Camilla Jessen
Title: North Carolina woman accused of poisoning daughter will not face death penalty.
Prosecutors in North Carolina will not seek the death penalty against a woman accused of poisoning four people, including her daughter, during a Thanksgiving gathering.
During a Rule 24 hearing in Henderson County on Feb. 26, Assistant District Attorney John Douglas Mundy said that Gudrun Linda Casper-Leinenkugel’s case would proceed as noncapital, according to the Asheville Citizen Times and WLOS.
Such hearings are required in cases where charges are eligible for the death penalty.
Casper-Leinenkugel faces two counts of first-degree murder, two counts of attempted first-degree murder and three counts of distributing certain food or beverage.
She is accused of killing her 32-year-old daughter, Leela Jean Livis, and attempting to poison her other adult daughter and that daughter’s boyfriend.
Allegations linked to Thanksgiving gathering
According to court records cited by the Citizen Times and WLOS, the alleged poisonings occurred on Nov. 30, 2025, during a Thanksgiving gathering.
Livis, Richard Pegg and Mia Lacey reportedly drank from the same bottle of wine before becoming ill.
Court documents allege the wine was laced with acetonitrile, a chemical used in manufacturing that metabolizes into cyanide and can cause delayed toxicity.
Livis died on Dec. 1, 2025, the North Carolina State Bureau of Investigation previously said.
Investigators have also alleged that evidence connects Casper-Leinenkugel to the 2007 death of Michael Schmidt in Henderson County.
Schmidt’s death certificate lists the cause of death as “acute acetonitrile toxicity, probably huffing,” according to the Citizen Times.
Family reaction
Livis’ father, Travis Peterson, told WLOS that learning of his daughter’s death was “a gut punch,” adding, “My firstborn kid.”
Several of Casper-Leinenkugel’s family members, including Mia Lacey, were present in court when it was announced that prosecutors would not pursue capital punishment, the Citizen Times reported.
Defense attorney Paul Bidwell previously told the newspaper that his client “firmly denies the criminal allegations against her and intends to defend herself vigorously.”
Her next court hearing is scheduled for April 30.
Sources: Asheville Citizen Times, WLOS, North Carolina State Bureau of Investigation.
