CLERMONT, FL – A woman from Florida has been convicted of the murder of her husband, whose body was found beneath a firepit in their backyard, and for maintaining a facade on social media to deceive his friends and family.
Laurie Leigh Shaver, 41, was convicted of second-degree murder with a firearm for killing her husband, Michael Shaver, 36, the Fifth Judicial Circuit State Attorney’s Office announced Friday.
Michael Shaver’s sister, Stacy Turner, expressed relief upon the verdict, stating, “This was a long time coming.” Michael had been missing since November 2015, but it wasn’t until February 2018 that a concerned friend reported his disappearance to the Lake County Sheriff’s Office.
When deputies visited the couple’s Clermont home, 25 miles west of Orlando, Laurie Shaver initially cooperated but later requested a lawyer and ceased assisting the investigation. Michael’s skeletal remains were discovered on March 9, 2018, wrapped in a blue tarp beneath a concrete slab with an unusual depression near a firepit. He had been shot in the back of the head.
Authorities revealed that after his death, Laurie Shaver impersonated her husband on Facebook, communicating with his employer and friends to maintain the illusion that he was still alive and had moved to Georgia. This charade included messages stating he wanted to be left alone. Concurrently, she sold his belongings, including tools and firearms.
During the trial, Laurie Shaver’s defense argued that Michael had attacked her upon learning she was pregnant and that her then-seven-year-old daughter shot him during the altercation. The daughter, now a teenager, tearfully testified about the incident, claiming she shot her father to protect her mother.
Complicating matters, Laurie married a man involved in pouring the concrete slab, who testified that he was unaware of any unusual circumstances at that time. He reported that she had told him her husband had left her, was disinterested in their family, and had vanished.
Assistant State Attorney Nicholas Camuccio expressed sadness over the lengthy judicial process but lauded the verdict for providing closure to Michael Shaver’s family. Laurie Shaver is scheduled for sentencing on November 25.
