The documentary started out as an homage to a murdered friendbut another tragedy was not far behind. We were just words dont quite do it, said David Bagby, he and his wife sitting opposite each other on the couch in their newly unpacked living room in northwest Gilroy. On Aug. 18, 2003, while awaiting extradition to the U.S. on a charge of murdering Andrew, Turner jumped into the waters of Conception Bay South with her 13-month-old son strapped to her in a murder-suicide. Dear Zachary: A Letter to a Son About His Father: Directed by Kurt Kuenne. Even though I knew the outcome, the day the main incident occurs, I was still shocked when the pages finally reveal the events that lead up to that day. The documentary began as a project intended to honor the memory of Kuennes childhood friend Andrew Bagby, who had been murdered in 2001. Turner's second husband claimed that she only used the belt as a threat in his interview. [2]:101. David Bagby's book, Dance With the Devil, is a good read. Lying on my shoulder and looking up at me as if to say, Yes Nan, Im here.. But what, exactly, were the tragic events that led to the passage of Zacharys Bill? There was no way to stop Andrews murder, but there was no way to walk away from Zacharys body and just say hmm, okay, move on," said David. Acting in collaboration with the Pennsylvania State Police, the Royal Newfoundland Constabulary's (RNC) Intelligence Unit conducted surveillance on her movements. One Canadian judge released her on the condition that she behave and another gave her custody of Zachary Turner. Sharing voices. You will then receive an email that helps you regain access. By the time she was charged with first-degree murder,she had returned to St. John's and gave birth to Zachary in July 2002. Also in Turner's apartment were MapQuest printouts for road directions to Latrobe. We invite . ItsaCheckmate. Watching the documentary brings up a mix of feelings from joy to hatred. On 12 November 2001, Turner abandoned her residence in Council Bluffs and flew to Toronto, eventually resettling in St. John's with her oldest son. The experience with Turner led that St. John's practice to make "constructive changes" in its residency evaluation process. Andrew Bagby is murdered in the US by a woman who was angry that he broke up with her. His arguments towards the refusal of parole for alleged murderers is superb and really shows how idiotic the laws can be. He was a man with great stories and a knack for telling them. Some say they don't have the authority to tell her, others say their office is closed, and others say there's "nothing to do. In the early years, that included David writing a book, Dance With the Devil, about his sons and grandsons murders, and Kuennes documentary. Astraport Tables Andrew Bagby was found dead in a state park just outside Latrobe, Pa., where he was a resident in the local hospital's family medicine program. [8] Turner was released from Her Majesty's Penitentiary's Clarenville Correctional Centre for Women, and was required to post CAD$75,000 bail, turn in her passports, pay weekly visits to the RNC, promise not to leave the area, and make no attempt to contact Bagby's family. She even meant to implicate her brief lover by planting aused tampon and photos of herself and her child across his lawn in Connection Bay South before she didit. Thats Kates position, David Bagby said of the notion they will one day see Andrew and Zachary. Bagby came from Sunnyvale, California, and was the son of Kathleen Daphne Bagby (ne Barnard), a registered nurse and midwife from Chatham, England, United Kingdom; and David Franklin Bagby, an American former United States Navy serviceman and computer engineer. Turner alternately told her shooting instructor that her gun had been stolen. A judge called Andrew's murder a vicious crime, but did not consider Turner a risk to others. Turner subsequently made a total of 200 threatening phone calls to the man over the following month. Its been more than 10 years since the Bagbys have been back to Newfoundland and Labrador. On 13 October, Turner told Bagby that she was three months pregnant. The bill passed with unanimous support and was signed into law in December of 2010. Died: January 5, 2022 in Statesville, NC David R. Bagby, 64 of Statesville, NC and formerly of Streator passed away Wednesday (January 5, 2022) at the Gordon Hospice Home in Statesville, NC.. She turns to talking of her son and calls him Gods blessing. Turner completed her undergraduate education while raising her children with help from her second husband. David Bagby has written such a poignant account of the sordid happenings and has brought both Andrew and Zachary alive on the pages. No spoilers here for my friends but you must watch this film. Select this result to view David Warren Bagby's phone number, address, and more. [19], Two scholarships have been established in tribute to Andrew David Bagby and his son. Andrew Bagby, who never knew Turner was pregnant, was the father. It's just as heartbreaking as the documentary "Dear Zachary", which I HIGHLY recommend watching. Its a part of his life Bagby calls a dance with the devil.. ", On 7 April 1999, Doucet found Turner lying semi-conscious outside of his apartment, having ingested a combined 65 milligrams of over-the-counter drugs in a suicide attempt. All rights reserved, Click here for information on becoming a member. Dance with the Devil is David Bagby's . Dead.. On this Wikipedia the language links are at the top of the page across from the article title. What he and his wife went through is truly disgusting. Zacharys arrival pierced the hatred toward Turner that flooded the Bagbys lives after they lost their only son. The Bagby's lived a nightmare that no person should ever have to go through and I admire their courage and strength. It was determined that Zachary Turner was rendered unconscious by the lorazepam and did not suffer. When I read true crime, I like to see more back story of the people involved. Slain tot's grandparents welcome new bail law. Kate was devastated at how the process unfolded. Why didn't the many people who witnessed Shirley Turner's disturbing behavior and intense wrath make an issue in the courts more of it? The film ends with the Bagbys and their relatives, friends, and colleagues reflecting on the father and son, as well as the . A well written memoir by a father who son was murdered by an ex-girlfriend that was pregnant with his son's child. As most true crime memoirs do, Dance with the Devil explains what the victims were like in life, and the profound effects that their deaths had on those left behind. The media interest in the story may have waned some, but their loss is never-ending. Please consider joining us in this mission by becoming a member of the SaltWire Network and helping to make our communities better. A 2006 inquiry found serious shortcomings in how the province's social services system handled the case, suggesting that the judges, prosecutors, and child welfare agencies involved were more concerned with presuming Shirley's innocence than with protecting Zachary. Most people do something useful. A filmmaker decides to memorialize a murdered friend when his friend's ex-girlfriend announces she is expecting his son. Immortalized in the spellbinding documentary Dear Zachary, this angry, raw, and brutally honest memoir of murder and loss chronicles a systems failure to prevent the death of a child. "[2]:454, Turner was returned to jail in November 2002 pending a decision by the federal justice minister regarding whether she should be extradited to the United States. Meanwhile, after graduating from Memorial University in May 2000, Bagby landed a surgical residency at the State University of New York Upstate Medical University at Syracuse, New York. In the wake of the shocking turn of events, Andrews father, David Bagby, wrote a true crime memoir that is described as a eulogy for a dead son, an elegy for lives cut tragically short, and a castigation of a broken system.. Luckily, they chose to go on and fight for their son, especially after finding out he had a child on the way. Turner was rushed to a hospital, where she received a gastric lavage. He would also be able to one day appreciate Dear Zachary: A Letter to a Son About His Father, a documentary about Andrew Bagby that was released today on DVD. Lists about some of the most shocking and upsetting documentary films & series that you should totally watch anyway. This sad tale tells how slowly justice moved and failed to protect an innocent year old child. The Bagbys were compelled to ensure what happened to their son and grandson never happens again. Some of those thoughts included him, without Kate's knowledge, taking out Turner and allowing himself to be imprisoned. There is only so much that Kurt could fit in an hour and a half and I learned so much more by reading things from David's own words. Generated by Wordfence at Sat, 4 Mar 2023 4:46:47 GMT.Your computer's time: document.write(new Date().toUTCString());. Canadian officials also released her on bail even though she was detained as the culpable suspect in the case. David is related to Sharon Lynn Johnson and Sherree Ann Bagby as well as 3 additional people. [16] The provincial Government of Newfoundland and Labrador accepted the report's conclusions and its 29 recommendations. The man contacted the RNC on three occasions to complain about Turner's harassment, which both violated the terms of her bail and was considered grounds to lose custody of Zachary. She showed up at his house, across the street from the practice where he was serving his residency. Its been years since David Bagby has had a call from a reporter and its on a day when he would be inclined not to answer the phone. Kuenne, a childhood friend of Andrews, started out to make the movie as a tribute to Andrew, but it kept taking on new meanings, first with Zacharys birth and then his death. The bill received unanimous support in the Canadian House of Commons, and received support from Liberal Senator Tommy Banks. [21], The Chicago Film Critics Association nominated Dear Zachary for its Best Documentary award, and the Society of Professional Journalists presented the film with its Sigma Delta Chi Award for Best Documentary. In 2010, Bill C-464 added a clause to the Criminal Code of Canada allowing bail to be denied if deemed necessary to protect a child, a change spurred by the Bagbys. David Bagby starts many sentences with Andrew had metTurner, who was 12 years his senior, while they were studying medicine at Memorial University in St. Johns. The Dear Zachary Story, "After Canadian mother killed herself and their only grandchild, U.S. couple started 10-year fight to change Canada's bail laws", "I had the moral right to kill Shirley Turner", "Shirley Turner, son found dead | CBC News", "Turner psychiatrist ordered to pay $10,000", "Ask the filmmaker a question about 'Dear Zachary', No need for Zachary Turner to die: death review, "Top 5 Good Movies You Never Want To See Again", "Nearly 2 decades after the murder of a physician and his son a legacy of love survives", "Dear Zachary: Donations in Andrew's Memory", https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Murders_of_Andrew_Bagby_and_Zachary_Turner&oldid=1137739500, History of Westmoreland County, Pennsylvania, November 2001 events in the United States, Short description is different from Wikidata, Pages using infobox person with multiple parents, Pages using infobox criminal with known for parameter, Articles needing additional references from June 2021, All articles needing additional references, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License 3.0. For Kuenne, the answer to that question began in childhood. Wasn't anybody willing to step up(besides the Bagbys) and try to rescue that baby?? Your access to this service has been limited. View the profiles of professionals named "David Bagby" on LinkedIn. For the first time in years, David Bagby and his wife Kate are decorating their home for Christmas. After the child was born the clearly mentally-ill mother wrecked havok on the grandparents lives. Then, in August 2003, Shirley killed herself and the one-year-old Zachary by jumping into the Atlantic Ocean. He has clearly done his research of the law and proposes many ways that this type of tragic event could be prevented in the future. We couldnt actually believe shed (harm Zachary), but we consciously feared she could do that, he said. On November 4, 2006, Dr. Andrew Bagby broke up with his girlfriend, Dr. Shirley Turner. Scott Andrews, the MP who introduced the bill, said that he hoped it would give the Bagbys some sense that someone has heard their cries, and show that Canada would change the law to make sure something this tragic will never happen again.. Its a day the couple would most likely prefer to spend quietly, avoiding the phone. Do not get me wrong: it is a ver emotional history with a real case but I am not sure to have a book about it and I think that the family deserves respect. David and Kate Bagby must have been saints to have had to tolerate personal dealings with their only child's murderess,and basically have to groval to her to even see their precious only-ever grandchild.Yet,they did whatever they could for the sake of Zachary.Most people (myself included) would have made away with Shirley Turner the first chance they got.Why should they have even been put in that insane situation in the first place? In October 2001, Turner obtained a permit to buy a firearm and purchased a Phoenix Arms HP22 handgun and .22 ammunition, which she used during firearms lessons. A few months after Bagbys death, Turner gave birth to their son, whom she named Zachary. If you dont, youre dead. Turner, reportedly mentally unstable, decided to endherself and the life of her baby over a man she had gone out with twice, after meeting him at a bar in St. John's. Authorities later determined his former lover Dr. Shirley Turner,. The couple was also involved in a support group for parents of murdered children and sat through three murder trials to try and help other surviving parents deal with their incredible grief. Written by the father of the murder victim, you learn all the details that led up to his son's murder and the preventable murder of his grandson. As it happened, Turner had a history of unusual behavior. Turner killed herself and Zachary before she could be tried for murder. When a constable contacted Turner's lawyer about the harassment, she denied the allegations. Rebeca's Bakery, WEB DEVELOPMENT & DIGITAL MEDIA Website DesignHosting Website Optimization (SEO) Social Media Management Sponsored Content Analytic Evaluation Newsletter Marketing, OUR PUBLICATIONSCannabis ChronicleEast BayEast Bay ExpressGood Times Santa CruzHealdsburg TribuneHollister Free Lance King City RustlerLos GatanMarin Pacific Sun Metro Silicon Valley Morgan Hill Times North Bay BohemianPress BannerSalinas Valley TribuneSouth Valley Watsonville Pajaronian, COMPANY INFOJob OpportunitiesJournalism Awards. That woman then escapes to Canada while evidence against her is gathering, and then she has his baby while the extradition process drags on. He was a man whose smiling eyes and kind heart put friends, colleagues and strangers at ease. This book is more about how the justice system failed and 2 more people are dead because of it. Two years later, she gave birth to a daughter. Well never understand how anybody can ignore the fact that murderers are dangerous, he said. In August 2000, Turner moved to Sac City, Iowa, to begin work for Trimark Physicians Corporation. Andrew Bagby, who never knew Turner was pregnant, was the father . However, it was around this same time that their son, Zachary, was actually conceived. One note had been addressed to Doucet and the other to her psychiatrist; the latter read, "I am not evil, just sick." The documentary was originally released in 2008. Was inspired to read this book after watching the horrifying documentary "Dear Zachary". However, in January 2003 Justice Welsh again released her, arguing that the murder "was not directed at the public at large" and that Turner was presumed to be innocent.[10]. Three years later, Turner and her second husband divorced, and she was granted custody of their daughter. 1 suspect was his estranged girlfriend, Shirley Turner, also a medical doctor, who was raised in western Newfoundland and was then practicing in Iowa. Andrew Bagby was a childhood friend of filmmaker Kurt Kuenne, and Kuenne's project began as a "cinematic scrapbook" for Zachary. [2]:494 Turner drowned. I saw the documentaryand I am speechless. Subscribe here. While she was serving her medical residency, her supervising physician, who would later describe her as a manipulative, guiltless psychopath, said that she frequently became hostile, yelling, crying, and accusing me of treating her unfairly.. You take it with you, but you move on, said David. I was just hoping more from this book, but I can understand it. You can also read the documentation to learn about Wordfence's blocking tools, or visit wordfence.com to learn more about Wordfence. Curated newsletters for curious minds. Related: 11 True Crime YouTube Channels Every True Crime Aficionado Needs to Watch. The memory of that visit is of a crying Zachary being taken away from them. Condensing the saga into a neat, 90-minute package and parting with footage of Andrews friends and family that he had become so attached to was the most difficult part of the project, Kuenne said. Some months ago I watched the documentary, "Dear Zachery" on Netflix. Kuenne finished his documentary and dedicated it to the memories of both Bagby and Zachary. Andrew Bagby Birthday and Date of Death. Maybe it's being told your son was taken from you and then, with no consolation, immediately asking questions as to why he was where he was when he passed? Meanwhile, Andrew Bagbys friends and family have shared their stories with the same intention in mind. We were done, Kate Bagby said, finishing her husbands thought, a quirk of their relationship that became apparent during a several-hour recount of how their lives spiraled out of control after that phone call from police. One of the best books that I have ever read. I was lucky to get my hands on a copy of this hard to find book and was glad I did. The deaths of Andrew Bagby and Zachary Turner became the basis for the 2008 documentary film Dear Zachary: A Letter to a Son About His Father, directed by Kurt Kuenne. Those new to the group are almost in a stupor as they enter the room. Turner posted bail with help from her psychiatrist, John Doucet, a former co-worker from Memorial University. "There's no point in going on," David saidof their logic at the time. If you're looking for an extremely disturbing documentary film, you'll find it on these lists! These incidents left the supervising physician with the impression that: I felt I was being manipulated whenever I spoke with Shirley Turner. The Bagbys, who recently marked their 50th wedding anniversary, say it sustained them for nearly a decade as they struggled to come to terms first with the 2001 slaying of their 28-year-old son, Dr. Andrew Bagby, and later with the murder of Andrew's son, 13 . Yes! Here's Why 'Dear Zachary' Is The Most Upsetting Documentary Ever Made, Dear Zachary:A Letter to a Son About His Father, Dear Zachary: A Letter To A Son About His Father.