Coached To Kill | Post Mortem | Forensic Files

Welcome back to Postmortem. I'm CBS News correspondent Natalie Morales stepping in today as your host to speak with 48
hours correspondent Ann Marie Green about her report on the murder of 31-year-old Shea Brier. It was on
January 12th, 2020 when Sha Brier was found incoherent on a remote bridge in J County, Indiana. Now, it turned out he
had been shot in the back with a bullet lodged in his heart, and he later died from his injuries. Now, when a homicide
investigation was launched, detectives uncovered a shocking plot involving not one, not two, but three individuals. An
Marie is joining me now to chat with me. Hey, Amry. Hello. Hello. Hello. And thank you. I love it when we do it like
this. I like to It's fun being on the other side. It's fun for me, too, being on this end of it. Now, I just want to
remind our listeners if you have not listened to the 48 hours episode yet, you can find the full audio just below
this episode in your podcast feed. So, just go take a listen, then come right back for our conversation.
So, Amarie, it's rare that we see a woman as a killer, but in this case, we have three women who are charged with
killing Sheay or being involved in his death. Yeah. Um, we start things off with EJ. Um, she's 29 years old. She's
pretty much the first person that comes under suspicion for detectives because she's the only person who's had a
conflict with Sheay. People love this guy. Um, she is Sha's ex fiance and the mother of his child, but their
relationship wasn't that kind of relationship. you know, they kind of didn't really date until after they had
become parents, if you will, and and then became um, you know, engaged. But then later, we learn about these two
other young women who are involved. And I say young women cuz they're teenagers,
right? We have 18-year-old Hannah whose parents van was used. She was driving her parents' van that night. And then
there's 18-year-old Shelby who is the one who shot. Let's talk about that age difference and and who the mastermind of
this was. I mean, who was the one who was sort of seen as the the person who was pulling the strings on this
operation? >> Yeah, I guess you know that's a bit of the the question. You know, you have to
understand that EJ has known these two other women for quite a long time. She's 10 years older than them. She's a
softball coach. She's coached them. Um, and they basically have known her since they were children. You have to wonder
about the nature of her influence over them. >> And you see it in the hour. A lot of
people, you know, speculated as to whether or not there was more to the relationship between Shelby and EJ. No
one saw EJ without Shelby being around. We also learned that EJ's name was in Shelby's phone as bae. I know you've
probably heard that nickname, bae. And it's normally spelled B A E. It was spelled B A Y. They could have just
spelled it wrong. I don't know. But we all know what that means, my bae. That's my sweetheart, right? Um, of course, you
know, both ladies say that there was nothing romantic between them. They were just very close friends. But the other
thing is it really was Shelby who seemed to really dislike Sheay and she's the one who shot the gun. So Ambry, let's
talk about the apparent motive in this case which is just so sad because all it is it seems is that is that Sheay just
wanted to be involved in his daughter's life. Now that was something that EJ did
not want according to prosecutors. So when Sheay hired an attorney and then filed those court documents to establish
paternity, a friend of EJ said that EJ started talking about getting rid of him. I'm curious though, why didn't
Sheay already have certain rights in place? I mean, that's his daughter. Yeah. So his name was not on the birth
certificate and so then he sort of realized that he had to go a more formal legal route. And like I said, the nature
of their relationship before they became engaged is kind of murky. You know, his
family had never even heard of her really before. Um, and and so the impression that we get is, you know,
there wasn't much of a relationship. She becomes pregnant though she has the child and so they try to establish
something. Sheay really wanted to be a dad. He did not have a great relationship with his own father and he
wanted to kind of like correct that family story, if you will. You know, he wanted to be a father and be a good one.
So, what's interesting is given that whole, you know, what was going on in their relationship on the night that
Sheay was killed, he had received a late night call from EJ to meet with him. And
at this point, as you said, Emry, they had been broken up for a while. They didn't seem to have a relationship at
all. So, it seemed to be somewhat contentious, if anything. So, why did he even agree to meeting up with EJ and
getting in that van? That's like the million-dollar question. It's late at night. The weather was terrible. They
hadn't really been talking. But I asked the same question to detectives as well,
and I want to play a little sound from the interview that actually didn't make it into the hour. Why do you think Sheay
got into that van? I think Sheay got into the van thinking that they could possibly rekindle their relationship. He
wanted to raise his daughter. He wanted parental rights. I think he would have probably done anything to do that.
>> Even get into that van. >> Even get into the van. >> Just it's just so sad that you know he
goes there with a sliver of hope and then what happens to him happens. Yeah. Um, now I know you visited Jay County
and you walked along that bridge where he was found practically dead. Um, he then succumbed to his injuries in the
hospital. But what was it like to be out there? Beautiful and and eerie. This is,
you know, a rural town, but this area is even sort of out in the country for for
them. Um, I would say it was about a 20 minute drive outside of the center of town. Um, there's nothing around. Uh, I
think there's an abandoned barn way off in the distance, but other than that, it's just fields with this creek. Um,
there's really no reason to go there and stop really. >> Um, other than maybe to take in the
scenic view, but it's a road to get to somewhere else. The fact that anyone found Sheay is a miracle in and of
itself. You know, it is heartbreaking that no one came by sooner, but I'm not surprised. You just wouldn't go there by
mistake, really. >> And Emory, as we saw, you interviewed Christy Cyber. She was the one,
remember, who called the detectives the very minute she heard about Shea's murder, but she told detectives that EJ
had come to her and seemed to be venting about Sheay. Even talked about getting rid of him. And it's interesting because
watching Christiey's interview, she seems to really carry a lot of guilt about, you know, not realizing what EJ
was saying and and, you know, not understanding. Is she just venting? Like a lot of people. I think a lot of us do
that. Like, if only I was, you know, rid of him. If only there was a way to get him out of my life, right? I think we
all do that. So, it raises the question, how do you tell the difference between somebody who's just venting or somebody
who is actually admitting to wanting to do something? >> Yeah. Yeah. Because Christy, as you
know, is a former police officer, right? So, she really feels guilty. But to your
point, Natalie, I mean, I I have friends who are going through like some challenging divorces and they say like,
"I wish he would just get out of the house. I wish he would just disappear." Like, you get it. Um, and I think for
Christie, >> I got the feeling that she recognized that for whatever reason, these girls
needed a place to go to or another adult where they could just sit and unload, you know, like everyone needs like that
that auntie or whatever. It's not your mom, so they're not going to lecture you. Um, it's that other adult that's
still going to kind of guide you. And so I think she like allowed them to feel comfortable, allowed them the space to
just kind of be themselves, I think, in the hopes of nudging them in the right direction. And she would give EJ advice.
She would say like you're never going to get rid of him, right? So like now just
think about how are you going to manage co-parenting? Like she would do that. Um
and she just never believed. I mean, even after that experiment where they threw stuff in his drink, she just
never believed that they would take it this far. >> Yeah. I mean, that right in itself right
there, chopping up pills and putting it into his drink, that's a big, you know, if if you're saying you did something
like that, that's one step away. And it, as it turns out, it was one step away. >> Yeah. And I mean, when EJ asked if, you
know, she could babysit, that was one thing. But then she shows up really late. Um, and then she says, "Trust me,
you're going to read about it in the papers tomorrow." That's that's a problem. >> But it was Christy, who was the first
person the minute she heard about Sha's murder, who went right to the police and
told them everything that she knew and had heard. She did. She did. Welcome back. All right, Ann Marie,
let's talk a little bit more about who Shelby was and who Hannah is. How did these women get wrapped up in this pot?
I tell you um so often uh Natalie I think about how in a in a very small moment if people make a different
decision their life is completely different right like that's the thing about 48 hours you're like oh if you had
just delayed that one thing that you did 30 seconds maybe none of this would have
happened these ladies had you know plans in place for their life I'm just going to like read a little bit Shelby she was
studying to become u an EMT before she was arrested She wanted to become a nurse. Hannah was already in college
because after this incident, she goes back to college. She's on a scholarship. She also thought in the future she would
be perhaps opening a nursing home. And then during the interrogation, Shelby says something which gives you a sense
of maybe her understanding or lack of understanding about how much trouble that they're all in. Um, but so this
didn't make it into the show, but I want to play it. >> Can I just ask one thing? Absolutely.
>> Can it stay on Facebook? Does it have to be put out there? >> The seriousness of this is going to go
far. Uh it's going to be on Facebook. It's going to be on >> everyone's going to know.
>> Oh yeah. I mean, do you understand that the the level of this? It's been on the
news that he his body was found. You know [clears throat] what I'm saying? >> To stay off of Facebook. I mean, oh my
goodness. That's crazy. >> Yeah. So, that gives you a sense of the disconnect, >> like not realizing just how just the
amount of trouble that they're in >> and also not feeling remorse or guilt in that moment because she was the one who
was practicing in the parking lot and was the one who admittedly who pulled the trigger. Right.
>> Yeah. Um, you're right. no concept of the damage that has been done, the life
the lives that have been devastated, including her own. Including her own. >> Yeah. And she's worried about if it's
going to end up on Facebook. Well, guess what? It's on 48 hours now. Shelby. Um,
so EJ, Shelby, and Hannah, they're going to be tried separately in court. EJ goes
to trial first, and she's the one who then turns on Shelby when she takes the stand. And what did she say? Yeah, you
know, she basically says, "I was totally surprised. I had no idea Shelby was planning this sort of thing. Even though
Even though she was there when Shelby was sort of test firing the gun, right? I had no idea." Um, you know, even
though they put the pill in the drink, her defense, as we heard in the hour, is I just wanted to talk to Shay. We were
talking about our relationship. If if if I had known Shelby was going to shoot him in the back, why would I be standing
right next to Shay? I mean, that's a lot of confidence in Shelby, you know, firearms ability, if she's a good shot
or not. Um, and so that was her defense. Obviously, it didn't work. So, EJ is found guilty. She's sentenced to 55
years in prison, but then Shea's family has to go through it all over again. Uh,
another trial with Shelby and to see and hear all that evidence again, which has
to be so painful. Yeah. And I mean, we're talking about that video, the police body cam of Sheay, you know, he's
on that bridge. You can hear him and they have to watch that again. Sheay was really surrounded by strong women.
[clears throat] His mom, his aunt, and his grandmother. I love these women. Um, they have such
an incredible tight bond. They adored him. Um they believed in his ability to do great things and they really
supported him. Um and they wanted the defendants in this case to know that he was loved.
>> Yeah. >> Shelby, as we heard, found guilty as well, sentenced to the same as EJ, 55
years, >> and and she apologized to the family. So in the end, I guess maybe she felt a
little bit bad about her participation. I I think so. And I think, you know, in terms of the people who spoke on her
behalf, um they really felt like she had been manipulated by EJ. And this is actually what a family friend said at
sentencing. I'm going to read it. She had the misfortune of finding comfort in a wannabe cult leader who literally
destroyed several families for her own self-interest. So, those are some really strong words.
a wannabe cult leader. Um that suggests even more than, you know, a strangely close relationship, right? That is about
manipulation and control. >> Yeah. You know, and again, it goes back to that odd dynamic and the age
difference. >> So Hannah was the only one who got a plea deal. She pleaded guilty to
voluntary manslaughter. And in the episode, we learned that Sha's family, I mean, the reason she got the plea deal
is they felt that another trial would just be too much for them to bear. But there were also other factors at play in
Hannah's case, right, Amarie? Yeah, certainly Sha's family felt like Hannah out of all three of them um was the
least culpable. Of course, they say, "Hey, you could have done something. You could have called 91. You could have
done anything." Now, the thing about Hannah is she is actually from one town over, Fort Recovery. Um, and when we
talk to some of the other people, they kind of characterize Fort Recovery as a little wealthier, a little nicer, like
the right side of the tracks. But they also said that the entire community rallied around Hannah. They
were raising money for her defense. somebody described kind of like one of those containers that you see on like a
counter in a store, you know, throw throw a couple bucks in for a cause or whatever. So, there was she really had a
lot of support from the entire town, not just her family. Um, and that may have had an an impact on the deal that she
got. Of course, you know, she's she's also spending time behind bars as well. Um and she was basically right about to
kind of launch, you know, she finally she gets a scholarship to college, she's gonna launch. And so her her life has
certainly been derailed significantly. Well, as you said in your reporting and you put it so well, each one of them had
the opportunity at one point in time to do the right thing and all three did not. And so, you know, the final act, I
think, is, you know, just taking the phone away from him and throwing it into the river. I mean, that tells you right
there. They were basically leaving him to die, to bleed out on that cold pavement. So, it doesn't get much colder
than that. That is spoton. I mean, they had left and they turned back around. It
is callous. And what sort of adds to the mystery um is the nature of the gun. This is a small
caliber gun. This is the kind of gun, Natalie, that maybe if you live in an area where people hunt, they might give
this gun to a child, kind of like their first gun to to learn how to hunt. This is the type of bullet that if it hits
you, you're probably going to survive. Sheay was hit directly in the heart and it it was it is because of that that he
was not able to survive something that probably would have been survivable. But you just never know. You know, you don't
know if if somebody had intervened a minute earlier if that would have made a difference and they had the ability to
make that difference and they didn't. >> That's right. And and then at the end we
see that is EJ's family. They're the ones who end up with primary custody of his daughter. What kind of relationship
though are his family able to have with the daughter? So, um it was really important for obviously for Shea's
family to maintain a connection with her. And so, they have an arrangement and I believe it's kind through the
courts that they get to see her once a month. You know, she's still very, very young. So,
I don't know how both families will tackle this um situation as she gets older. But right now, those three women,
his grandmother, his mother, and his aunt, they want to do nothing more than just sort of pour into that little girl
and and make sure that she feels love in the middle of this great loss. >> Well, once again, Anie, a a wonderful
episode. Thank you so much for bringing it to us and for talking with me today. Thank you, Natalie.
And if you like this series Postmortem, please rate and review 48 hours on our Apple podcasts and follow 48 hours
wherever you get your podcast. And you can also listen adree with a 48 hours plus subscription on Apple Podcasts.
Thanks for listening.

48 Hours correspondents Natalie Morales and Anne-Marie Green discuss the case against three women involved in Shea Briar's murder.

Crime. Social justice. Impact. "48 Hours" investigates the most intriguing crime and justice cases that touch on all areas of the human experience including greed and passion. "48 Hours," which premiered in 1988, has developed a rich history of original reporting and impact journalism that has helped exonerate wrongly convicted people, caused cold cases to be reopened and solved, and along the way changed lives.

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Brief Summary

Three women conspired to murder Shea Brier over custody disputes, revealing complex relationships and tragic outcomes.

Key points

The Murder of Shea Brier. Shea Brier was found shot on a remote bridge, leading to a shocking investigation.
Three Women Charged. In a rare case, three women were charged in Shea's murder, raising questions about their motives.
The Nature of Influence. EJ, the oldest of the accused, had a long history with the younger women involved.
The Disconnect. Shelby's concern about social media reveals a shocking lack of awareness of the situation.
The Aftermath. Shea's family struggles to maintain a relationship with his daughter after the tragedy.

Episode highlights

Episode quotes

It's just so sad that he goes there with a sliver of hope.

Discussing Sheay's last moments before the tragedy.

5:56WatchJan 10, 2026

Tension

75/ 100High tension

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