Nichole Payne, Austin Taylor Wages: ‘Dateline NBC’ Focuses On Jason Payne, Quitman, Texas, Double Murder
Nichole Payne and her son, Austin Taylor Wages, were gunned down in their Texas home by Jason Payne back in 2007. Dateline NBC will chronicle their story in a new episode titled “The Trouble in Quitman,” which will examine how a loving mother and her son from a previous marriage were shot and killed by the husband and stepfather who was supposed to love and protect them.
The Dateline story will most likely delve into the bitter battle between two families — one side determined to prove Jason’s innocence and the other side feeling confident that they have received justice for Nichole after two trials and two convictions.
According to the Facebook page titled “The Wrongful Conviction of Jason Payne,” an advocate from Advocates 4 Wrongfully Convicted was also invited to the show to give his commentary on the case. The Payne family is hoping that the Dateline episode will show the flawed investigation that led to Jason’s “wrongful conviction.” Jason Thad Payne is currently incarcerated in Texas, where he is serving a life sentence without parole for the double homicide.
In December 2007, 911 operators were dispatched to a home in Quitman, Texas, where the bodies of a mother and son were found with gunshot wounds. They were identified as 35-year-old Nichole Payne and her 16-year-old son, Austin Taylor Wages. When detectives arrived on the scene, they found Jason Payne outside holding a child. He stated that his wife and son were dead inside the house. The bodies were taken to the medical examiner’s office, where an autopsy was conducted. The determination of death was a murder-suicide, according to Dateline NBC.
Family members for Nichole Payne never believed that their deaths were the result of a murder-suicide. Police detectives also believed the evidence indicated that Nichole Payne and Austin Taylor Wages were murdered. They cited the location of the wounds on the bodies and the lack of forced entry as a cause for an arrest. Court records found at the Wrongful Conviction of Jason Payne describe how detectives found the dead bodies.
Nichole Payne’s Body And Position
- Massive head injury to the back part of the skull
- Body in a semi-fetal position
- Body warm to the touch.
- A pronounced odor of gun powder in the room.
Austin Taylor Wages’ Body Found In Garage
- Lying on his back on a blood-soaked twin bed
- Head back
- Rifle lying against one leg
- Entry wound to the front of the face
- Exit wound on the back of the head.
- Stippling on the face, indicating the wound was a non-contact wound
- No odor of gunpowder.
In addition to the findings above, detectives discovered two large holes that appeared to be graves in the back of the house, according to KLTV. Eventually, Jason Payne was arrested and charged with their deaths. A Texas jury found him guilty twice.
Dateline NBC will show how much everyone loved Nichole Payne, who was described as an attractive woman with a big heart. She also loved animals and adored her children. They say Jason Payne fell in love with her from the first day that he saw her. The couple was married only two weeks later. But as time passed, Nichole Payne was no longer happy in her marriage. According to the website Justice Served to Jason Payne, Nichole complained of a controlling husband who alienated most of her friends.
“Nichole was such a fun person so sad how he sucked the life right out of her.Jason taught their youngest child to say ‘I hate you mommy,’ to slap her in the face, rarely allowed her to watch the TV shows she wanted. Towards the end Nichole complained about feeling like an outsider in her own home.No room for her in the living room to watch TV, no place at the table to eat. Jason Payne had his mother now and that seemed to be all he needed, oh and ‘his’ kids.”
To get the full story, visit those family websites and watch Dateline NBC’s coverage of the Payne story tonight at 10/9 p.m. central.
[Image via Dateline NBC/Facebook]
