Julia Egler Indicted by Brevard Grand Jury for Two Counts First-Degree Murder After Killing Mom Over Feud on Teen’s Gender Transition, Mom’s Boyfriend
By Space Coast Daily // August 7, 2024
Egler is not eligible to receive the death penalty
LISTEN: The Palm Bay Police Department released the 9-1-1 call made by 16-year-old accused of killing mother and her boyfriend.
BREVARD COUNTY, FLORIDA – The Brevard County Grand Jury issued two counts of First-Degree Premeditated Murder indictment for 16-year-old Julia Egler after killing her 38-year-old mother, Kelley McCollom, and 22-year-old Matthew Szejnrok, after disagreements related to Egler’s gender transition and her mother’s relationship with Szejnrok.
On July 7, 2024, Palm Bay Police responded to a 911 call from Julia Egler reporting a burglary in progress at her home on Benchor Rd NW.
When police arrived, they found the dead bodies of McCollom and her friend Szejnrok in the residence.
Initially claiming an intruder had broken in and shot the victims, Egler later admitted that was a fabrication, and she had shot both victims when they returned home.
That is when Egler confessed to the murders of Kelley McCollom and Matthew Szejnrok. Egler admitted to obtaining a .38 special revolver from her mother’s bedroom, waiting for the victims to return home, and then shooting them multiple times, according to Lt. Kilmer.
“Egler cited longstanding conflicts with her mother, including disagreements related to her gender transition, as well as disapproval of her mother’s relationship with Szejnrok, as motives for the crime,” said Lt. Kilmer of the Palm Bay Police Department.
“Based on the evidence, including Egler’s confession and forensic findings at the scene, she was placed under arrest and charged with two counts of 1st Degree Pre-Meditated Murder.”
Egler was subsequently transported to the Palm Bay Police Department’s booking facility and later transferred to Juvenile Detention Center without incident.
Arrested by police as a juvenile, prosecutors will pursue prosecution of Egler as an adult.
Egler is not eligible to receive the death penalty by law as pronounced by the US Supreme Court and Florida Statute.
In the coming days, Egler will be transferred from the Juvenile Detention Center to the Brevard County Jail.
