Trigger Warning: This article contains references to alleged sexual assault that some readers may find distressing.
Jessica Orton Lyman, 44, and her son Eli Painter were shot in the head inside their own home last year.
The Saratoga Springs Police Department responded to a 911 call on March 28, 2025, from a 17-year-old daughter who reported her mother and brother were lying in bed, unconscious and bleeding from their heads.
Officers arrived at the residence in the 1200 block of Willowbrook Lane and began lifesaving efforts. Eli was pronounced dead at the scene, while Jessica died on March 31, 2025, after being taken to a hospital.
According to search warrants, Lyman and Painter were shot in the head “with a small caliber round.” Investigators also discovered that Lyman’s pants were allegedly “down around her knees,” suggesting s*xual assault, according to court documents.
The revelation that the suspect is the victim’s own teenage son stunned everyone. When police arrived at the residence, a 15-year-old reportedly came out of the bedroom and said he had been sleeping and was unaware of what had transpired.
When officers asked him if there were any “weapons” at home, he allegedly “responded that he wasn’t aware of any ‘guns’ inside the home,” although police didn’t mention the word “gun.”
Officers found his room “in a state of disarray.” An officer wrote in a warrant, “I also helped with the residence search, and observed dirty dishes, old food matter, dirty clothing, and overall clutter.”
Police also recovered two BB gun pistols, magazine pouches, plate carriers, and a handwritten note referencing forensic evidence including serology, DNA, and firearm testing. A second handwritten note found in the teen’s room stated, “This is a murder story.”
According to the affidavit, investigators sent the teen’s clothing on the morning of March 28, 2025, for lab testing and found gunshot residue on it. Furthermore, police found .22 shell casings used in the home. The teen’s DNA was also found on the waistband of the shorts Lyman was wearing when she died. Dried seminal fluid was found on the sheets adjacent to where Lyman had been lying.
A forensic download of Jessica Lyman’s phone revealed a July 2024 conversation in which N sent profanity-laden messages to his mother.
The teen, whose identity has not been publicly released due to his age, was arrested more than 17 months later in August this year and charged with two counts of aggravated murder in juvenile court for the shootings. Prosecutors are seeking to transfer him to an adult court.
“Those charges will be presented to the appropriate court once a decision has been reached on whether to charge the individual as a juvenile or an adult,” Saratoga Springs Police Department (SSPD) said, according to Abc4.
Disclaimer: The Inquisitr could not independently confirm the facts of this incident and is reporting based on the information available within the public record.
