It was five days after Christmas in 1989 when Collier Landry heard what sounded like “a body hitting a wall.”
Late at night, the 11-year-old boy was in bed, unaware that his mother, Noreen Boyle, had been murdered in her Ohio home.
“I'll never forget that sound. I can't get it out of my head,” the now 46-year-old told FOX News Digital. “But there was nothing I could have done to prevent what might have happened.”
Serial killer's daughter reveals chilling secret and turns her in to police
When Collier Landry was 11 years old, he heard a “terrifying sound” that still haunts him. (Courtesy of Collier Landry)
“I was a little boy,” he said. “I had asthma. My dad was big and scary, and I was still trying to figure it out. But then I heard my dad's footsteps down the hall, and I saw his shoes in my peripheral vision in the doorway. When I saw it, I thought, 'I knew something had happened. ”
Landry said she suddenly heard a voice “screaming in my head.” It warned him not to look up. He pretended to be asleep.
“I'm still convinced that if I had chosen to look up, I wouldn't be sitting here right now,” Landry said.
Collier Landry is speaking out about his mother's murder in the true crime series 'A Plan to Kill.' (oxygen)
The case, which caused a stir in the local media, is being investigated in Oxygen's true-crime series A Plan to Kill. This film examines the true story of a deranged murderer who spends weeks, months, and even years planning the murder of his victims.
Launched laundry podcastsaid it was important to detail how violent crimes affect the perpetrator's children.
“To hear stories like this, to know that someone can work for justice, to know that law enforcement will ultimately listen to you, to know that you can get justice. , I think that's really important,” Landry explained.
Follow the FOX True Crime Team at X
Noreen Boyle and her son Collier celebrate his first birthday. (Courtesy of Collier Landry)
Landry described Boyle as a loving and doting mother.
“Many of my childhood friends have fond memories of her,” he says with a twinkle in his eye. “She was so kind and made people so supportive. I remember every holiday season when I had to donate half of my toys to Toys for Tots. She also wanted me to understand how lucky I was to have a mom and dad and a roof over my head when I was growing up. Yes, it was common for there to be toys in the toy box. ”
“I wasn’t allowed to pick out any toy I didn’t like,” he laughed. “My mother wanted me to sacrifice and be considerate for the good of others, so I had to sacrifice some of the people I loved, and that has stuck with me ever since.” It remained there forever.”
Dr. John Boyle was a prominent osteopath. (Courtesy of Collier Landry)
Landry's father, Dr. John Boyle, was a prominent osteopath. However, life at home was not a happy one.
The Boyles had lived in Mansfield since 1983, immigrating from Virginia where John worked in a Navy clinic. During their marriage, John reportedly did a number of things.
After 22 years of marriage, Boyle filed for divorce in November 1989, citing extreme emotional abuse and gross neglect. During the divorce process, John bought a new home in Pennsylvania, court documents revealed. He began moving his medical practice from Mansfield to Erie.
Sign up to get our true crime newsletter
Noreen Boyle filed for divorce in November 1989 after 22 years of marriage. (Courtesy of Collier Landry)
Landry told how she and her mother were “afraid” of the family patriarch, who “was a very violent man.”
“At the end of her life, my mother was being abused by my father,” Landry explained. “He became more and more aggressive towards me and started saying nasty things like, 'I'm starting a new family and I'm going to let you both live on the streets.'”
“I think everything started to weigh on my mother,” Landry said. “At the same time, my mom was full of optimism that I could still get through it. And she did her best to not let things affect me… to be as strong as possible for me. I did my best for her.”
Collier Landry described Noreen Boyle as a loving mother who was optimistic about her future. (Collier Landry)
“She was optimistic that she would be okay in the end,” he said.
In the morning, Landry heard a “scary noise” and ran to his mother's bedroom. She's gone.
There he confronted his father, who insisted there was no need to call the police because “Mommy took a little vacation.”
“I knew right then that he had done something to her,” Landry said. “He told me the whole story about how she woke up in the middle of the night. I asked about the thud. He said it was from my mother throwing her purse and hitting the wall. said.
Get real-time updates directly. true crime hub
Dr. John Boyle didn't want his son to tell police about Noreen Boyle's disappearance. (Courtesy of Collier Landry)
“He was gaslighting me,” Landry said. “I needed to know what happened.”
Mr. Landry slipped away and called his mother's best friend, Sherry Bowden. When police arrived at the house, Landry insisted that her mother would never leave her. He told police he heard his parents arguing, followed by screams and a loud thud.
“They didn't believe me,” he said. “Until then, there was no [Captain] Dave Messmore appeared. He took me seriously. So that's how we started this whole investigation. ”
Lt. Dave Messmore, a former police officer with the Mansfield Police Department, also spoke on the episode. (oxygen)
“I knew my life was in danger,” he said. “I knew my father was dangerous and violent, but I didn't care. I was going to find out what happened to my mother. All I had to do was find it.”
Authorities obtained a search warrant based in part on Landry's words.
On January 25, 1990, less than a month after Boyle went missing, police found her body in John's new home in Erie. mansfield news journal Reported.
CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP
Authorities recovered Noreen Boyle's body from the basement of Dr. John Boyle's new home in Erie, Pennsylvania, on January 25, 1990. (Courtesy of Collier Landry)
She was wrapped in a tarpaulin with her head wrapped in a plastic bag and buried in “soft white clay” two feet below the basement, the paper said. A green carpet was spread on the floor.
At the age of 12, Landry became a key witness in his father's trial. He stood on the witness stand, looked at his father, and helped secure his conviction.
“I knew that if I didn't testify against my father and he was somehow released, I would regret it for the rest of my life,” Landry explained. “If I had to go back and live with him, he might end up torturing me for the rest of my life, because of course he would maintain custody as my father. I don’t know.”
Collier Landry said she spent part of three days testifying. (Courtesy of Collier Landry)
“He bothered me in so many ways, but it would have been really bad if he had been acquitted,” Landry continued. “I needed to do what was right for my mother.”
Boyle's mistress, Sherry Lee Campbell, gave birth to a daughter in January 1990, less than two weeks after Boyle disappeared.
John maintained his innocence. He took the witness stand on his behalf and testified for nine hours over two days. Former Richland County Prosecutor James Mayer Jr. called him “probably the biggest liar I've ever seen.”
Ohio detectives crack down on 'ladykiller' Sean Grate in 33-hour interrogation: 'Hunger to kill'
Collier Landry was adopted by George and Susan Zeigler. Landry credits the Zeiglers with providing a loving and stable home. (Courtesy of Collier Landry)
John was convicted of Boyle's murder. He was sentenced to 20 years to life in prison for aggravated murder and 18 months for abuse of a corpse.
Landry found himself alone. According to the episode, his mother's family refused to adopt him because he looked like John. According to Landry, his father's family also refused to welcome him. According to Landry, they wanted him to recant his testimony.
“When you're abandoned by your family at the lowest point in your young life, it affects you,” he says. “I was adopted into a loving family and was so grateful for that when I was 13, but I still feel like I've been walking alone most of my life. It's so hard to reconcile. That’s it.”
John Boyle was sentenced to 20 years to life in prison for aggravated murder and 18 months for abuse of a corpse. (Ohio Department of Rehabilitation and Correction)
“But I do it every day,” he said quietly. “Put one foot in front of the other, smile and say, 'Today is another day.'”
Landry later moved to California to pursue a career as a cinematographer and director. He began using his middle name as his new last name.
Now, Landry is determined to turn his suffering into purpose. He currently works as a speaker and provides coaching to people in similar situations.
Jealous teenager's adoptive parents' “murder plan'', mother's blessing, detective close relative reveals
Collier Landry, who now lives in California, has started a podcast aimed at uplifting others in similar situations. (oxygen)
“My story centers around a true crime story, but it's also a story of healing and resilience,” Landry said. “You can go through some unimaginably tragic situation and still come out the other side okay.
“…That's what I told my younger self: 'You'll be fine, you'll make it.'”
“A Plan to Kill” airs Sundays at 7 p.m. The Associated Press contributed to this report.
