Man spent 40th birthday restraining, torturing and murdering woman in bathtub because he thought she stole his wallet: Report

A Maryland man will effectively spend the rest of his life in prison for the death of a woman he tortured and murdered in a bathtub at a Delaware home on his 40th birthday.

Kent County Superior Court Judge Reneta L. Green-Streett sentenced Leonard “Buddy” Church, now 43, to 65 years in prison on Wednesday for the death of Jennifer Leyanna after he pleaded guilty to second-degree murder, the Delaware News Journal reported. The judge also sentenced Esther Wright, 41, to 25 years in prison for helping Church restrain Leyanna and bury her body. She had pleaded guilty to kidnapping and conspiracy.

As Law&Crime previously reported, the Delaware State Police began investigating when Leyanna’s mother reported her missing on Nov. 1, 2020. She had not been seen or heard from since Oct. 9, 2020. In an update on Feb. 22, 2022, Delaware State Police announced they that confirmed Leyanna’s remains were found six days prior in the backyard of a residence in the “25000 block of Schuyler Road, Henderson, MD,” which looks to be a fairly remote area. Maryland court records show that Church has a residence in that block.

Court documents obtained by the News Journal said the murder took place Oct. 10, 2020, at a home on Route 8 in Kent County. Church, high on PCP, became enraged because he thought Leyanna stole his wallet, the affidavit reportedly said. With the help of Wright, he tied Leyanna down in the bathtub with some tape and stuffed foreign objects down he throat. He then took a belt and choked her to death, the documents reportedly said.

Church and Wright then took her body and went to his home in Henderson where they buried her. Leyanna’s family went without answers for over a year prompting them to start a Facebook page in hopes of finding her. The case went nowhere until Wright reportedly confided in someone about the location of the body. That person then told police, who discovered her remains.

The victim’s family gave emotional victim impact statements during Wednesday’s sentencing, the News Journal reported.

“This has been one of the most traumatic experiences a person can endure,” her mother reportedly said. “When death occurs at the hands of another human being, especially in the manner which you took my daughter’s life, there never really is closure, just more questions.”

Leyanna’s friends and family said she long struggled with drug addiction, but that never stopped her from loving her family.

“My mother was nowhere near perfect, but she was mine,” her daughter Natalie Dehorty reportedly said. “She would do anything for me. She was my best friend. You took that from me.”

Church’s attorney said his client was out of his mind because of drugs and otherwise never would have committed such a violent act. Church apologized to the victim’s family.

Matt Naham contributed to this report.

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