The Larry Millete Verdict | Case by Case | Forensic Files

January 7th, 2021. That's the last time anyone saw Maya Millete, a 39-year-old California mother of three.
In October, her husband, Larry Millete, was arrested and charged with her murder.
Five years later, he went on trial in Chula Vista, outside San Diego. And now, after the jury deliberated, we have a
verdict. Millete has been found guilty of murder. >> No verdict can erase the pain of losing
May or the years of uncertainty that I've endured. But we hope today's outcome provides a
measure of justice and accountability. >> I'm CBS News legal analyst and criminal
defense attorney Caroline Polisi, and this is a special episode of Case by Case.
This was a largely circumstantial no body case, one we've covered for weeks on this podcast with witnesses ranging
from Maya's friends and family to her former lover and that man's ex-wife. And then there was the spellcaster.
But even with this verdict, one question remains: Where is Maya's body? 48 Hours first reported on Maya's
disappearance back in 2021 and 2022. Her sister, Mary Chris Drouilhet, described
her lovingly. >> She was the gifted one, you know, she she got the she got the brains. Um she's
very kind, very caring. She loves her kids. >> Maya and Larry met and married young,
and both went on to work for the US Navy. They waited a few years before having their three kids.
When Maya vanished without a trace, Mary Chris couldn't process it. >> You know, I'm
still in denial, like you know. I It's like I I still can't believe it's it's happening that she's nowhere to be
found. Like she's nowhere. Like she just vanished. Like I was just talking to her. You know, we
were just talking to her and all of a sudden she's just she's gone. >> There were family and community search
parties looking everywhere for Maya. But court testimony revealed there were serious problems inside the Millete
home. As we talked about in our previous episodes of Case by Case, testimony showed Maya's growing concern with
Larry's efforts to control her. Mary Chris's initial 911 call played in court referenced fights and violence.
And Larry's arrest warrant for Maya's murder also referenced Maya telling a friend that Larry had once choked her
until she passed out. The defense has maintained there's no evidence of domestic violence between the two.
Maya's sister Mary Chris testified that just over a week before Maya disappeared, Maya confided in her
siblings that she wanted a divorce. Mary Chris told 48 Hours in 2021 something that Maya had said to her in
passing once. >> At one point she said, "You know, if something happened to me, it would be
Larry." She just kind of like blurted out and she was mentioning about, you know, the
divorce. I just told her to be careful. Just be careful cuz, you know, we in the back of my mind and in the back
of our minds that he is capable of hurting my sister. >> During this time, Maya had been having
an affair with co-worker Jamie Laird. Both Jamie and his ex-wife took the stand and both testified that Larry knew
about the relationship and was obsessively trying to hold onto his marriage. Then there were Larry's emails. He
contacted spell casters hoping to control Maya and allegedly to punish Jamie Laird. The last confirmed sighting
of Maya is camera footage of her returning home to Chula Vista the afternoon of January 7th. She was never
seen leaving. There was a record of internet searches that evening from her phone,
but at 1:25 a.m. cell transmission ended. The court also heard audio from a neighbor's surveillance system where
multiple loud bangs were heard on the evening of Maya's disappearance. The next day, Larry's vehicle left the
house in the early morning and didn't return for hours. His phone was off. An investigator testified that roughly 444
miles of the vehicle's travel that day couldn't be fully accounted for. Yet during cross-examination, the
defense questioned the police work and some of the data. After the prosecution spent weeks on
their case, the defense rested after just calling [music] a few witnesses over the course of a single day.
Perhaps they believed there was enough reasonable doubt. The jury disagreed, finding Larry
responsible for Maya's death. Larry will be sentenced at a later date and could appeal. This has been a
special verdict episode of Case by Case. We'll be back next week with a brand new
episode. >> [music] >> Thanks for listening.

More than five years after Maya Millete was last seen at her Chula Vista home, a jury has found her husband, Larry Millete, guilty of first-degree murder. In this special bonus episode, CBS News legal analyst Caroline Polisi revisits the evidence, the witnesses, and the unanswered questions that defined this no-body murder trial. From allegations of control and marital conflict to digital evidence, missing miles, and the now-infamous spellcaster testimony, we examine the case that captivated Southern California and beyond. And even with a verdict, the central question remains unanswered: Where's Maya?

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

Larry Millete is found guilty of murdering his wife, Maya Millete, who disappeared in January 2021, leaving many questions unanswered.

Key points

Larry Millete Found Guilty. After years of uncertainty, Larry Millete was found guilty of murdering his wife, Maya.
Maya Millete's Disappearance. Maya Millete, a mother of three, vanished in January 2021, leading to a murder trial.

Episode highlights

Episode quotes

No verdict can erase the pain of losing May.

A family member reflects on the verdict's impact.

0:31WatchJul 28, 2026

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