Latest / Shades of Murder / 17: Thanksgiving Nightmare Feast - Omaima Nelson

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17: Thanksgiving Nightmare Feast - Omaima Nelson · Shades of Murder

0:28
Hello and welcome to Alita Dangra, Shades of Murder, a
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podcast where I will share and discuss tells a true grim
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mysteries and all things dark and macabre.
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If you eat Plain Dream and Shades of Murder like me, then
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welcome my kindred spirits to your new podcast.
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If you enjoy the show, Please remember to follow and
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subscribe, share and consider a five star rating so I can
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present more stories to you and we could all embrace the love
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the darkness together. All of my contact information
1:03
you can find in the episode description below.
1:05
Please be forewarned that each episode contains specific and at
1:09
times a very graphic and disturbing details of the case
1:13
and may not be intended for all audiences.
1:18
This case is not to be listened to lightly.
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It is very graphic and contains some extremely disturbing
1:24
details of the crime, but it is an important and compelling
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story to hear. This murder has been showcased
1:32
on other podcasts and YouTube shows, but the focus has always
1:35
been placed on the grotesqueness of the crime and has neglected
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to explore the pertinent and much more compelling elements of
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what triggered the event and how it all unfolded.
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This is the story of Omaima Nelson On a night when turkeys
1:55
are carved and bowls of gravy are passed around the family
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table. A nightmarish murder scene would
2:01
unfold in the kitchen of Omaima Nelson's home.
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That evening in their lovely apartment in Costa Mesa, CA,
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Omaima's much older husband, 56 year old William Nelson, would
2:14
attempt to force himself upon her.
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And not for the first time even that same day, the sexual
2:21
assaults had only become worse and Omima no longer would allow
2:25
herself to be his victim. In a moment of rage, Omima
2:30
plunged a pair of scissors into his chest and stomach.
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She then struck her husband over the head with an iron and
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proceeded to bash his head with it over and over again.
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She went into shock, fell into a state of what can only be
2:44
described as mental displacement, and began to cut
2:48
up his body on the kitchen floor.
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Over the next 12 hours, this battered and deranged woman
2:56
would hack up her large husband into pieces and do her best to
3:00
shove much of his flesh and internal parts down the garbage
3:04
disposal. Amyma Nelson may have gotten
3:08
away with the crime except for the fact that her husband had
3:11
been a very large man, which made him even more difficult and
3:16
time consuming to dispose of. As a result, she made the
3:20
unfortunate error of trusting the wrong person.
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I'm not sure about all of you listeners out there, but for
3:27
many of us in the true crime world, we have jokingly discuss
3:31
how everyone needs that one person you can turn to if and
3:35
when you must dispose of the body.
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There is only one person you can entrust this to.
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For me, I have that one person and they know who they are, so
3:47
thank you. Unfortunately for Amaima Nelson,
3:51
she did not have any trustworthy friends who had her back.
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When she turned to someone for help in the disposal of William
3:58
Nelson's body. That person she reached out to
4:01
said that he would help her, but instead they betrayed her and
4:05
turned her over to law enforcement.
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Apparently Amaima had also enlisted the aid of two ex
4:11
boyfriends to remove the teeth from William Nelson's
4:14
decapitated skull to further destroy evidence of his
4:18
identity. When this phone call LED
4:21
homicide investigators to Amaima Nelson's door, they found on the
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front seat of her dead husband's red Corvette, which she had been
4:28
driving around town in several black trash bags filled with
4:32
various body parts. The detectives at the scene were
4:35
shocked and horrified by the discovery of human organs in the
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vehicle. Upon entry to their apartment,
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they were stunned and not prepared for the nightmare seen
4:46
inside. William Nelson's hands were
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found inside the deep fryer. His head was propped up in the
4:53
freezer. Several random dismembered body
4:56
parts were located stuffed inside a brown suitcase on
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Maima. Nelson was promptly detained and
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interrogated the next morning. On December 3rd, 1991, she was
5:09
arrested and held on a $250,000 bail while investigators tried
5:14
to piece together the crime a little over a year later on
5:19
Maima Nelson, who was only 23 years old at the time of the
5:23
offence. Would it last take the stand?
5:26
I can only imagine how taken back the jurors were at the
5:30
beautiful young woman who was a model and former nanny who had
5:34
committed this horrific crime. Once she was given the chance to
5:39
tell her story, Amyma Nelson confessed to stabbing and
5:43
bludgeoning her new husband in a desperate attempt to prevent him
5:48
from raping her. She was not going to allow
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herself to be sexually assaulted by him again, and she picked up
5:55
a pair of scissors and stabbed her husband with them over and
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over again. The rage that had deeply nested
6:04
itself inside Omima her entire life had been freed, and she
6:10
grabbed an iron and other random objects within their home and
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beat him senseless with them until he lay dead and bloodied
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on the floor. In her own words, she freaked
6:22
out when she realized what she had done and became
6:25
psychologically detached from the events that would follow as
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she slipped into a trance like state.
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The jury, which consisted of eight women and four men,
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listened in horror and disbelief as the events of that night were
6:41
revealed. After Omima Nelson realized her
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husband William was dead, the ritual of dismemberment began.
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She chopped off his hands and then boiled them in a pot on the
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stove and oil with the purpose of removing any fingerprints.
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The victim's torso had been skinned, also referred to as
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fled. A mima openly admitted to how
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she had cooked her husband's head and placed it inside their
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freezer so she could more easily pull out his teeth.
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Using leftovers from their Thanksgiving meal the day
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before, she blended in parts of his body with the Turkey and
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stuffing, went to the apartment complex's trash bin and hid them
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there inside a bag. Amya Nelson also confessed to
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having castrated her husband, William Nelson, and vengeance
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for his vicious sexual attacks. One of her neighbors testified
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to hearing the repetitive sounds of chopping and the grinding of
7:40
their garbage disposal all throughout the night.
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The investigators of the crime scene found various remains of
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William Nelson's corpse stuffed in the garbage bags and the
7:50
apartment's trash bin, as O Maima had confessed to, but
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reported that some parts of him were never recovered.
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Understandably, the jurors and the foreman were quite disturbed
8:02
and traumatized by the graphic images of the man's body, or
8:07
shall I say the pieces of the man's body they were forced to
8:11
look at as evidence. Her psychiatrist, Doctor David J
8:16
Scheffner, diagnosed Imima Nelson as a psychotic and that
8:21
in his 20 years of practice he had never encountered such a
8:26
bizarre and psychotic offender. In addition to her confession on
8:31
the stand and the evidence presented by the prosecution, it
8:35
was learned by the psychiatrist in his sessions with her that
8:38
she had dressed up for the all night event.
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Allegedly, according to the defendant, she put on red high
8:46
heels, wore a Red Hat and painted her lips in red for the
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ritual of the dismemberment and disposal of her husband's body.
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Although she tried to claim it was not true.
9:00
During the trial, Omima had confessed to her doctor how she
9:04
had prepared his ribs like they do in restaurants, explaining
9:09
how she brushed his ribs with BBQ sauce and cooked them inside
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the oven, her psychiatrist recounted to the courthouse.
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In one session, she expressed to him how she sat down at their
9:22
kitchen table and chewed into his ribs, saying out loud to
9:26
herself. And I quote, it's so sweet.
9:29
It's so delicious. I like mine tender.
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Deputy District Attorney Randolph J Pulaski treated Omima
9:38
Nelson as a hostile defendant. He painted her to the jury as a
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predator, a young, beautiful immigrant woman who used men for
9:47
money and luxuries. And in the case of William
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Nelson, his purpose had expired. Attorney Pulaski illustrated how
9:55
Omima murdered Nelson in her greed and darkness and that she
9:59
had all intention of stealing his money in car and running
10:03
away. During the trial, he asked Omima
10:07
facetiously if she would assist in gathering the rest of the
10:10
evidence since there were still a lot of missing meat from the
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large man. He addressed her saying, and I
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quote, we're missing about 130 lbs of bill, You know, where he
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might have gone. During her trial, Omima Nelson
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shared with the court how she had been a victim of severe
10:28
physical and sexual abuse in her native country of Egypt as a
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young girl. Like millions of other young
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girls, even as young as infants, Omima was forced to undergo what
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is known as female circumcision, which is nothing like what male
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circumcision entails. Amaima fled to Egypt for the
10:50
United States in 1986 for a new life and for a world away from
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the discrimination and abuse she and so many women endured there.
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However, the genital mutilation she was subjected to and the
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abuse she was forced to experience growing up in Egypt
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prevented her from being able to enjoy sexual intercourse.
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She was so severely damaged internally and externally that
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she could not experience pleasure.
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Her experiences with men in the United States only led to
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further damage of herself, image and sense of personal worth as
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she became intertwined with one abusive, violent man after the
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other. Upon meeting the much older and
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seemingly kind and gentle William E Bill Nelson, she
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experienced for the first time what she believed to be love.
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Here was a man who was stable, financially well off, adored her
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and treated her better than any other man had before.
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She believed she had found her nine in shining armour and based
12:02
on this belief, Omimah accepted his proposal only a few days
12:08
after meeting one another. She even complied with having
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sex with Nelson several times a day because she loved him and
12:16
wanted him to be happy. But according to Omimah, the
12:20
gentleman and William Nelson did not last long.
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William Nelson, who was a pilot, had a criminal record for
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dealing marijuana, but there were no signs or indicators that
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he was a violent man. William Nelson, who was
12:36
originally from the Midwest, returned to his old home to
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spend their honeymoon there and to introduce his young,
12:42
beautiful bride to his adult children.
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According to Omaima, it was there that she first was exposed
12:50
to his dark and violent side. She claimed that he demanded sex
12:56
within the realm of S&M, in particular acts involving
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bondage. When she resisted and tried to
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refuse him, he would lose his temper and become erratic,
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violent, and cruel. He would find torturous ways to
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punish her when she defied him, such as when one time she
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claimed that he threw her new kitten outside of his vehicle's
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window. Her husband then began to sell
13:21
her body to older men in exchange for money and even once
13:26
for her car. Amyma said that her husband saw
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her as his property and that he told her and I quote, I paid for
13:34
you, I'm getting what I paid for.
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She claimed that he threatened to abandon her in the desert and
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that if she did not do as he pleased, he would report her to
13:44
the authorities and say she was a Mexican prostitute.
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She said that she stayed with him because he would sincerely
13:52
apologize after the abuse and she was scared of what he would
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do to her if she actually left. He raped and beat her multiple
14:02
times. On one particular occasion when
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she told him she was done with his abuse and was leaving him.
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It was on such an occasion during Thanksgiving in 1991 when
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her husband forced himself upon her, that, oh, Maima Nelson had
14:18
had enough. The prosecution did their best
14:22
to present Omima Nelson as a monster and even made a
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fictional comparison of her to that of Hannibal Lecter.
14:31
I find the prosecution even being allowed to compare her to
14:35
a fictional character in a film laughable, offensive, and really
14:42
should not be permitted in a court of law.
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I mean talk about sensationalizing the court trial
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and not sticking to the evidence.
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Amaya Nelson by all accounts was mentally ill, psychologically
14:55
broken, and very likely deserved the diagnosis of a psychotic.
15:00
But was she psychotic in the sense of a Hannibal Lecter like
15:04
character? No, she was uneducated female
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immigrant who had suffered unimaginable amounts of sexual
15:14
and physical abuse, was emotionally damaged, and did
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what she had to in order to survive in a new world.
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They said she was a liar, that she was not a survivor or victim
15:27
of abuse, and that William Nelson was the true victim,
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pointing out the evidence that his ankles had been bound during
15:35
the attack. Although this is an interesting
15:38
element of the evidence, first of all, we already know they
15:42
were engaged in S&M practice. Secondly, I wonder how they
15:46
determined this to be true. Has ankles been discovered in
15:50
the garbage bags to which the autopsy showed there to be signs
15:53
of binding like ligature marks found on wrists or around the
15:58
neck? Myva Nelson also had a previous
16:02
and quite extensive criminal record which was reflective of
16:06
her unhinged mental state but nevertheless did not help her
16:11
already aggravated murder case. She was first convicted on 2
16:17
counts of auto theft and shoplifting on December 10th,
16:21
1987. Less than two years later, she
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was charged with a hit and run for property damage, more
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shoplifting, and assault and battery of a security officer
16:34
whom she bit. Then, in early 1990, she was
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arrested for a DUI, then driving without a license that June and
16:44
in November of that year, assault with a firearm on Mima.
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Nelson's lawyer, Public defender Thomas G Mooney, painted his
16:52
client as the victim and that she was not a monster but rather
16:57
a frightened and abused young woman.
17:00
She killed him while fighting off her rapist in self defence
17:04
and did everything she felt had been necessary to cover up the
17:08
crime. The defence attorney and the
17:11
testimony offered by Mima herself did not sway the jury
17:14
into believing she was innocent of the crime based on self
17:17
defence, especially considering the horrifying and grotesque
17:22
details of the homicide and concealment of his death.
17:27
Over six days, the Orange County Superior Court jury deliberated.
17:32
The defendant must have induced enough sympathy and lack of
17:36
sound mind though, because they could not agree on her
17:40
committing premeditated first degree murder.
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Amaima Nelson was acquitted of the first degree murder charge.
17:48
Instead, the jury returned with a conviction of second degree
17:51
murder, which held a maximum sentence of 25 years
17:55
imprisonment. In addition to being convicted
17:59
of second degree murder, Imama Nelson was also found guilty of
18:03
assaulting another wealthy, much older white man, Robert Hansen
18:07
of Huntington Beach, CA in November of that previous year.
18:12
He claimed that she had bound him and threatened him with a
18:14
gun if he did not give her his money.
18:18
The jurors did not believe his story entirely, though, and
18:21
Omima was acquitted of the more serious charges of false
18:24
imprisonment and attempted robbery, however, and both the
18:28
murder of her husband and the assault on Hanson, her
18:32
boyfriend. At the time of the attack, Omima
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had a yielded weapons, a knife on her husband, and a gun on her
18:39
boyfriend, which led to aggravating circumstances in
18:43
each crime. Under California criminal law,
18:46
this could increase her sentence by an additional six years.
18:50
Omaima Nelson now was faced with 18 years to life in prison for
18:54
the killing of William Nelson, with a knife being utilized in
18:58
his death and an additional 10 years incarceration for the
19:02
assault on Hansen with a gun. The judge sentenced her to 25
19:08
years to life, which is the maximum she could receive, and
19:12
under California law she has to complete 80% of the sentence.
19:18
In 2002, Omima Nelson filed for habeas corpus under the claim of
19:23
ineffective counsel for their failure to not have her plead
19:27
not guilty by reason of insanity.
19:31
I would have thought she had something to stand on with this
19:33
claim because I absolutely agree that this plea should have been
19:37
used or a plea of guilty by reason of insanity.
19:42
Unfortunately for Amima, this petition was denied by the US
19:46
District Court for the Central District of California in 2003,
19:51
which said it was beyond the statute of limitations.
19:56
The first time she was made eligible for parole was in 2006.
20:00
Her attorney, Terence Scott, fought for her in an appeals
20:03
court that same year, arguing that the reason why Amima Nelson
20:08
had chopped up her husband's body.
20:10
Was because Egyptian mythology believed that if one chops up
20:14
the body of their enemy then they will not face them in the
20:17
afterlife. Now during my research I cannot
20:21
locate anything regarding this particular belief.
20:24
From what I did read, this belief may have derived from the
20:28
story of Osiris, whose own brother Set plotted against him
20:33
and jealousy murdered him and then dismembered him into 14
20:37
pieces, spreading him throughout Egypt.
20:41
Perhaps this was his way of dishonouring him, and by cutting
20:45
him up into his many pieces and placing them in different
20:49
places, he was stripping him of his power and thus thwarting his
20:54
entry into the afterlife. Then in relation to this
20:58
mythology, by dismembering her husband, Almaima was not just
21:02
trying to conceal the crime, but rid him of his dignity, power
21:07
and self respect and thus any remaining hold over her in the
21:12
afterlife. This is just my interpretation
21:16
of how this mythology could have possibly affected her beliefs
21:20
and actions. She was denied an appeal and her
21:24
possibility to be freed from prison based on at least what
21:28
the prosecutor Pulaski stated was her own lack of remorse, how
21:33
she has not taken responsibility for what she has done, and that
21:37
she still places the blame for her crimes upon the victim.
21:41
I'm not sure how this holds any ground when she fully confessed
21:44
to everything she did to the victim, including how she killed
21:47
him, the details as to how she attempted to get rid of his
21:51
body, and that she was sorry that she took his life but she
21:55
believed it was the only way to save her own.
21:59
The District Attorney addressed her on Maima Nelson up to that
22:03
point in her incarceration had neglected to finish any
22:07
education or vocation based courses provided there and that
22:12
she did not follow the rules and regulations of the prison.
22:16
It did not help Omima Nelson's attempt at parole that she was
22:21
the opposite of a model prisoner.
22:23
While incarcerated between 1993 and 2005, she was sided with
22:29
seven major rule violations. These included a fight in the
22:33
day room, battery of a prison staff member, concealment of
22:37
contraband, theft of headphones, two more for mutual combat, and
22:42
failure to comply with directions.
22:45
In addition to these major violations, Omima had an
22:48
additional 8 minor ones. Between 1995 and 2004.
22:53
She was sided with disturbance in a class for getting into a
22:56
verbal disagreement, holding in her possession on issued
22:59
property, being out of bounds, failure to report to class,
23:03
failure to report to her assigned position, use of the
23:06
phone during an unassigned time, lying on her bunk when prison
23:10
staff were conducting A headcount, and being non
23:13
compliant with grooming standards.
23:16
Wow. I mean, it sounds like she's in
23:18
grade school instead of an adult prison with its manual, trivial
23:23
and ridiculous numbers and types of citations.
23:28
I understand the citations for the major issues, especially if
23:31
they involve violence, but seriously, Failure to report to
23:35
class? I know.
23:37
Here's a great idea. Why don't we treat the
23:39
incarcerated like children, berate, then penalize them for
23:43
the most minor infractions and not provide them with any real
23:47
guidance or treatment? This approach, I'm sure, is
23:50
especially effective for those who have a mental illness, a
23:53
history of abuse and violence, and who are all around
23:57
psychologically impaired. Good job, American penal system.
24:02
Insert sarcasm here. In 2019, Omima Nelson applied to
24:07
the 9th Circuit Court for authorization to file a second
24:11
habeas corpus petition under the decision McCoy made by the
24:15
Supreme Court in 2018. Under this ruling, the Court
24:19
held that if the defense counsel concedes guilt for their client
24:23
during trial after the defendant has directed them to maintain
24:26
their innocence, this is in direct violation of their 6th
24:30
Amendment right to a fair trial. However, the courts have their
24:35
ways around prisoners filing claims which are often not
24:38
clarified to them and are used to successfully defeat their
24:43
attempts. Since Congress had placed a one
24:46
year statute of limitations on habeas corpus petitions being
24:50
filed, the petitioner must file an application to receive
24:55
authorization to file a secondary petition for a writ
25:00
within one calendar year date in which the constitutional right
25:05
was first acknowledged by the Supreme Court.
25:07
The decision made in McCoy was on May 14th, 2018, but Omima did
25:13
not file her application until November 26th, 2019, which
25:19
successfully destroyed any consideration or for being able
25:23
to file a second habeas corpus. Omima Nelson will not be
25:28
eligible for parole again until 2026.
25:32
There is a current movement to free Omima Nelson set up through
25:36
Change.org, which I personally have signed many different
25:40
petitions on. However, I only sign something
25:43
once I have done my own research on the matter.
25:46
It may be obvious to say, but I think it is very important that
25:49
we all do our own due diligence before placing support behind a
25:54
convicted criminal who could still pose A potentially serious
25:58
threat to others in society. Really, any social or political
26:02
petition should be looked at very closely and not take the
26:05
word of another person or website.
26:07
In the case of Omaima Nelson, according to reports, she has
26:11
not only been a model prisoner while incarcerated, no pun
26:14
intended, but has done everything to her habilitate and
26:18
better herself during her time there.
26:21
She currently resides at the Central California Women's
26:24
facility in Chowchilla, CA. It would be almost too easy to
26:30
label this horrifying story as one that is merely committed by
26:36
a psychotic and to only focus on the disgusting details, which I
26:41
think skips over the most important and the most
26:44
interesting elements of this case.
26:47
This young woman was a victim of violence and sexual abuse her
26:52
entire life. From a tender age, she was
26:56
sexually mutilated to be assimilated into an archaic and
27:02
brutal belief system regarding the purpose and value of women
27:07
in her culture. She was marked for life, damned
27:12
to never experience real physical pleasure, and was
27:16
taught very early on because it was that it was men who caused
27:22
this suffering. Female genital mutilation is a
27:26
widespread practice across most nations in Africa, many in the
27:31
Middle East and some in Asia. Some may claim it to be a
27:35
tradition and not something that our Western cultures should
27:39
interfere in, but nothing could be further from the truth.
27:44
For centuries, this external cutting, whether partial or
27:49
total removal of a female's genitalia, the ceiling, and
27:54
stitching up a part of their vagina or a combination, has
27:59
been done with a mistaken belief that is necessary for reasons of
28:04
chaste religion and hygiene. It is also been utilized as a
28:09
tool to eliminate a woman's sexual pleasure.
28:13
From as old as 15 to as young as infants, girls are subjected to
28:19
this brutal and cruel tradition. More than 200 million girls and
28:26
women have been forced to endure this mutilation and often times
28:32
it causes severe health complications.
28:36
Please understand that these procedures are carried out often
28:39
by a non medical professional and they are not for any reason
28:44
based on legitimate healthcare. In fact, the cost of the fallout
28:50
of female genital mutilation is over a billion dollars.
28:54
Not only does female genital mutilation induce 0 benefits to
29:00
the recipient, but it causes severe bleeding, trouble with
29:04
urination, CIS and infections, increases the difficulty of
29:09
carrying a baby later on and increases the chances that a
29:12
child will be stillborn. They also have caused
29:16
haemorrhages and death. Research indicates that the long
29:21
term psychological effects female genital mutilation has on
29:25
its victims can be very serious and often debilitating.
29:31
One study reported that a 6th of circumcised immigrant women
29:36
exhibit thresholds that surpass those of PTSD, and a third of
29:41
them suffer from severe degrees of depression and anxiety.
29:46
The trauma and brutality these women were forced to endure,
29:51
especially at such a young and vulnerable age, increases their
29:56
chances for substance abuse and a wide range of mental health
30:00
issues. It seems completely insane why
30:04
and how this continues to go on, but since it is perceived as a
30:09
social norm and totally accepted by the cultures who practice it,
30:14
it has not been easily eradicated.
30:17
This is a human rights violation, an exercise of female
30:21
discrimination at its most extreme, and there are many
30:25
organizations with WHO at its forefront who are committed to
30:29
spreading education about this practice, helping those who are
30:32
subjected to it, and those who help to perpetuate it understand
30:38
the extreme damage they are inflicting upon females.
30:42
Unfortunately, at the time of Almimah's female genital
30:46
mutilation, there was not a global movement against this
30:50
practice. She was a victim at a young age
30:54
of this brutal act, which inflicted unmeasurable amounts
30:58
of harm upon her body, her psyche and her spirit.
31:04
Understandably, I think she hated men and wanted to get as
31:08
much as she could out of them, since thanks to the patriarchal
31:13
forces in her own country, her capability for real pleasure had
31:17
been severely minimized, if not completely absent from her life.
31:23
Just imagine that this happens to countless girls and women in
31:27
these nations, which most of the world turns a blind eye to.
31:31
This is not about cultural differences, this is about
31:35
minimizing the female purpose and value in these cultures.
31:41
They are not allowed to be educated, not allowed to express
31:45
themselves, not allowed to pursue their dreams, and are not
31:49
permitted to have pleasure. Their existence is solely to
31:54
serve that of the men and society and most of the women
31:58
who have been subjected to this abuse and discrimination for so
32:03
long that it is difficult, if not impossible, for them to even
32:08
understand how wrong, how dangerous and permanently
32:13
damaging this is. I don't blame on my Ma Nelson
32:17
one bit for hating men, having such deep resentment and rage
32:23
toward them for the abuse and exploitation she continued to
32:28
suffer from when she came to a country that she believed would
32:33
be her salvation, her escape from her past.
32:38
It is of little surprise after she was pushed to the edge too
32:42
many times that she snapped. The other equally important and
32:47
intriguing element of this case? It's her confession that she ate
32:51
part of her dead husband, which she attempted to withdraw later
32:55
on. It is easy to be revolted, even
32:59
nauseated, by the act of cannibalism, and trust me, the
33:03
thought of eating a human being is both of those things.
33:06
But it is important to have some insight into the history of this
33:10
taboo subject to understand the offender and her actions.
33:16
The act of cannibalism has been presented 1 sidedly in most
33:20
discussions and in media presentations.
33:23
True crime and fiction because it is unthinkable, disgusting
33:28
and hard to conceive of doing even under the most severe of
33:33
circumstances, that being starvation.
33:36
Although it is very rare for societies to practice it in
33:39
modern times, there are some cultures that still do.
33:43
The act of cannibalism has not been a popular school of
33:46
research and historically was often suppressed by those of the
33:50
Western world, in particular by missionaries and agents of
33:54
colonialism. There have been records of
33:57
various cultures consuming members for sheer survival in
34:00
times of great famine. Research has revealed that such
34:04
practices have been recorded in a wide diversity of countries
34:07
and cultures in times of extreme and sustained stress, in
34:11
particular during times of famine, and has been practiced
34:15
worldwide from Japan, China, what was once known, to Persia
34:20
to France. Cannibalism has been something
34:24
societies have partaken in under the most extreme of
34:27
circumstances. Cannibalism, also known as
34:30
anthropophagi, which is the Latin term for man eating, is
34:34
reported to have been practiced way before the time of Homo
34:38
sapiens inside the caves of Homo ancestor who was the common
34:43
ancestor of modern humans and Neanderthals.
34:46
De fleshed human bones have been discovered dating back as far as
34:50
600,000 years in Goes Cave in England.
34:54
Remains of humans provided evidence of the practice of
34:57
cannibalism in unique ways, such as how many of the skulls were
35:02
utilized as drinking vessels. As to whether the Egyptians
35:06
practice cannibalism is hotly debated since the Pyramid Texts
35:10
found which, prone to its practice, have been deemed by
35:13
some to be merely metaphorical in nature and not to be taken
35:18
literal. Diodorus Siculus, a Greek writer
35:21
in the 1st century BC, wrote down an ancient story involving
35:25
the goddess Cyrus forbidding the Egyptians from consuming the
35:29
flesh of humans. First, it is critical for this
35:33
discussion to realize that there are two different kinds of
35:36
cannibalism which exist. It is not as simple as
35:39
individuals who consume others for survival while lost at sea
35:43
or in some other hostile environment, or the element of
35:47
the twisted case of a serial killer.
35:50
Although while doing this research it made me see things a
35:53
little more complicated and their purpose of doing so.
35:57
When involving the latter, there is endocannibalism and then
36:01
there is exocannibalism. The same actions with entirely
36:05
opposite targets, motivations and intent.
36:09
Exocannibalism involves consuming the flesh of others
36:13
where the individual or members of a group are often perceived
36:16
as the enemy, such as prisoners of war or those killed in
36:20
combat. The primary motivation for
36:23
exocannibalism is to take vengeance upon the enemy and or
36:28
to absorb their virtuous powers such as bravery, wisdom, or
36:33
strength. For some cultures, such as those
36:35
in Fiji, one does not eat an enemy who is not courageous and
36:40
strong since by consuming them, they will assimilate these
36:44
virtues. It has also been enacted by some
36:47
societies to exhibit aggressive and antisocial behavior.
36:51
This can be seen in situations where individuals consume
36:54
someone who has caused harm to their loved ones.
36:57
Those who were believed to be malevolent and had caused harm
37:00
to the community could also face cannibalism as a concept of
37:05
punishment and S Papua. During the early 1960s through
37:09
the early 1970's, the vast majority of deaths were believed
37:13
to have been the result of witchcraft and sorcery, many of
37:18
whom were murdered by their communities and their flesh
37:21
eaten. This act of cannibalism is
37:24
enacted in such a manner as to express disdain, disrespect, and
37:29
hostility toward the enemy. Contrary to this practice
37:34
believed to have stopped centuries ago, various
37:37
documentation such as the case in Papua New Guinea has proven
37:40
otherwise. It was documented by Medicines
37:44
Sans Frontiers, which is an international medical charity,
37:48
how soldiers in Liberia in the 1980s participating in what were
37:53
known to be ritualized feast. This ritual cannibalism is
37:58
rooted in the purpose of drawing in physical and spiritual powers
38:02
through the consumption of human flesh.
38:05
It is also serves the purpose of terrifying the enemy.
38:10
For the children who served in Joseph Kony's infamous army in
38:13
Uganda, the practice of exocannibalism was used as a
38:17
ritual to initiate a boy becoming a man.
38:21
Exocannibalism is practice against the enemy.
38:24
Endocannibalism is utilized to show love, respect, and honor to
38:28
the dead. It is believed by some cultures
38:31
that eating parts of the dead relative helps them to move on
38:34
to the other world, which may be a way of holding on to them by
38:38
absorbing their positive attributes.
38:40
Various parts in the lowlands of South America have been recorded
38:44
as being involved in the act of endocannibalism than any other
38:48
part of the world, specifically as an element of the funerary or
38:53
Mortuary rite. Most often the flesh of their
38:56
deceased loved one is cooked and consumed, or they would roast
39:01
and grind up the bones and consume the ash.
39:04
The eating of the bones was popular in northern Brazil, in
39:07
the western and northern parts of Amazonia, and within the
39:10
Upper Ornocle regions of southern Venezuela.
39:14
One particular event was recorded among the Al Mahawaka
39:18
and Peru, where a grieving mother wailed as she ground her
39:22
daughter's bones into a powder and blended them into a drink
39:26
made of maize. The ritual unfolded almost over
39:29
2 weeks, which ended in the mother tossing the remaining
39:34
ashes of her child into the river.
39:36
Although the act of cannibalism is difficult to get past in this
39:40
sense, it does resonate with how the consumption of their
39:44
deceased loved 1 is a way to stay with them.
39:49
Yes, it is still disgusting and bizarre, but in this context, I
39:54
can grasp the meaning of what is behind this ritual for those who
39:59
believe in its power and purpose.
40:01
And in its own way, it's poignant, deep, and kind of
40:05
beautiful. The act of cannibalism has also
40:08
been viewed by some monks and ascetics as a way to transcend
40:12
one's own spirit, mind, and body.
40:14
The Agoris are a sect of Hindu ascetics who reside in India,
40:19
whose beliefs center around the concept that all things in the
40:22
universe are equally sacred, including that of human remains.
40:27
Through the actions of holding and caressing the bodies of the
40:30
deceased and consuming human flesh.
40:33
Their goal is to move beyond the parameters and categories that
40:37
humans have strictly labeled as being natural and reach a state
40:41
of Nirvana in the process. During the 1500's, the Tibetan
40:45
monks consumed what were referred to as pills of flesh.
40:50
These pills of flesh were the remains of Brahman ascetics.
40:53
Now ascetics are people who practice an extreme form of
40:57
self-discipline and abstention, in particular from any source of
41:01
pleasure with the goal of reaching a higher spiritual
41:04
plane. Brahmins were the most powerful
41:07
members of the spiritual communities and Hindu society.
41:10
They represented the most enlightened and wisest of them
41:14
all. The consumption of spiritual and
41:17
intellectual elites was perceived as the ultimate source
41:21
of transcendence. There was strong documentation
41:24
of this practice whose primary purpose was to create a bridge
41:28
between the recipient of the flesh pill and the spiritual
41:31
leader whom they consumed. Viewed through these unique and
41:35
deeply meaningful cultural experiences, 1 can begin to see
41:40
how cannibalism is perceived as food for the spirit, mind and
41:45
body. Interest in practices and
41:48
cannibalism in the Western world had its origins in an unusual
41:52
place. Known for its healing powers,
41:55
Mumia is a highly praised substance that is exclusively
41:59
located on a single mountainside in Persia.
42:03
Its name is derived from the local word for wax.
42:06
This mum was utilized in a wide range of medicinal purposes and
42:11
in the Arabic world was known for being an invaluable and very
42:15
costly substance. The problem happened, as it
42:19
often does, when Western Europeans, upon their initial
42:22
exposure to the Islamic world, mistranslated the text from
42:27
Mamia. Translators during the 11th and
42:30
12th centuries incorrectly identified Mamia as the
42:34
substance that was derived from the mummified bodies within
42:38
Egyptian tombs. Due to this poor translation and
42:41
thus complete misinterpretation of the text.
42:45
Medical cannibalism in Europe was practiced by the elite,
42:50
especially for many generations in medieval Europe.
42:54
This led to the creation of many different beliefs surrounding
42:57
the substance and how it could help heal from the blood of
43:01
gladiators healing epilepsy to human fat mixed into homeopathic
43:05
medicines. It was used to help headaches,
43:08
to prevent heart attacks, anything imaginable.
43:12
During this time, it was properly documented how
43:15
individuals were raiding Egyptian tombs and stealing
43:18
their contents, from pottery to the jewels hidden inside.
43:22
However, there were also those who were stealing the mummies
43:25
themselves and stealing them for high profits.
43:28
The demand grossly outweighed the resources available, which
43:32
led to body snatchers and immoral tradesmen stealing fresh
43:37
corpses of the executed, the enslaved and others and
43:41
transforming them into mummies. 1 record of this described how a
43:46
body snatcher would take the body of a person who had been
43:49
hind, embalm the body with salt and drugs, dry it inside an oven
43:54
and grind the remains or ashen to own powder which apothecaries
43:58
would purchase to create home remedies.
44:02
During the Victorian era, the craze for all things Egyptian
44:05
was so huge that unwrapping mommies was an actual event
44:09
inside some lecture halls, at hospitals, or even unveiled at
44:14
exclusive gatherings inside private homes.
44:17
Can you even imagine being invited to such an event?
44:21
I mean it would have been surreal.
44:23
Amazing, full of wonder and mystique and creepy and
44:27
terrifying all at once. Not to mention the whole
44:30
unwrapping of a mummy thing, which is beyond dishonorable and
44:35
I would think would not be the best energy to leave around.
44:39
What do you think about Oh my Man Nelson and the motivations
44:43
behind this horrific crime? Not on any level am I condoning
44:47
her actions because she committed an absolutely vile act
44:52
of murder. However, I think, no pun
44:55
intended, that dissecting the pieces of her life and viewing
44:59
her behaviour on a deeper and multi layered level, as I hope I
45:04
have succeeded in doing with this episode, helps to see her
45:08
and her crimes on a different, more compelling level.
45:11
She was not just a murderer, she was not just a cannibal.
45:16
She was a terrified, brutally traumatized woman who snapped in
45:20
the truest and most simple sense of the word.
45:24
Do I believe she has redeemed and progressed enough to be
45:27
free? I personally do not believe that
45:30
it would be wise to let her back into society, but I don't
45:34
necessarily think she should be locked up in prison the rest of
45:36
her days either, nor should she ever happen.
45:40
Omaya Nelson is a prime example of an individual who should have
45:44
pled guilty by reason of insanity and spent the rest of
45:48
her life at a mental health facility.
45:50
Who knows, maybe if her defense attorney and our criminal
45:53
justice system had done their job better than she would have
45:56
received the mental health treatment she desperately needed
46:00
and deserved even before these events, and this murder would
46:04
never have happened. What are your thoughts on Omaya
46:06
Nelson? Do you think she was just a mad
46:09
woman who killed and ate her husband, or was she severely
46:14
abused a traumatized young woman who murdered, dismembered, and
46:18
consumed parts of her victim so he no longer had power over her?
46:26
Thank you so much for listening to this case.
46:29
I appreciate each and everyone of you and I'm beyond thrilled
46:33
to be your host. Until next time, Stacey, I'm
46:38
watching shades of art happening in the streets next door and
46:43
especially inside your own home. Elena Dama.
46:48
Shades of Murder is created, researched, written and edited
46:54
by Elena Dama. Music courtesy of Pixabay by
46:59
Ashot Denilian.