Crimesider's Biggest Crime Stories of 2015
Wealthy New York real estate heir Robert Durst was arrested in March on a murder warrant, just before the showing of HBO documentary "The Jinx," in which he's interviewed extensively about his links to two deaths and his wife's 1982 disappearance. Durst is expected to go to trial in California on the charges he killed his friend and former spokeswoman Susan Berman in 2000. Durst had previously been acquitted in the 2001 shooting death of his neighbor, Morris Black, in Texas, though he admitted dismembering Black's body. No one has been charged in the mysterious cold case disappearance of his wife, Kathie. During the filming of "The Jinx," Durst made apparently incriminating statements in a bathroom while still wearing his microphone, saying, "What the hell did I do -- killed them all, of course."
Conviction of Aaron Hernandez
Former New England Patriots tight end Aaron Hernandez was found guilty in April for the 2013 killing of Odin Lloyd, who was dating the sister of Hernandez's fiancee. He is serving a life sentence. Hernandez is also facing charges in the deaths of two others after he encountered them at a nightclub in July 2012.
That murder trial is scheduled to begin on Jan. 19, 2016.
"Senior Salute" Trial - Owen Labrie
Owen Labrie, a former student at New Hampshire's exclusive St. Paul's school, was convicted in August of misdemeanor sexual assault and a felony computer offense after the alleged sexual assault of a 15-year-old girl in 2014. Prosecutors argued the assault was part of the so-called "Senior Salute," an alleged practice at the school in which seniors try to have sex with underclassmen. Labrie, now 20, was sentenced to one year in jail and probation, and has registered as a sex offender.
The death of Freddie Gray
Baltimore saw widespread protests after Freddie Gray died on April 19. A week earlier, Gray went into a coma after suffering spinal injuries while in police custody. Six police officers were charged with crimes ranging from second-degree depraved-heart murder and manslaughter, to illegal arrest.
Charleston Church Massacre
Nine people were shot to death on June 17, 2015, during Bible study inside the Emmanuel AME Church, in Charleston, S.C. The suspect, Dylann Roof, allegedly chose the church because the majority of its congregation was black. Outrage over the shooting soon led to state legislation calling for the removal of the Confederate flag from the state capitol.
The death of Sandra Bland
Sandra Bland was found hanged to death in a Waller County, Texas, jail cell on July 13, three days after she was pulled over for a minor traffic violation that led to her arrest following a confrontation with state trooper Brian Encinia. Her death was ruled a suicide, but it triggered widespread protests and the FBI joined the investigation into her death.
Va. murder of reporter, camerman on live TV
Cameraman Adam Ward was filming reporter Alison Parker live on-air when the two reporters for CBS' Roanoke, Va., affiliate WDBJ were shot and killed. A third victim, Vicki Gardner, who was being interviewed by Parker, survived the attack by gunman Vester Lee Flanagan II. Flanagan filmed himself during the shooting and uploaded the video to social media before he was killed following a police manhunt.
Jared Fogle - Ex-Subway Spokesman
Former Subway spokesperson Jared Fogle was sentenced in November to more than 15 years in federal prison after pleading guilty to child pornography and sex crime charges. Fogle admitted paying for sex with girls as young as 16 and receiving child pornography produced by Russell Taylor, the former executive director of The Jared Foundation, a nonprofit Fogle started to raise awareness and money to fight childhood obesity.
Tyshawn Lee
In a crime that shocked Chicago and renewed efforts to end gun violence there, police say 9-year-old boy Tyshawn Lee was lured into an alleyway Nov. 2 and shot to death in apparent gang-related retaliation. Police have said they believe Tyshawn was targeted because of his father's alleged gang ties, but the boy's family has denied any gang connections.
The arrest of Jason Van Dyke
More than a year after 17-year-old Laquan McDonald (right) was shot 16 times by Chicago police officer Jason Van Dyke (left), the officer was charged in the teen's death. The release of video showing McDonald's death, in which the majority of shots were fired while he lay on the ground, triggered protests and eventually led to the firing of Chicago Police Superintendent Garry McCarthy.
Umpqua Community College Shooting
On Oct. 1, a student gunman stormed Umpqua Community College in Roseburg, Oregon, killing eight classmates and a teacher and wounding nine others at before turning the gun on himself. Army veteran Chris Mintz was hailed as a hero for confronting the gunman, who police identified as 26-year-old Chris Harper Mercer.
Planned Parenthood Shooting
Three people were killed and nine were injured in a shooting at a Planned Parenthood clinic in Colorado Springs, Colo., on Nov. 27, 2015. Suspect Robert Dear was arrested after a prolonged standoff with police, one of whom was among the deceased, and four of whom were injured.
San Bernardino Attack
Fourteen people were killed and 22 injured on Dec. 2, 2015, when Syed Farook and Tashfeen Malik stormed a San Bernardino, Calif., Health Department holiday party at the Inland Regional Center, firing dozens of shots from AR-15 semiautomatic rifles and 9 mm semiautomatic pistols. Farook and Malik were soon killed in a firefight with police.