Trial continues for Lake County woman accused of killing, burying her husband

LAKE COUNTY, FL – The state has several more witnesses to hear as the murder trial of Laurie Shaver continues Thursday in Lake County.

Shaver was arrested in 2020, more than two years after her estranged husband, Michael Shaver, who had not been seen since November 2015, was reported missing. Before she was arrested on a second-degree murder warrant, investigators searching Shaver’s property along Sandy Pines Road discovered human remains buried under a concrete slab that were later identified as Michael’s.

The years that followed saw Laurie Shaver released on bail and her lawyer claiming that Michael Shaver’s daughter, who would have been 7 at the time of his disappearance, had confessed to shooting Michael in order to protect Laurie from domestic violence.

Both men were dating other people when the man disappeared. One of the men she was dating testified Thursday.

Jeremy Townsend described their relationship with her as “friends with benefits and no strings attached.”

He denied having anything to do with the murder. He was asked several direct questions about the murder during his testimony.

Prosecution: “At any point were you involved in an altercation with Michael Shaver?

Townsend: “No.”

Prosecution: “At any point did you shoot or otherwise injure Michael Shaver?”

Townsend: “No.”

Prosecution: “At any point were you involved in the disposal of Michael Shaver’s body?

Townsend: “No.”

Continuation: “After the affair was revealed, what happened to your affair with Laurie?

Townsend: “I cut it.”

A detective also testified Thursday about Shaver’s social media posts that referenced the concrete slab and fire pit she was installing in her backyard where the body was found.

In one of the messages, he read aloud: “Newest project, built this fire pit today, cut some of the fence to get in, now all I have to do is pour concrete and put in a new gate.”

During the third day of the trial on Wednesday, Laurie Shaver’s new husband, Travis Filmer, spoke about what he knew about Laurie’s relationship with Michael and was asked why Michael’s disappearance didn’t raise more questions for him.

(CHRONOLOGY: What is the status of the case of Laurie Shaver, accused of killing and burying her husband?)

Another man, Robert Proper, testified Wednesday that Filmer knew Michael Shaver was dead, saying Filmer said Michael “may not be walking this Earth anymore.”

Filmer, however, said he did not mean it the way prosecutors had framed it.

The jury also heard from two people who said Shaver sold them guns, as well as a banker who said a loan was taken out in Shaver’s name but never repaid.

(STORY CONTINUES BELOW)

The state is scheduled to hear three more witnesses Thursday, and Shaver’s daughter may also appear.

News 6 will broadcast the trial live at the beginning of this story.

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