Leo Schofield served 36 years in prison for his wife’s murder – and he forgave the man who confessed to the killing.
In January 2025, Schofield and his daughter Ashley were involved in a severe motorcycle crash. Schofield, who was paroled in April 2024, has consistently asserted his innocence.
Gilbert King, a Pulitzer Prize-winning writer who had been examining Schofield’s case for his podcast called “Bone Valley,” visited Schofield after the accident. During that time, he received a call from Jeremy Scott, a convicted murderer who had confessed in 2017 to the murder of Michelle Schofield. Scott is currently serving time for an unrelated offense.
Leo Schofield was accused of murdering his wife Michelle Schofield in 1987. Nevertheless, no physical evidence has ever tied him to the crime. (Ernst Peters/The Lakeland Ledger-USA Today Network)
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.
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 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.”
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 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.
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.’”
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.”
