Murder of Alex Woodworth

On March 22, 2018, 24-year-old Alex Woodworth was killed in Spring Brook, Wisconsin, near Eau Claire. His ex-girlfriend, 20-year-old Ezra McCandless, had unexpectedly appeared at Racy D'Lenes Coffee Lounge in Eau Claire, where Woodworth was present, and was captured on the coffee shop's security footage. McCandless's ex-boyfriend, Jason Mengel, later said she had seemed agitated. She subsequently went to Woodworth's house, saying she needed to return some items.

Concerned about McCandless's behavior, Mengel rode to Woodworth's house and found her car outside with the engine running. While he waited, a passerby who thought his pacing looked suspicious called police. After about 45 minutes, Mengel entered the house and found McCandless and Woodworth talking. Police who arrived spoke with Woodworth outside his house near McCandless's car; officers and Mengel left around 1:05 p.m., satisfied there was no problem. This was the last time Mengel saw Woodworth alive.

Around 4:15 p.m. that day, McCandless arrived at a dairy farm in Spring Brook belonging to Don Sipple, covered in mud, blood, and bruises, and barefoot, asking for a doctor and claiming she had been assaulted. At the hospital, she asked for Mengel and initially told officers, paramedics, and hospital staff she could not remember what had happened. Woodworth could not be located that night. The next day, officers investigating the farm found footprints in the mud and discovered Woodworth's body hanging out of the back of McCandless's car on a dirt road near the farmhouse. He had suffered 16 stab wounds to his head, neck, groin, and torso.

McCandless was arrested on April 6, 2018, and charged with first-degree intentional homicide. Her trial began October 15, 2019, at the Dunn County Judicial Center. Prosecutors highlighted inconsistencies between her initial statements and her trial testimony, including a claim that Woodworth had carved the word "BOY" into her arm, which she later admitted she had done herself. The knife used was traced to her father's house; her father testified he had previously given her knives. The treating ER physician testified her knife wounds appeared consistent with self-inflicted injuries. Prosecutors argued McCandless took Woodworth's phone from the scene and had attacked him to prevent him from interfering with her rekindling a relationship with Mengel. The defense argued Woodworth had attacked her and she acted in self-defense.

On November 1, 2019, McCandless was convicted of first-degree intentional homicide. On February 7, 2020, she was sentenced to life in prison with parole eligibility after 50 years. At sentencing, Woodworth's aunt, Crystal Hall, said McCandless showed no sign of remorse throughout the trial. McCandless has filed multiple petitions to overturn her conviction, including a third filed October 3, 2025. As of 2026, she is incarcerated at Taycheedah Correctional Institution in Fond du Lac, Wisconsin.