A mother of two was convicted Thursday of stabbing and killing a retired nurse in 2018 in what prosecutors said was an attempted robbery to pay for the attacker's daughter to attend a cheerleading competition.
Cherie Lynnette Townsend, 47, was found guilty of murdering Susan Leeds, 66, an attack that took place in the parking lot of a Rolling Hills Estates shopping center. Authorities said Leeds was stabbed 17 times shortly after noon on May 3.
Investigators tested blood and DNA inside and outside Leeds' white Mercedes SUV, but it was Townsend's cell phone, found by officers under the vehicle, that led to Townsend's arrest.
Thursday's conviction ended a seven-year legal ordeal. In public comments, in criminal court, and in a lawsuit against the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department, Townsend insisted she was innocent in the brutal murder, claiming she had been wrongfully targeted and arrested for the crime.
Townsend was initially arrested in May 2018 but released six days later after prosecutors asked investigators for additional evidence.
As the investigation continued, Townsend sued the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department in October 2018, alleging false imprisonment, defamation, racial profiling, and intentional infliction of emotional distress.
“I live my life in hiding, afraid that the police will come or that they will attack me unfairly like before,” Townsend said during a press conference at the time.
But Townsend was arrested again and charged in August 2023, leading to her conviction Thursday. His federal lawsuit against the Sheriff's Department was dismissed.
In court, Townsend's public defender, Elizabeth Landgraf, argued that there was no direct evidence linking Townsend to the murder, such as DNA, fingerprints, witnesses or videos.
Ilene Louie, a criminologist with the Sheriff's Department, testified that investigators collected and analyzed DNA and multiple blood samples found inside and outside Leeds' van.
Blood found in and around the car matched Leeds' profile, but the samples did not match Townsend's DNA, according to reports filed in court.
The blood samples also did not match those of a homeless man who had originally been arrested for the murder. The blood found on that man's jeans, Louie testified, did not match Leeds' DNA profile.
But underneath the car, investigators found Townsend's cell phone, which had traces of DNA that matched Townsend's.
According to the criminal complaint, Townsend had been looking for ways to get $2,000 to send her daughter and two of her friends to a cheerleading competition in Florida.
Deputy District. Lawyer. Paul Thompson said in his opening statement that Townsend had considered opening a GoFundMe account but decided against it, thinking it might embarrass his daughter, the Daily Breeze reported.
Prosecutors also pointed to Google searches found on his phone, including a search to see if Walmart verified IDs for credit card purchases, the Daily Breeze reported. Prosecutors also presented as evidence a note she had written on her phone that said, “Right now, I'm completely devastated,” because she couldn't get the money for her daughter's pageant.
As prosecutors showed images of the interior of the van where blood and DNA was collected, some of Leeds' friends and family covered their eyes and began to cry silently in court. In some of the images, Leeds' body could be seen, still in the driver's seat of the SUV with his hands in his lap.
Townsend is expected to return to court on Jan. 23 for sentencing.
