In a tragic case of sexual harassment that turned deadly, Nicole Michelle Hammond, 28, was shot and killed by a colleague who allegedly sent her unwanted sexual advances. Prosecutors have charged Michael Jordan Carpenter, 36, with her murder.
Hammond and Carpenter worked at Dubow Textiles in St. Cloud, Minnesota. At around 7 a.m. on October 24, police responded to a 911 call about a shooting in the company’s parking lot. When they arrived, they found Hammond on the ground next to her car. The officers tried to resuscitate her with CPR, but were unsuccessful. She died on the spot.
An employee saw Carpenter walking to where a gunshot was heard. Then they saw him run back to his car and drive away.
When searching Carpenter’s vehicle, police discovered a 9mm pistol with bullets that matched the casings found near Hammond’s body.
murder charge
Prosecutors have charged Carpenter with second-degree murder and say he made numerous unwanted sexual advances on Hammond in the past month.
Cell phone records revealed text messages between Hammond and Carpenter sent just hours before her death, asking that he not “touch” or “manipulate” her. She also asked that he “don’t make things uncomfortable at work”.
Rob Dubow, the CEO of Dubow Textiles, said: Fox9 News that unfortunately Hammond had not reported the harassment to HR.
“Every time there is something that requires our intervention, we intervene. But in this case, we had no indication that anything was wrong,” Dubow said.
He recalled Hammond and said, “Nicole always had a smile on her face. Anyone who had any association with Nicole could not help but like her.”