In the episode titled ‘The Punisher’ of ‘American Monster,’ we get a detailed account of the life of Brittany Steier, a devoted and loving mother who wanted to lead a happy and fulfilling life. But her dreams were shattered, following which she made a decision that inadvertently cost her her life. The aftermath of her demise, including the investigation, is also explored with the help of interviews with the victim’s loved ones.
How Did Brittany Steier Die?
Brittany Nicole Steier came into the lives of Betsy Goehrig and Joseph Steier on June 10, 1989. She was born in Stuart, Florida, in a close-knit household comprising supportive parents and siblings. Being the middle child of the family, Brittany grew up spending most of her time having fun alongside her loving sisters — the eldest, Christina “Christy” Bertera, and Kerri Kinard, who was the youngest. She was persistent, athletic, and zestful and served as a cheerleader for cheer teams at Treasure Coast Allstars, Orlando Flames, Pop Warner, and Brandon Allstars.
During her high school years, the ever-so-energetic Brittany enjoyed the time she devoted to playing basketball, softball, and football. Aside from being a huge football enthusiast, the artistic side of the Newsome High School graduate peeked through the T-shirts she designed and customized for her people on several occasions. The idyllic lives of the Steier family were shattered when Betsy and Joseph decided to separate. Soon after that, Brittany lived with her mother, who went on to marry Kevin Goehrig. Her father, Joseph, tied the knot with Linda. As a result of these engagements, Brittany and her sisters were blessed with step-siblings Megan Ireland, Bryan Perkins, and Jamielynn Jakubowski.
Brittany never lived in one place for long; she was a resident of St. Lucie, Florida and Orlando for over 5 years before setting up camp at her father’s place in Bradenton. She also lived at her sister Christy and her husband Jeff’s place in Crawfordville while obtaining her AA degree from Tallahassee Community College. As per her mother, the now-retired Regional Minister of Florida Disciples Regional Church, Dr. Betsy Goehrig, and elder sister, Christy, the fun-loving personality was also a “wanderer” and had traveled to several locations around the globe, ranging from religious and architectural landmarks in Israel and Greece to breezy destinations like Hawaii and the Caribbean.
She was married to Edward McNeil Harris Jr. AKA June. However, their kids — son, Dallas, and daughter, Karter — were her world. Before the birth of Dallas in 2018, she had sadly dealt with several miscarriages and also lost a beautiful son named Jade in 2015. In 2020, Brittany and her kids were staying at her father and stepmother’s place in Sarasota, Florida. Brittany had enough experience in the field of customer service and management. At the time of the incident, the 31-year-old was reportedly working at the Human Resources Department at Realtime Electronic Payments (REPAY).
Full of love and compassion, Brittany lived her life unabashedly and brought immense joy into the lives of everyone she came across. The life of every party, the 31-year-old loved to sing and dance her heart out. She was the light that brightened the corners of the lives of her loved ones. Unfortunately, that vibrant flame was extinguished forever in 2020. among friends and family, and always sought to inspire others. In July 2020, she was found dead with multiple gunshot wounds to her temple, while her daughter was covered in her blood beside her.
Who Killed Brittany Steier?
In the early months of 2020, Brittany and Harris’ marriage started deteriorating, with the latter threatening to kill her in Sarasota County, where the couple used to stay. Having moved out of the house just a week prior, Harris allegedly asked her to come over to watch a movie together. He asked her if she was ever going to come back, after which she tried to leave. Agitated at that, he allegedly pulled out a gun from his pocket, aimed at her, and moved around the house, intimidating her. For this, he was arrested on aggravated assault charges in February 2020, and after pleading not guilty to the charges, he was released three days later.
Just a few months later, on July 18, 2020, Brittany took one of her friends with her, to accompany her while she would pick up her kids from Harris’ place, as she was afraid to do so by herself. Upon reaching the Wakulla County house, Brittany got out of the car to pick up the 2-year-old and 1-year-old. Some argument ensued between the couple in the driveway, following which, the eye witness, the friend seated in the car, saw Harry take out his handgun or shotgun and shoot her twice at point-blank range, before moving to the front of the van and shooting her yet again, killing her. When he executed her, she had her one-year-old daughter on her hip.
Hurriedly, Brittany’s friend took just one of her kids in the car and drove off to the 31-year-old’s sister, Christy Bertera’s house, telling her and her husband, Jeff, all about what she had seen unfold in front of her eyes. Without wasting any time, Christy and Jeff rushed to the crime scene and picked up the child covered in blood, while the police were scouring the scene for evidence. Meanwhile, Harris was on the run and driving at a speed of about 100 mph through Crawfordville, afraid of facing the consequences of his actions. According to reports, he even ran one vehicle off the road.
But only a few hours later, Harris was intercepted by the police on Spring Creek Highway south of the intersection of Shadeville Road and indicted on charges of first-degree murder of his wife, Brittany, felony fleeing, child neglect, and possession of a firearm used by a convicted felon. Until the day of his trial, Harris was held in Wakulla County Jail. A couple of years later, in December 2022, his trial began and the jury only took two days to return with a guilty verdict for Edward McNeil Harris Jr. for the murder of his 31-year-old wife, Brittany Steier., and gave him a mandatory life in prison sentence along with three consecutive 15-year sentences.
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