Shivangi Sinha
In September 2015, police responded to a report of a suspicious odor in La Marque, Texas. When they arrived, they discovered a woman who had been repeatedly stabbed and was deceased. The victim was identified as Nita Moseley, and the autopsy revealed that she was nearly four months pregnant at the time of her death. The crime was both horrific and baffling. The episode ‘He Saved Her Life, Then Took It’ from ID’s ‘Evil Lives Here’ provides a detailed account of the murder and the subsequent capture of the perpetrator.
Nita Moseley’s Body Was Found Days After Her Death
In an article published by The Baytown Project, Betty Simons, the sister of Nita Moseley, recounted their tumultuous childhood. She described their home environment as highly unstable and claimed they endured abuse. The siblings frequently moved between shelters and foster homes, constantly navigating the child welfare system. Betty revealed that when Nita was just 14, she was placed in Chimney Rock in Houston, a CPS facility designed for adolescent girls. Betty further alleged that Nita was subjected to trafficking from the age of 14 until she reached 21.
Nita Moseley gave birth to a son, Chance Michael Moseley, at the age of 17 with one of her alleged traffickers. Despite trying to escape her challenging circumstances, she initially lost custody of Chance. The boy was temporarily placed with their alleged abusers before being transferred to Nita’s alleged trafficker. Betty Simons revealed that even while grappling with drug dependency and limited resources, Nita remained determined to reunite with her son. Her perseverance paid off in December 2014 when she successfully regained custody of Chance, marking a significant victory for her amidst her struggles.
Nita Moseley seemed to be making positive strides as she prepared to expand her family. By September 2015, she was 17 weeks pregnant and had settled into a house on the 2800 block of Fannin in La Marque, Texas. However, on September 26, neighbors alerted the police to a possible death at the residence. Upon arrival, authorities discovered that Nita had been brutally murdered a few days before. She had suffered 57 stab wounds to her back and neck, and the autopsy revealed that she had also been strangled. The severity of the crime underscored the urgency for the police to apprehend the perpetrator swiftly.
Nita Moseley’s Killer Fled the House After the Murder
The police initially focused on assessing Nita’s belongings to rule out the possibility of a burglary gone wrong. They discovered that a car she had borrowed was missing, along with her 14-year-old son, Chance Moseley. Other departments promptly issued an alert to locate Chance and gather more information. Additionally, traces of blood found in the bathroom suggested that the perpetrator had taken a shower to clean up before fleeing. Based on their experience, investigators speculated that the killer must have been someone familiar enough with Nita’s home to have spent considerable time there after the murder. They began examining those close to Nita for potential leads.
On September 27, the police located Chance in Houston, Texas, and brought him in for questioning. It wasn’t long before he confessed to the murder of his mother. While he didn’t provide a clear motive, he claimed he wanted to end her suffering. Chance admitted to stabbing her and, when that didn’t suffice, using an electrical cord to strangle her. After the murder, he took a shower and then drove to a friend’s house, where he smoked marijuana before heading to another friend’s place in Seguin, Texas. He also confessed to removing the SIM card from his mother’s phone to prevent his whereabouts from being tracked.
Nita’s sister alleged that by the time Chance returned home, he was already showing signs of violent behavior and struggling with substance dependency. She mentioned that Nita was trying to better her son’s life and assist him. According to Betty, on the day of the murder, Nita had asked Chance to help her paint a cabinet, which led to an argument and ultimately resulted in the brutal killing.
Chance Moseley is Being Held in a Texas Prison Today
In 2016, a juvenile court ruled that due to the severity of the crime, Chance should be tried as an adult, leading to his indictment on charges of capital murder. His trial began in February 2020, when his defense team argued that he had no intention of harming his mother’s unborn child. They asserted that because his goal was not to kill the baby, his charge should be reduced to something less severe. They supported this claim with the coroner’s report, which indicated that Nita had been stabbed everywhere except her abdomen. In response, the prosecution argued that the absence of stab wounds on her belly was a testament to Nita’s protective instinct, even in death.
Based on the evidence and the nature of the crime, Chance was found guilty of capital murder. While a conviction for capital murder typically results in a life sentence without parole, Chance’s circumstances were unique. Being only 14 years old at the time of the murder, he received a life sentence with the possibility of parole after 40 years, following legal guidelines. In 2022, Chance appealed his sentence, but the appeal was denied. Now 23 years old, he is serving his sentence at the Ferguson Unit in Texas and will be eligible for parole in 2055, which remains a long way off.
