Courtney Schulhoff

Courtney Christine Schulhoff (born December 27, 1987) is an American prisoner who was convicted of the bludgeoning death of her father in his Altamonte Springs, Florida apartment when she was 16 years old. She was convicted of first-degree murder and was sentenced to life without the possibility of parole in September 2006. In March 2017, Schulhoff was given a reduced sentence of 40 years.

Background Courtney Schulhoff lived in Altamonte Springs, Florida with her father after her parents divorced. She attended Lyman High School, but had dropped out and was pursuing her GED. Before dropping out of school, 15-year-old Schulhoff began dating Michael Morin, a man whom she had met at a dog race track across the street from her high school. Schulhoff's father did not approve of their relationship but the couple continued to date. They would often hang out at a local gas station where Schulhoff reportedly told Morin that her father physically abused her regularly.

Murder On the night of February 9, 2004, Schulhoff's father Stephen was beaten to death inside his apartment. After the murder, Schulhoff and Morin reportedly drove to a McDonald's 20 miles away in Orlando, Florida using Stephen Schulhoff's truck. Later in the afternoon, the couple returned to the apartment. Morin later said that he and Schulhoff had planned to take her father's body to Brevard County and throw it off a bridge.

Schulhoff and Morin were apprehended on February 11 after Stephen Schulhoff's girlfriend, Elaine Bouck, came to the apartment to check on Stephen. Bouck called 911 after seeing the couple flee from the apartment. Morin claimed that he had tried to talk Schulhoff out of killing her father, to no avail. He also claimed to have no memory of beating Stephen Schulhoff stating that he "blacked out" as soon as he grabbed the bat and only became lucid when he was washing the blood off his body after the attack. Prosecutors alleged that although Michael Morin had committed the murder, Schulhoff had orchestrated it. She did not testify in her own defense at the trial. The next day, she was found guilty of first-degree murder. During his testimony, he admitted killing Stephen Schulhoff but expressed regret for the action. However, on April 26, 2007, Michael Morin was convicted. He was sentenced to life in prison without parole, and is serving his sentence at the Taylor Correctional Institution.

In 2009, Schulhoff was interviewed at the Lowell Correctional Institution in Ocala, Florida by RTL, a German news show, about the punishment of life without parole for juvenile offenders. In 2011, her case appeared on an episode of Snapped on the Oxygen Network. In 2015, Schulhoff was interviewed by former FBI criminal profiler Candice DeLong for the Investigation Discovery program Facing Evil.

In 2017, Schulhoff was given a reduced sentence of 40 years.