Viswa Vanapalli
In 2010, a teenager’s sudden disappearance in Clayton County, Georgia, ended in tragedy when her remains were found in a wooded area a few months later. But in a frustrating development, there wasn’t a lot of evidence to aid the authorities in finding her killer. Investigation Discovery’s ‘The Truth in the Diary’ as well as ‘How I Caught My Killer: I Found Candice’s Diary…’ chronicles how Candice Parchment’s murder was solved because of an unlikely discovery her mom made more than a year after the teenager’s death.
How Did Candice Parchment Die?
Candice Parchment was a 15-year-old living in Clayton County, Georgia, with her mother, Caffian Hyatt. She was an aspiring writer attending Forest Park High School, had a bright smile, was extremely amiable, and by all means, had a promising life ahead of her. Candice was close to her mother following their emigration from Jamaica for a different, much better life, so it was uncharacteristic for her to leave home on April 28, 2010, suddenly. Caffian actually couldn’t get a hold of her daughter despite trying multiple times over a period of six hours, driving her to report her missing.
However, Caffian did receive two texts from Candice’s phone in the days to follow saying that she was in Tennessee and okay. Though the mother didn’t believe her daughter sent these texts owing to the way they were written and continued to search for her. In November 2010, this search ended when authorities found Candice’s remains under an old mattress in a wooded area close to her home. The autopsy revealed that she was stabbed and strangled to death.
Who Killed Candice Parchment?
Over three months before Candice’s disappearance, she had survived an attempted sexual assault on her. On January 5, 2010, Caffian was driving around looking for her daughter after the youngster had snaked out when she pulled into an abandoned house’s driveway, only to see Candice rushing out. Back then, the teen only told her mother she was attacked but didn’t tell her who it was. Despite Caffian’s insistence, Candice didn’t go to the police about it either. Sadly, more than three months later, she suddenly disappeared, with her body being found in November 2010.
What’s worse, though, is that the case didn’t move forward until Caffian found Candice’s diary while prepping for a move in October 2011. In an entry from that fateful January day, the 15-year-old had identified her attackers as Marshae Hickman and Jermaine Robinson, two teenagers from the area. According to the diary, “Jermaine hit her in the head with a rake and Marsha blocked the door” to prevent her from running away. Jermaine then choked Candice while Marshae groped the young girl.
Around the time of the attack, Caffian had called Candice and spoke for a bit; she had also come by the abandoned house, leading to the two men panicking and leaving. It turned out, Marshae had also threatened to kill the teen if she told anyone what’d happened. Upon learning this information, the authorities looked into the duo and realized Marshae was already in custody on an unrelated burglary charge. When questioned, he initially denied being involved in the matter, yet later admitted to placing his arms around Candice’s neck and squeezing until she went limp.
While there was evidence that Candice had also been stabbed, Marshae only confessed to strangling her. Though he did claim to have blacked out when it happened before adding he’d returned to the place several times to confirm her body wasn’t found. The remains were actually located near the apartment complex where Marshae lived, and Jermaine later stated that he told him to hit Candice and choke her, threatening to kill them both if he didn’t comply.
Marshae Hickman is Behind Bars, While Jermaine Robinson Was Released
At Marshae Hickman’s trial in April 2013, he apologized for what happened in a letter by stating, “I am sorry for what I have done. I was in the wrong state of mind, and this haunts me every day. I wish I could bring her back.” Marshae, then 21, was eventually found guilty on the charges of malice murder, felony murder, false imprisonment, attempted rape, involuntary manslaughter, aggravated assault, aggravated battery, and concealing a death.
The defense had claimed Jermaine was likely the killer because he knew more about the crime, especially as he’d once talked about Candice being stabbed. Furthermore, Marshae’s attorney claimed her client was coerced into a confession and interrogated for extremely long hours. Yet, in the end, the evidence spoke for itself, leading to him getting sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole plus an additional 20 years.
Marshae was even handed down a concurrent 50-year sentence for the attack and attempted rape. On the other hand, Jermaine pleaded guilty to aggravated assault and testified against Marshae in exchange for ten years behind bars. From what we can tell, the latter has since been released, kept himself out of trouble, and maintained a low profile, with his last known location being Forest Park, Georgia. Coming to Marshae, he is currently serving his sentence at Telfair State Prison in McRae-Helena, Georgia, where he’s expected to remain for the rest of his natural life.
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