Deaf Michigan man charged with first-degree murder of girlfriend
**Corrections/Clarifications:
1) Erik Fry was arrested on Monday, not Tuesday. His court case for his domestic violence charge was supposed to take place on Tuesday.
2) The couple was in a relationship for thirteen years, not five.
On Tuesday in Warren, Michigan, a deaf man named Erik Fry was charged with first-degree murder in connection with the death of his hearing girlfriend, Amanda Harvey.
Local news said Fry called 911 on Tuesday to report that he just killed a woman. When police arrived at the home, they found Harvey dead with wounds to her head. Police said Fry used a hammer as a weapon.
The Warren Police Department told me that Fry appeared in court yesterday on his murder charge and pleaded not guilty. He is now jailed with no bond, which means he will stay in custody indefinitely as his case makes its way through court.
Warren Police said Fry had four prior domestic violence charges and recently got out of jail on one of the charges on a $500 personal bond.
Local news said Fry was supposed to appear in court on Tuesday – the same day as his arrest – on a domestic violence charge that involved Harvey. But that case has now turned into a murder case.
The Warren Police Commissioner said the “entire incident is tragically regrettable.”
I was able to reach out to Harvey’s mother, Nancy Elliott, using a VRS call. Nancy said she was very shocked and is still processing it. The mother said police told her that Harvey was dead for several days. The last time Nancy talked with her daughter was on Thanksgiving day. Nancy said, “Evil came to town.” She said Harvey was a simple person who was silly and loved animals. She said Harvey would adopt cats from the street and give them to her friends. Nancy said the couple struggled with drug addiction and that it “destroyed everything.” Harvey was the mother to three children.
I asked Nancy about the previous charges of domestic violence against Fry. She said Fry was not supposed to get out of jail the last time. Nancy said there were concerns from Harvey’s friends about her welfare and that police did show up at the home on Sunday and Monday, but they were only able to knock on the door and left after there was no response.
Nancy said she’s set up a GoFundMe and hopes to have support so she can bring her body to her home state of New York.
Fry was a student at the Michigan School for the Deaf.
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A deaf woman from Michigan named Tina Whitehurst told me that she was a friend of Harvey and was aware that there was an abusive relationship going on and did have serious concerns about her safety. She said the couple was together for about five years. Tina said that Harvey was a fluent ASL signer and that she learned it from Fry. Tina said she went to the crime scene yesterday after the police left and was very creeped out by the scene.
I asked Nancy, the mother, if she wanted to share anything with the public. She said, “Get out. If you are in a situation like that, you need to leave.”
The link to the GoFundMe is in the transcript.
GoFundMe: https://www.gofundme.com/f/justice-for-amanda-and-bring-her-home
https://www.macombdaily.com/2021/11/30/suspect-identified-in-warren-murder/