Peoria Man Gets 45 Years For Murdering Girlfriend Mary Halcomb In Staged Suicide Case
Nathaniel N. Archuleta, 19, pleaded guilty to first-degree murder in the death of his girlfriend, Mary Halcomb, 20, after prosecutors said he shot her, moved her body, placed a gun in her hand and tried to make the killing look like suicide.
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Summary
A Peoria, Illinois murder case that prosecutors said was first staged to look like a suicide ended with a guilty plea and a 45-year prison sentence. Nathaniel N. Archuleta, 19, pleaded guilty on July 7, 2025 to first-degree murder in the death of his girlfriend, Mary Halcomb, 20. As part of a fully negotiated plea agreement supported by Halcomb’s family, Archuleta was sentenced to 45 years in the Illinois Department of Corrections and must serve 100% of that sentence.
The killing occurred on September 6, 2024. Peoria police said officers were dispatched at approximately 10:41 p.m. to the 1400 block of South Griswold in South Peoria on a report of a person shot. When officers arrived, they found a 20-year-old woman inside the residence with an apparent gunshot wound. She was pronounced dead at the scene. Police also encountered Archuleta, then 18, inside the home.
At first, the case was not publicly described as a murder. Peoria police initially announced Archuleta’s arrest on charges including involuntary manslaughter, reckless discharge of a firearm, possession of a handgun under 21 and no FOID. But investigators continued working the scene and the physical evidence began to pull the case in a darker direction.
According to the Peoria County State’s Attorney’s Office, officers responded to what was originally reported as a woman who had shot herself. Mary was found lying on a stairwell landing with a gun in her hand and a single gunshot wound to her neck. Prosecutors later said the scene did not match suicide. A blood trail led from a downstairs bedroom, where the shooting happened, to the stairwell landing where her body was found, suggesting that her body had been moved.
Investigators also found a Post-it note in the downstairs bedroom. The note used Mary’s name and made a grotesque statement that Archuleta would have the “right to euthanize” her if she broke his heart. Rather than repeat the whole note, the important point is that prosecutors treated it as part of the staged scene, a false paper prop meant to make a killing look like consent, despair or suicide.
Archuleta gave police conflicting accounts. Prosecutors said he initially claimed the death was suicide. He later changed his story and said the gun went off while he was trying to clean it. 25 News Now reported that no gun-cleaning supplies were found inside the home, undercutting that version. The State’s Attorney’s Office later said officers learned Archuleta had admitted to another inmate that he shot Mary after catching her texting another man.
The plea hearing took place on July 7, 2025 in Peoria. The Peoria County State’s Attorney’s Office described the hearing as emotional, with Mary’s family and loved ones filling the courtroom. Family members spoke about sleepless nights, nightmares, fear, depression, anxiety and life milestones that Mary would never experience. Prosecutors said the family called Archuleta’s actions selfish and unforgivable and said justice had to be served.
WCBU reported that the plea agreement was negotiated with Halcomb’s family and that Archuleta will spend 45 years in the Illinois Department of Corrections. 25 News Now reported that he is eligible for credit for time served in custody from September 2024 to July 2025, but must serve 100% of the sentence. The same report said charges of involuntary manslaughter and unlawful possession of a handgun were dismissed as part of the case resolution.
The legal charge resolved by the plea was first-degree murder. Illinois law defines first-degree murder as killing another person without lawful justification while intending to kill or do great bodily harm, knowing that the acts create a strong probability of death or great bodily harm, or causing a death during certain forcible felonies. Illinois sentencing law generally sets first-degree murder imprisonment at not less than 20 years and not more than 60 years, with longer or natural-life terms possible in some circumstances.
Archuleta’s sentence was 45 years, not merely an arrest, allegation or pending charge. The case is therefore a confirmed conviction by guilty plea. The article should describe him as convicted, guilty or sentenced, not as merely accused. It should also avoid treating the staged-suicide story as credible. Prosecutors said the physical evidence, conflicting statements and later inmate admission showed that Mary was murdered and the scene was staged.
The victim, Mary Halcomb, was from Mapleton, Illinois. People reported that her mother, Ashley Halcomb, described Mary as her best friend and said she initially struggled to believe the news. The existing Crime Report page identified Mary as “Mary Halcomb,” while the State’s Attorney’s Office used the fuller name Mary Elyce Halcomb in describing the note found at the scene.
The existing Crime Report article should also soften or remove the mocking commentary. This was not a quirky “it’s complicated” dating story. It was a domestic murder in which prosecutors said a young woman was shot in the neck, moved from one part of the house to another, placed with a gun in her hand and framed by a fake note. The proper tone is firm, factual and victim-centered.
In the end, the staged scene failed. The blood trail, the physical evidence, the shifting explanations and the jailhouse admission all pointed away from suicide and toward murder. A sticky note could not rewrite a crime scene. Archuleta’s guilty plea and 45-year sentence closed the criminal case, but for Mary Halcomb’s family, the sentence is only the legal ending to a loss that does not end on paper.
SEO alt text: Booking image of Nathaniel Archuleta in the Peoria Mary Halcomb murder case.
SEO description: Booking image used with coverage of Nathaniel N. Archuleta, who pleaded guilty to first-degree murder in the death of Mary Halcomb and was sentenced to 45 years in the Illinois Department of Corrections.
Image source note: Crime Report image / Peoria County Jail public arrest coverage. Verify the original booking-image source before republishing.
SEO alt text: Photo of Mary Halcomb, victim in the Peoria staged suicide murder case.
SEO description: Image used with coverage of Mary Halcomb, the 20-year-old woman killed in Peoria, Illinois, in a case prosecutors said Nathaniel Archuleta staged to look like a suicide.
Image source note: Crime Report image / Dignity Memorial and public victim coverage. Verify original image rights before republishing.
Section 1: The Crime
The crime was first-degree murder. Prosecutors said Archuleta shot Mary Halcomb in the neck, moved her body from a downstairs bedroom to a stairwell landing, placed a gun in her hand and tried to make the death appear self-inflicted.
Police initially responded to a report of a woman who had shot herself. The State’s Attorney’s Office said investigators discovered evidence inconsistent with suicide, including the blood trail from the downstairs bedroom to the landing. Archuleta also gave conflicting accounts, first calling it suicide and later saying the gun accidentally discharged while he was cleaning it.
Important wording note: This is a confirmed guilty-plea case. Archuleta pleaded guilty to first-degree murder and was sentenced to 45 years.
Section 2: Crime Location
The killing happened at a residence in the 1400 block of South Griswold in South Peoria, Illinois. The Peoria Police Department’s original press release and the State’s Attorney’s later sentencing release both identify the location as the 1400 block of South Griswold.
Section 3: Date And Time Of Crime
Peoria police were dispatched on Friday, September 6, 2024, at approximately 10:41 p.m. The existing Crime Report page listed the date and time as September 6, 2024 at 12:00 a.m., but the official Peoria Police Department release gives the more accurate dispatch time of about 10:41 p.m.
Archuleta pleaded guilty and was sentenced on July 7, 2025.
Section 4: Police Department
The case was investigated by the Peoria Police Department. The department’s Criminal Investigations Division, Special Investigations Division, Crime Scene Unit and patrol officers responded after the original call. The Peoria Police Department lists 911 for emergencies and 309-673-4521 for non-emergency police contact. Anonymous tips may be submitted through tip411 or Crime Stoppers at 309-673-9000.
Section 5: Suspect Name
The defendant was Nathaniel N. Archuleta. Early police coverage identified him as Nathaniel Archuleta, then 18. The Peoria County State’s Attorney’s Office later identified him as Nathaniel N. Archuleta, 19, when he pleaded guilty to first-degree murder.
Section 6: Suspect Age
Archuleta was 18 years old at the time of the September 2024 arrest and 19 years old at the time of the July 2025 guilty plea and sentencing.
Section 7: Charges
Archuleta pleaded guilty to first-degree murder. Early charges included involuntary manslaughter, reckless discharge of a firearm, possession of a handgun under 21 and no FOID. 25 News Now reported that involuntary manslaughter and unlawful possession of a handgun counts were dismissed as part of the plea resolution.
Under Illinois law, first-degree murder covers an unlawful killing committed with intent to kill or do great bodily harm, knowledge that the acts create a strong probability of death or great bodily harm, or during certain forcible felonies. Illinois sentencing law generally provides a 20-to-60-year sentencing range for first-degree murder, with extended-term and natural-life options in certain cases.
Section 8: Bond Amount
No final bond amount is necessary for the completed article because the case ended in a guilty plea and prison sentence. Archuleta was held in custody after the September 2024 arrest and received credit for time served between September 2024 and July 2025, according to 25 News Now.
Section 9: Conviction
Archuleta pleaded guilty to first-degree murder on July 7, 2025. This is a confirmed conviction by guilty plea. The plea was part of a fully negotiated agreement supported by Mary Halcomb’s family, according to the Peoria County State’s Attorney’s Office.
Section 10: Sentence
Archuleta was sentenced to 45 years in the Illinois Department of Corrections. The Peoria County State’s Attorney’s Office said he must serve 100% of the sentence. WCBU and 25 News Now also reported the 45-year sentence and the 100% service requirement.
The sentence means Archuleta will not receive the kind of day-for-day sentence reduction sometimes associated with lesser offenses. His time in custody from September 2024 to July 2025 may count as time served, but the murder sentence itself is to be served at 100%.
Section 11: Outcome
The final outcome is a guilty plea to first-degree murder and a 45-year Illinois prison sentence. The plea resolved the case without a trial. The courtroom hearing included victim-impact statements from Mary Halcomb’s family and loved ones, who described grief, fear, depression, anxiety and the loss of future milestones.
Section 12: Victim
The victim was Mary Halcomb, a 20-year-old woman from Mapleton, Illinois. She was Archuleta’s girlfriend. Prosecutors said she was found with a gunshot wound to her neck and that the evidence showed her body had been moved after the shooting.
People reported that Mary’s mother, Ashley Halcomb, described her daughter as her best friend and said the news felt like a bad dream. Family members described the killing as a loss of a daughter, friend, sisterly moments, dreams and milestones that can never be recovered.
Section 13: Victim Name
The victim’s name was Mary Halcomb. The State’s Attorney’s Office identified her more fully in the note description as Mary Elyce Halcomb.
Section 14: Victim Age
Mary Halcomb was 20 years old.
Sources
- Crime Report: Existing Nathaniel Archuleta Mary Halcomb article page
- Peoria County State’s Attorney’s Office: Man Pleads Guilty to Murder of Girlfriend
- Peoria Police Department: September 7, 2024 involuntary manslaughter arrest release
- WCBU Peoria: Peoria man pleads guilty to 2024 murder of girlfriend, gets 45-year sentence
- 25 News Now: Peoria man pleads guilty after 2024 shooting death of woman
- People: He Was Enraged She Texted Another Man, So He Killed Her and Left a Deceptive Post-It Note Behind
- Illinois General Assembly: 720 ILCS 5/9-1, First Degree Murder
- Illinois General Assembly: 730 ILCS 5/5-4.5-20, First Degree Murder Sentencing
- Peoria Police Department: Official website and contact information
