Cheerleader Shot Dead, Left In Woods by 15-Year-Old

Here’s a revised version of the text with improved grammar and clarity:

Savannah Copeland cheered at Powell Middle School’s first basketball game of the year. Her father, Michael Copeland, got up early before the rest of the family and was pulling into work when he received a call from his wife, Amanda. She told him that Savannah was not in her bed when they woke up, and she couldn’t find her. Savannah was missing.

Michael rushed back home to search for their daughter. Using the Life360 app, which tracks phone movements, they were able to see the path Savannah had taken and the time of her movements. The app indicated that she went missing between midnight and 2:30 a.m., but it did not show her exact location. Starting in the general area, the family went door-to-door asking if anyone had a doorbell camera that might have recorded the direction Savannah was heading, but they had no luck.

They contacted the Knox County Sheriff’s Office, and deputies began searching for Savannah Copeland. Nearly 12 hours after the deputies were called in, Michael Copeland heard sirens and immediately feared they were for Savannah. A teenager walking along a popular trail behind a public swimming pool in the Broadacres neighborhood of Powell found Savannah’s lifeless body.

Deputies arrived at the scene and secured the area. Detectives from Major Crimes and Juvenile Crimes, along with the Knox County Medical Examiner, began collecting evidence and processing the scene. Savannah Copeland had been stabbed multiple times with what appeared to be a small knife and was left to bleed to death alone on the dirt trail.

JOINING NANCY GRACE TODAY:

Philip Dubé  – Court-Appointed Counsel, Los Angeles County Public Defenders: Criminal & Constitutional Law; Forensics & Mental Health Advocacy
Dr. Jorey Krawczyn – Police Psychologist, Adjunct Faculty with Saint Leo University; Research Consultant with Blue Wall Institute, Author: Operation S.O.S. – Practical Recommendations to Help “Stop Officer Suicide”
Kendall Crowns
Dr. Kendall Crowns – Chief Medical Examiner Tarrant County (Ft Worth), Lecturer: Burnett School of Medicine at TCU (Texas Christian University)
Lauren Conlin – Investigative Journalist, Host of The Outlier Podcast, and also Host of “Corruption: What Happened to Grant Solomon; X- @Conlin_Lauren/ Instagram- @LaurenEmilyConlin/YouTube- @LaurenConlin4

Additional Guest

  1. Barry Hutchison Sr. – Former Law Enforcement, Owner & Chief Investigator for Barry & Associates Investigative Services LLC

“Crime Stories with Nancy Grace” on Fox Nation is also a national radio show on SiriusXM channel 111, airing for two hours daily starting at 12 p.m. EST. You can also subscribe and download the daily podcasts at iHeart Podcasts.

[Feature Photo: Savannah Copeland/Handout]

You May Also Like

‘Reject this invitation to subvert our constitutional orders’: Conservatives urge SCOTUS to stonewall Trump’s bid to stay injunction in mass deportations case

President Donald Trump speaks to reporters before signing an executive order in…

‘A part of her is out there’: Volunteers Search for Dismembered Remains of 14-year-old Indigenous Girl Emily Pike

A volunteer group in Arizona plans to search for the additional remains…

No monkey business! Moment thieves steal huge gorilla statue from indoor market before police swoop just minutes later

By ELIZABETH HAIGH Published: 08:29 EDT, 2 April 2025 | Updated: 08:42…

Dad left 3 young kids at McDonald’s playground, claimed he was going to job interview, cops say

Inset: Chris Louis (Augusta Police Dept.). Background: The McDonald’s where Louis allegedly…