True Crime/Paranormal/Conspiracy Stories Part VI

Murder of Adrianne Jones

Diane Michelle Zamora (born January 21, 1978) is a former United States Naval Academy midshipman and convicted murderer who, in 1995, murdered Adrianne Jessica Jones, who she believed was a romantic rival for her ex-fiancé and accomplice, David Graham. Graham had confessed to giving Adrianne a ride home and having sex with her one month earlier, leading an enraged Zamora to demand that he kill Jones. In the early morning of December 4, 1995, Graham picked up Jones in Zamora's car while she hid in the hatchback. They went to a remote location and got into a struggle, at which point Zamora hit Jones over the head with weights and Graham shot her twice after she broke away from them.

Following the murder, Graham attended the United States Air Force Academy in Colorado Springs, Colorado, while Zamora attended the United States Naval Academy in Annapolis, Maryland. Zamora confessed the crime to her roommates, which ultimately led to notification of the local police in Texas, where the murder occurred. Both Zamora and Graham were arrested on September 6, 1996. They were both convicted in separate trials and are currently serving life sentences. Zamora's attorney filed an appeal in 2005, stating that the prosecution withheld the information that Graham did not give Jones a ride after the meet, and probably did not have sex with Jones.

Murder of Adrianne Jones

Background

Diane Zamora and David Graham met at a Civil Air Patrol meeting at Spinks Airport, near Crowley, Texas, when they were both aged 14. Zamora had wanted to be an astronaut and Graham wanted to be a pilot. The two began dating about four years later in August 1995, when they were both high school honor students. Zamora was a student at Crowley High School, and Graham was a student at Mansfield High School. About a month after they began dating, Zamora and Graham announced their engagement to their families. They planned to marry after their college graduation.

Graham went to school with Adrianne Jones, who was on the cross-country track team with him. Jones, known to her acquaintances as A.J., was also an honor student who planned to attend Texas A&M University and become a behavioral analyst. Jones's family included her mother Linda, her father Bill, and two brothers. Graham claimed that on November 4, 1995, he had given Jones a ride home from a regional meet and that during the ride he stopped the car to have sex with her. During her confession to police, Zamora said that she believed it was this night when Graham came over to her house, carrying a stuffed animal and having "this look in his eyes that was horrible, he looked so scared."

In Zamora's confession, she stated that about a month later she questioned Graham about other girls, including Jones. They got into a fight when he pressed her to study for the SAT. Graham then said that he had not had sex only with her, but also had sex with Jones. Zamora began screaming and hitting her head against the floor, shouting, "Kill her, kill her!" She said that beginning December 2, they tried to get in touch with Jones, and Graham continually tried to calm Zamora down. Graham claimed in 2008 that Zamora told him that she would kill herself or leave him if he did not kill Jones.

Although they were goal-driven and intelligent, Zamora and Graham each had issues "beneath the surface" that were reflected at times in their behavior. Court TV said that "from a surface view, no one would have expected that Diane and David would become a lethal combination. Although they both continued to advance in the military, their single-minded quests for recognition covered up deep-rooted problems leading to obsession and murder."

The crime

According to Graham, he and Zamora planned to kill Jones and have sex with her dead body and then put her in a lake with weights tied to her body. Graham called Jones on the night of December 3, 1995, and arranged to drive her to Joe Pool Lake while Zamora hid in the hatchback of her car. Zamora said in her confession that they arrived at a spot by the lake after 12:30 a.m. on December 4, 1995. She said that when Graham stopped the car she came out from the hatchback and asked Jones whether she had had sex with Graham. She claimed Jones said that she had, but hadn't enjoyed it because she felt guilty. Zamora became enraged. Zamora and Graham both said in their confessions that they got into a struggle, Zamora hit Jones on the head with the weights, and Jones fought back. She got out of the car and ran into a field. Graham shot her twice with a 9mm handgun after she fell. According to Zamora's confession, when he returned to the car, Graham said, "I love you, baby, do you believe me now?" Shortly thereafter, Zamora asked what they had just done, to which David answered, "I don't know. I can't believe we just did that". They cleaned up and/or disposed of their bloody clothes and went home. Zamora and Graham each said that she then cleaned her car that had blood in it, and that at that time Graham was vomiting. She wrote in her calendar for the day, "Adrianne 01:38 a.m."