from 11,127 at the 2000...
in 2006.
External links
, Western Folklore magazine, summer 2000- "Son of vigilante mother now subject of California murder probe, manhunt", Associated PressAssociated PressThe Associated Press is an American news agency. The AP is a cooperative owned by its contributing newspapers, radio and television stations in the United States, which both contribute stories to the AP and use material written by its staff journalists...
, July 29, 2004 - "Ellie Nesler again out of prison", Chris Nichols, Sonora Union-Democrat, June 5, 2006