New court documents reveal that bad grades were the possible motive of the two Iowa high school students who allegedly killed their Spanish teacher last year in Fairfield, Iowa.
Willard Miller and Jeremy Goodale are charged with murdering Nohema Graber.
Both defendants were 16 at the time of the murder but were charged as adults “based on the circumstances,” according to officials.
On the afternoon of Nov. 2, 2021, Miller met his teacher at school to discuss his grades.
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Graber later drove her van to a park in Fairfield. About an hour later, two males were seen driving the van out of the park. A witness later picked up Goodale and Miller as they were walking to town on a rural road.
The next day, Graber’s body was found “under a tarp, wheelbarrow and railroad ties” in the park. Court records show she was beaten to death with a baseball bat and died from trauma to the head.
Miller’s defense team has asked the court to suppress the evidence from Snapchat and from the search of Miller’s home, arguing that warrants were issued illegally.
The judge heard the defense’s argument on Wednesday morning. New documents from the hearing show that the teenagers’ frustration over their poor grades may have led up to the murder.
“The poor grade is believed to be the motive behind the murder of Graber which directly connects Miller,” the documents read.
Initially, Miller denied involvement in the murder but later admitted that he “had knowledge of everything but did not participate.”
Investigators allege that “social media exchanges” on Snapchat indicated his involvement in the murder.
He’s scheduled for trial on March 20, and Goodale is scheduled on December 5.
Both teens are charged with first-degree murder with the possibility of life in prison.
