Content warning: This article contains graphic descriptions of murder, sexual abuse, and suicide. Please take care while reading.
A fun weekend with friends became tragic in May 2023, when 14-year-old Ivy Webster was brutally murdered, along with five others, in rural Oklahoma. 39-year-old Jesse L. McFadden, who shot and killed Webster and the other deceased individuals, took his own life at the scene.
Webster and her friend, 16-year-old Brittany Brewster, also murdered, had been reported missing one day earlier. Alongside Brewster and Webster, McFadden’s wife, Tiffany Dore Guess, 35, and three teenage children, Rylee Elizabeth Allen, Michael James Mayo, and Tiffany Dore Guess, were also shot and killed on McFadden’s property near Henryetta, about 90 miles outside Oklahoma City.
Tiffany, Webster, and Brewster were friends, and Webster and Brewster had stayed the night at the McFaddens’ home. Their parents called the police when the two teenagers failed to return home the next day, NPR reported. Despite the horrific circumstances of Webster and the other victims’ murders, the incident could now bring about one positive change in Oklahoma law, legislation that some hope may soon pass at the federal level.
Jesse McFadden’s criminal record
What few knew when Ivy Webster was murdered was that Jesse McFadden was a convicted sex offender, and in fact, was due in court the same day the seven bodies were found on his property to face additional charges of soliciting a minor and possession of child pornography, dating from his time incarcerated. According to the Okmulgee County Sheriff’s Department, McFadden planned the attack and then killed himself because he was “not going back to prison.”
McFadden had only served 17 years of his 20-year sentence when he was granted early release in 2020 for good behavior. Webster and Brewster’s parents said they were unaware of McFadden’s criminal record, and that Webster and Brewster had spent time at McFaddens’ home without issue. Webster and Brewer both had injuries consistent with rape.
What is “Knight’s Law?”
Now, thanks to Knight’s Law, which came about in part due to to the efforts of Webster’s father, Justin Webster, having passed in the Oklahoma State House of Representatives about a year after Webster died, sex offenders could soon be required to spend their entire sentence behind bars. If McFadden had not been released early, Brewster and the five murder victims could still be alive today. As of this report, the Oklahoma Senate had not yet voted on the legislation.
Referring to the possible new Oklahoma law, which Justin hopes may one day be passed nationwide, Ivy’s father said, “Let’s lock arms, let’s fight for these children. Let’s save these children and make sure this never happens again.”
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Published: Aug 19, 2024 01:45 pm