Kristin Ramsey, 53, is charged with first-degree murder in the death of Ashley Okland. (West Des Moines Police)
(WEST DES MOINES, Iowa) — The woman accused in the 2011 cold case murder of an Iowa real estate agent was allegedly spotted by a witness outside the crime scene just after the fatal gunshots, according to new court documents.
Kristin Ramsey, 53, was arrested last month for first-degree murder in the April 8, 2011, death of Ashley Okland, according to the West Des Moines police.
Okland was working at a model townhouse when she was shot twice at close range: once in the chest and once in the face, according to court documents.
A woman who was in the neighboring townhome said shortly after 2 p.m. she heard two loud noises a few seconds apart that sounded like “thuds,” prosecutors said Wednesday in a filing regarding Ramsey’s motion for bond. Authorities believe those “thuds” were gunshots, prosecutors said.
The witness said after hearing the noises she saw Ramsey “outside the front door of the model home,” the court documents said. “Shortly after that the witness observed the Defendant from the second floor window of her home pacing by her vehicle on her cell phone.”
The witness then said she saw Ramsey back her car up quickly and “in an erratic manner,” and then drive away, the documents said.
“Concerned that something was wrong, the witness entered the model home and discovered Ms. Okland unresponsive on the ground,” according to the court documents. The witness called 911, and “shortly after she left the Defendant returned to the area of the townhome,” the documents said.
While police have yet to release a potential motive, court documents said the model home was owned by the same company for which Ramsey was a sales manager.
Ramsey was interviewed multiple times and has allegedly given “conflicting versions of her whereabouts and other events” from that day, according to the court documents. Her statements themselves conflict, and they also conflict with other witness statements, the documents said.
Ramsey has not entered a plea and is due in court on Friday for a bail hearing. Her attorneys did not immediately respond to ABC News’ request for comment.
(WASHINGTON) — First lady Melania Trump on Thursday denied having any knowledge of the late sex offender Jeffrey Epstein‘s crimes, saying, “The lies linking me with the disgraceful Jeffrey Epstein need to end today.”
The first lady’s office and the White House did not immediately respond to ABC News when asked what prompted her to publicly speak out about the issue.
President Donald Trump said he did not know the first lady was going to make a statement today about Epstein, according to an MS Now reporter who said she had a brief phone interview with the president.
At the beginning of her remarks, Melania Trump said, “The individuals lying about me are devoid of ethical standards, humility and respect.” She did not elaborate who those individuals were.
She went on to say that she never had a relationship with Epstein or Ghislaine Maxwell, Epstein’s co-conspirator who was convicted of sex trafficking.
“I never had a relationship with Epstein or his accomplice, Maxwell. My email reply to Maxwell cannot be categorized as anything more than casual correspondence. My polite reply to her email doesn’t amount to anything more than a trivial note,” she said.
“I am not Epstein’s victim. Epstein did not introduce me to Donald Trump. I met my husband by chance at a New York City party in 1998. This initial encounter with my husband is documented in detail in my book ‘Melania,'” she added.
“The first time I crossed paths with Epstein was in the year 2000 at an event Donald and I attended together. At the time, I had never met Epstein and had no knowledge of his criminal undertakings,” she said.
The first lady said that fake images and stories about her and Epstein have circulated for years, prompting her to come out and address them.
“Be cautious about what you believe,” she said. “These images and stories are completely false.”
The first lady also said that she had never been legally accused of any crimes with Epstein and that she is not featured in any of court documents, depositions or victim statements related to Epstein.
“I have never been legally accused or convicted of a crime in connection with Epstein,” she said.
Melania Trump said that several individuals and companies have been forced to retract claims about her and Epstein.
The first lady called for public hearings into the Epstein controversy and to allow survivors to testify before Congress.
“Now is the time for Congress to act. Epstein was not alone. Several prominent male executives resigned from their powerful positions after this matter became widely politicized. Of course, this doesn’t amount to guilt, but we still must work openly and transparently to uncover the truth,” she said.
“Give these victims their opportunity to testify under oath in front of Congress with the power of sworn testimony, each and every woman should have her day to tell her story in public, if she wishes, and then her testimony should be permanently entered into the Congressional Record,” she said. “Then, and only then we will have the truth.
In February, Rep. Robert Garcia, the ranking Democrat on the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, indicated on CNN that President Donald Trump and Melania Trump would be subpoenaed to testify in front of the committee about their ties to Epstein if Democrats take the majority in November — similar to how former President Bill Clinton and former first lady Hillary Clinton were. The Clintons testified before the Oversight Committee in February.
Pressed on whether the committee would bring in Melania Trump, Garcia said: “We’re going to have a very long list of people, anyone that we believe had a relationship with Jeffrey Epstein — on Day One will have a subpoena from our committee.”
Following the first lady’s announcement on Thursday, Garcia echoed the call for a public hearing.
“We agree with First Lady Melania Trump’s call for a public hearing with the survivors of Jeffrey Epstein. We encourage Chairman [James] Comer to respond to the First Lady’s request and schedule a public hearing immediately,” he said in a post on X.
Oversight Democrats have a “shadow” hearing scheduled for May with Epstein survivors in Palm Beach, Florida, where the president’s Mar-a-Lago club is located.
“Becoming” single artwork. (LG | ZOID | Virgin Music Group)
Billy Idol guitarist Billy Morrison has debuted the video for “Becoming,” his collaborative single with Godsmack frontman Sully Erna and Extreme shredder Nuno Bettencourt.
The clip, which premiered via RevolverMag.com, finds Morrison, Erna and Bettencourt performing together under a downpour of rain.
“What you can’t see in the video is the humidity!” Morrison tells Revolver. “It was over 90 degrees outside and we were locked in a steel room with constant running water for 5 hours.”
“It was like playing in an Ecuadorian Rain forest,” he adds. “It played havoc with the hair!”
“Becoming” will appear on Morrison’s upcoming album, Hollow, due out in August. The record will also include guest spots from Marilyn Manson, The Offspring’s Dexter Holland, Guns N’ Roses bassist Duff McKagan, Billy Idol’s Steve Stevens and rappers Chuck D, B-Real and DMC.
Hollow follows Morrison’s 2024 album, The Morrison Project, which includes the Ozzy Osbourne collaboration “Crack Cocaine.”
‘Romanticize the Dive’ album artwork. (Metric Music International/Thirty Tigers)
Metric is headed to the roller rink to celebrate the release of their new album, Romanticize the Dive.
The band has announced a roller disco party at Xanadu Roller Arts in Brooklyn, New York, taking place April 23, the day before Romanticize the Dive drops on April 24.
Metric will be filming a video for the Romanticize the Dive track “Crush Forever” at the event, which will also feature a playback of the whole album.
“Show up in your finest indie sleaze attire and get ready to roll,” Metric says.
Bruce Springsteen on Jimmy Kimmel Live!/(Disney/Randy Holmes)
Bruce Springsteen is one of several musicians to make Forbes’ new Self-Made 250 list, spotlighting influential Americans in entertainment, business, sports and more who have built their own success.
The list is being released in conjunction with America’s 250th anniversary, with the mag noting that its ranking “encompasses financial success, obstacles overcome and enduring impact.”
With that in mind, The Boss lands at #60 on the list, with Barbra Streisand at #65, Stevie Wonder at #69 and Cher at #130.
Oprah Winfrey tops the list, which also includes such famous celebrities as Dolly Parton, Jay-Z, Dr. Dre, Mariah Carey, Arnold Schwarzenegger, Whoopi Goldberg, Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson, Leonardo DiCaprio, Viola Davis, Brandi Carlile, Tracy Chapman and Eminem.
Darius Rucker returns to the Grand Ole Opry April 17 for a show that includes Vince Gill.
You can check out Flatland Cavalry’s Wednesday TV debut on The Kelly Clarkson Show on YouTube. The band’s nominated for group of the year at the May 17 Academy of Country Music Awards.
Dolly Parton comes in at #7 on Forbes‘ rundown of The Greatest Self-Made Americans. Oprah Winfrey is #1. Dolly’s the highest-ranking non-billionaire on the list.
Mariah Carey is honored at the 2026 MusiCares Person of the Year gala on Jan. 30, 2026 in Los Angeles. (Lester Cohen/Getty Images for The Recording Academy)
All Mariah Carey wants for Christmas is someone to buy her New York City home — probably.
The New York Post reports that Mariah has listed the penthouse she owns in New York City’s Tribeca neighborhood for $27 million. The penthouse stretches over the 16th, 17th and 18th levels of the building, with just over 12,700 square feet of living space, and has 360-degree views over the Hudson River and the Manhattan skyline.
Mariah created the property by spending about $9 million for two separate units and then cobbling them together. She hired famed decorator Mario Buatta to design the property, and he included her favorite symbol, the butterfly, everywhere, from the tiles in the kitchen to the handles on the bedroom cabinets.
This is the property that fans saw on Mariah’s legendary 2002 episode of MTV’s Cribs. In 2022, she invited Booking.com customers in for a holiday photoshoot. You can see photos of the property at StreetEasy.com.
Foreigner is set to release a live performance of their iconic track “Feels Like the First Time” on April 17.
The song will be the first single from their forthcoming album, In the Eye of the Storm, the soundtrack to their 50th anniversary concert film, which was shot in New York on Ellis Island and Brooklyn’s DUMBO House. The concert, filmed in the shadow of the Statue of Liberty, had the band pushing through with their show despite torrential rain, thunder and lightning that hit New York.
The new recording of “Feels Like the First Time” features three Foreigner frontmen: original singer Lou Gramm, 20-year Foreigner singer Kelly Hansen and current lead singer Luis Maldonado. The song’s video will feature exclusive footage from the concert film.
The In the Eye of the Storm soundtrack will be released July 17, with the concert film expected to hit theaters sometime this summer.
The song’s release coincides with the opening of Feels Like The First Time – The Foreigner Musical at the Little Theater on Long Island University’s Post campus. The show runs April 17-26 and tickets are on sale now.
Next up, Foreigner will play a string of Florida shows with original frontman Lou Gramm starting April 17. They’ll also hit the road this summer with Lynyrd Skynyrd on the Double Trouble Double Vision Tour, which starts July 23 in Atlanta.
The new single and video are out now. In the surreal clip for the hyperpop song, the women show off their new hairdos and a variety of colorful outfits while cavorting with stuffed animals and going crazy in the club. And of course, they also drink tea with their pinkies up.
However, judging from the Instagramcomments, fans are upset that Manon Bannerman, who went on “temporary hiatus from the group” to “focus on her health and wellbeing,” is not in the video. What’s more, she won’t be joining the rest of the women for their Coachella performance Friday, according to The Korea Herald.
Earlier in April Manon said in a message to fans that she was “happy and healthy” and that she’d been having “positive conversations” with the group’s label.
As for “Pinky Up,” it’s apparently about having fun before the world ends.
“One day, soon, the world’s gonna end/ I’m gonna make out with my new bestest friends/ I wanna live large, right before it all burns down,” they sing. “I wanna get high right before we’re in the ground/ Ooh, we’re screaming from cloud nine/ No one can touch us if they tried.”
61st ACM Awards Album of the Year nominees (Academy of Country Music)
The 61st Academy of Country Music Awards promise plenty of firsts, in an unprecedented year where four women came out on top as the most-nominated artists.
With nine nominations, Megan Moroney leads the way as a first-time contender for both entertainer and artist-songwriter of the year.
Reigning ACM new female artist Ella Langley’s seven nods include her first in the artist-songwriter category, as well.
Both Zach Top and Riley Green are in the running for male artist of the year for the first time, with Riley also getting his first chances to win artist-songwriter and album for Don’t Mind If I Do (Deluxe).
Competing against him is Parker McCollum, a first-time nominee for his self-titled album. The 2021 new male artist of the year and 2023 visual media winner for “Burn It Down” could pick up this third ACM trophy in 2026.
You can tune in to see who wins May 17 when the 61st ACMs stream live on Prime Video from MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas.
