Former middle school principal, Cornelius M. Green, 42, has been handed two consecutive life sentences in federal prison for masterminding a murder-for-hire scheme, resulting in the deaths of Jocelyn Peters, a 30-year-old schoolteacher, and her unborn child, Micah Leigh. The sentencing was carried out on June 25, 2024, at the U.S. District Court in St. Louis, Missouri.
Despite being married, Green had a romantic relationship with Peters, who was carrying his child. He enlisted the help of his old friend, Phillip J. Cutler, to commit the murder. Green misappropriated $2,500 from a fundraiser at Carr Lane Visual and Performing Arts Middle School, where he worked, to pay Cutler for the crime. The payment was dispatched to Cutler via UPS, using the middle school as the return address.
Cutler utilized Green’s car to get to Peters’ apartment on West Pine Boulevard in St. Louis, Missouri on March 24, 2016. He gained entry to the apartment using keys supplied by Green and shot Peters in the head while she was sleeping. He used a potato as an improvised silencer for the gunshot. It was later disclosed by prosecutors that Green had purposely ensured the presence of potatoes in the apartment by shopping with Peters days before her murder.
To establish an alibi, Green travelled to Chicago on an Amtrak train on the day of the murder, leaving Cutler with his car and the keys to Peters’ flat. Green then contacted Peters’ mother after the murder, requesting her to check up on her daughter, fully aware of the tragedy she would discover. “The depravity of asking a mother to go find Jocelyn’s body, knowing she was dead, can’t be matched,” stated Assistant U.S. Attorney Tiffany Becker at the sentencing hearing.
The investigation uncovered an earlier attempt by Green to terminate Peters’ pregnancy through secret poisoning. When this attempt failed, he resorted to murder. Peters was oblivious to Green’s marital status and his multiple affairs. Federal prosecutors highlighted that Peters was also unaware of Green’s attempts to poison her.
Several individuals spoke during the sentencing, expressing their sorrow and anger. Peters’ mother voiced her anger at Green, who was supposed to act as a protector, but became her daughter’s murderer. “All she ever did was love him,” she said, highlighting that Peters “loved that baby so much.”
Dr. Nicole Conaway, the principal at Mann Elementary School, when Peters taught there, also gave her statement. She underscored the impact of Peters’ murder on her students and fellow staff. “He literally stole from children to pay for killing his own child,” said Conaway. “I will never forget the pain in their eyes. This trauma will follow them for the rest of their lives.”
Green admitted his guilt in February to one count of conspiracy to commit murder-for-hire and murder-for-hire. Cutler, found guilty on the same charges, also received two consecutive life sentences. Both men are set to spend the rest of their lives in federal prison.
The crime’s aftermath has left a profound impact on Peters’ family and the school community. “Jocelyn had a light around her at all times,” said Dedra Peters, Jocelyn’s cousin. “She made a lasting impression on everyone she met.” The loss of Peters has left her family feeling “empty and heartbroken.”
