A gripping 10-part documentary series focusing on female-perpetrated murders is scheduled to debut next month, exploring some of the most shocking homicides in recent history.
From cutthroat competition to pangs of jealousy and cruel gossip, Mean Girl Murders season three will dig deeper into what pushed women to murder.
Debuting on June 23, the series kicks off with an episode that examines the tragic murder of Leilani Beauchamp, who was fatally shot at a Halloween gathering in October 2021.
Beauchamp’s mysterious disappearance from the festive event in Sacramento, California, sparked a series of events that unraveled a chilling story of envy, treachery, and murder.
The young woman’s life was cut short in a manner as senseless as it was brutal, with her final moments spent in the bed of Jessica Quintanilla’s ex-boyfriend – a fact that became central to the crime’s unraveling.
Beauchamp was said to have been bright and beloved, had just left the bash, unaware that it would lead her into a fatal encounter with Jessica Quintanilla.
The victim accompanied two active-duty Air Force airmen to their home in nearby Fairfield, not knowing that she would never return.
In a fit of rage, 24-year-old Quintanilla confronted Beauchamp and her ex-boyfriend seeking answers and during the confrontation, a gun was fired.
Leilani Marie Beauchamp (pictured) was 19 when she was murdered by Jessica Quintanilla in a jealous rage
Quintanilla was jailed for 25 years to life for the killing whilst her brother Marco Quintanilla, 30, became an unwitting accomplice and was jailed for four years
Quintanilla would later claim on the witness stand that the shooting was an accident, explaining how she was hungover and upset, and that the gun went off during the altercation.
But prosecutors painted a much darker picture, calling the act a deliberate murder driven by a jealous rage.
Following the fatal shooting, Quintanilla’s brother, Marco Quintanilla, 30, became an unwitting accomplice.
The two siblings, along with one of the airmen who lived at the house, disposed of Leilani’s body in Salinas, more than 130 miles away.
At some point during their attempt to cover up the crime, Quintanilla reportedly turned to her brother and uttered the chilling words, ‘We killed someone.’
Her words came back to haunt her as they echoed in the courtroom with Marco later testifying in court how he initially thought his sister’s words were a macabre joke. They were anything but.
In November 2021, Quintanilla was convicted of first degree murder. She was later sentenced to 25 years to life in prison.
New episodes of Mean Girl Murders will air on Mondays across 10 weeks from June 23.
American high school student Kirsten Costas was killed by her classmate Bernadette Protti in June 1984
Bernadette Protti was released seven years later in 1992 on parole at the age of 23
In a gripping trailer for the series, shared exclusively for DailyMail.com, a contributor declares: ‘Girl on girl crime can be very, very cruel.’
‘There was a build up of jealousy,’ another reveals.
A third adds: ‘There was a lot of judgement, it was like being in a shark tank.’
‘Over the course of each one-hour episode, the series will unpack the layers around the key emotions and dynamics within female relationships at the center of a deadly mystery,’ the synopsis teases.
‘Building off of the past two seasons, Mean Girl Murders will continue to delve into how these intricate dynamics turning toxic can sometimes lead to shocking acts of violence.’
While episode one explores the murder of Beauchamp, episode two shines on a light on Kirsten Costas, an American high school student who was killed by her classmate Bernadette Protti in June 1984.
Season three of Mean Girl Murders will also explore the 2016 murder of Desirae Withey and the 2019 murders of Cynthia ‘CeeCee’ Hoffman and Daniela Tabares.
Mean Girl Murders premieres Monday, June 23 at 9/8c on ID.
