Ryan Matthews, the Texas teen who killed his pregnant girlfriend, is on trial for capital murder. KPRC Houston is reporting that Ryan Matthews, 17, is on trial for the murder of Arrjiana Hill, a 16-year old student who was described by most as a sweet church girl. Court records show that Arrijana was also pregnant with Ryan Matthews’ twins.
The murder of Arrijana Hill came to the attention of police in March 2014, when they responded to a home in an upscale, gated community in Pearland, Texas. Once officers arrived, they found the body of an African American female with stab wounds to the body. An autopsy report later concluded that the girl, identified as 16-year old Arrijana Hill, was strangled to death. She was also four months pregnant with twins.
Her case baffled police as they scrambled to find the killer. The community members were completely devastated that such a sweet girl could be harmed in her own home. By all accounts, the lavish gated community was protected by security, so no one could understand what may have happened to Arrijana. Neighbors speculated that she had walked in on a robbery in progress or that she was killed by someone she knew.
As the investigation unfolded, police became aware that Arrijana Hill had a boyfriend named Ryan Matthews, a 16-year old football player and athlete at their local high school. A paternity test concluded that he was the father of her unborn babies. Text messages between Arrrijana and Ryan showed that she was scared that she had become pregnant and texted her boyfriend to tell him that she had missed her period. Ryan was reportedly freaked out by the pregnancy and asked his girlfriend about having an abortion.
Ryan Matthews was eventually arrested and booked on capital murder charges. Prosecutors say Ryan Matthews was dropped off at Arrijana Hill’s home by a friend, and he then killed her in her upstairs bedroom. If convicted, Ryan Matthews will serve 40 years in prison.
The Arrijana Hill murder case is similar to so many other cases of teens and adult pregnant women who were killed by the fathers of their unborn children. One case that comes to mind is the tragic story of Cherica Adams. In that case, her boyfriend Rae Carruth, a star football player had his girlfriend gunned down because he wanted to avoid child support payments.
The 1997 movie, The Killing Secret, was based on the true story of another pregnant Texas teen who was killed by her boyfriend. The cases of Emily Jeanette Garcia and Becky Stowe are also cases dealing with pregnant teen girls who were killed by teen boys.
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