Julia Egler pleaded guilty to two second-degree murder counts in a negotiated agreement stemming from the 2024 Palm Bay killings.
VIERA, Fla. — An 18-year-old Florida woman has been sentenced to 50 years in state prison after pleading guilty to killing her mother and her mother’s boyfriend when she was 16, ending a case that began with a 911 call about an alleged home intruder.
Julia G. Egler pleaded guilty Sept. 25 to two counts of second-degree murder in the deaths of her mother, Kelley McCollom, 38, and McCollom’s boyfriend, Matthew Szejnrok, 22, according to Florida’s 18th Judicial Circuit State Attorney’s Office. Prosecutors said the plea and sentence were part of a negotiated agreement approved by surviving family members. Egler had originally been indicted on two counts of first-degree premeditated murder and was prosecuted as an adult.
The killings occurred July 7, 2024, at the family’s home in Palm Bay. Police said Egler initially called 911 and reported that an unknown man had broken into the residence while she hid in a bedroom. Officers who arrived at the home found McCollom and Szejnrok dead. Investigators soon found evidence they said did not fit Egler’s account, including no sign of the type of forced entry she had described.
According to a Palm Bay Police Department probable cause affidavit, investigators reviewed surveillance footage and physical evidence from the home before questioning Egler further. Police said she eventually admitted that her original account of an intruder was false. The affidavit says Egler told investigators she had taken a revolver and ammunition from her mother’s bedroom and waited inside the house for McCollom and Szejnrok to return.
Police said Egler told investigators that when the pair arrived, she greeted them by saying, “Welcome home,” before opening fire. Authorities said Szejnrok was later attacked with a knife after the gun ran out of ammunition. Prosecutors described the killings in court records and their sentencing announcement, but news accounts have avoided reproducing unnecessary graphic details of the crime scene.
Investigators said Egler then tried to make the home appear as though someone had broken in. According to the probable cause affidavit, police found evidence that included surveillance footage showing no outside activity around the home during the relevant period and physical evidence that detectives said contradicted the break-in story. Egler was taken to the Palm Bay Police Department for questioning and was arrested after giving a statement to detectives.
A Brevard County grand jury indicted Egler on two counts of first-degree premeditated murder in August 2024. The case did not go to trial because prosecutors and the defense reached an agreement that amended the charges to second-degree murder. Assistant State Attorney Kerri Fowler said after the plea that the agreement provided “resolution and finality” for the victims’ family. Circuit Judge Michelle Naberhaus approved the negotiated sentence.
At sentencing, prosecutors said Egler apologized and asked the court for mercy. The State Attorney’s Office said she completed high school while being held in pretrial detention. Under the sentence, Egler must serve at least 25 years before she becomes eligible for a sentence review under Florida law because she was a juvenile at the time of the killings.
The sentence also requires Egler to undergo a mental health evaluation after her prison term and serve 20 years of supervised probation. The state attorney’s office said members of the victims’ families approved the plea arrangement before it was presented to the court. A victim impact statement from Szejnrok’s brother described the lasting effect the killings have had on his family and their connection to the Palm Bay neighborhood where the deaths occurred.
Police records cited disagreements within the household as part of the circumstances investigators examined after Egler’s confession. Authorities said those conflicts included disagreements between Egler and her mother as well as Egler’s objections to her mother’s relationship. Those details formed part of the police investigation, but the plea agreement meant a jury was not asked to determine a motive at trial.
Egler is now serving the 50-year state prison sentence imposed under the negotiated agreement. She may seek a sentence review after completing the required minimum 25 years, but any future change would depend on the legal standards in effect and a court’s review at that time.
Author note: Last updated October 1, 2026.