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Daily Mirror
Daily Mirror
Entertainment
Charlotte Hawes

Who is Sally McNeil and why did she kill her bodybuilding champion husband Ray?

Killer Sally follows Sally McNeil and her relationship with bodybuilding husband Ray that ended in a bloody murder.

The limited Netflix series dropped on the platform on November 2 and features interviews with the couple's friends, family and Sally herself as she delivers her version of the events that took place on Valentines Day in 1995.

The couple, who were both professional bodybuilders, had a rocky relationship before Ray's death, with Sally claiming long after, despite her conviction, that she murdered her husband in self defence.

But who is Sally McNeil and why did she kill her husband? Here's everything you need to know.

Who is Sally McNeil?

Sally McNeil was a professional bodybuilder (Netflix)

Sally McNeil, who is also known as 'Killer McNeil', is a 62 year old former professional bodybuilder from America.

Her career began in the US Marine Corps in the 1980s, soon reaching the rank of sergeant.

Sally met soon-to-be husband Ray McNeil in the Marines and they tied the knot in 1987.

She was discharged from the Marines a few years later and decided to take up a new career in bodybuilding.

During her time as a bodybuilder, she took part in muscle worship where she wrestled men on camera and earned thousands of dollars at a time for the performance.

She was soon raking in so much money that her husband was able to quit his job in the Marines to pursue his own career in bodybuilding.

He also began taking steroids and Sally claimed that her husband would regularly abuse her during this time.

They had two children together, a son called John and a daughter called Shantina, but Ray was known to have had several affairs during their eight year marriage.

The relationship between the pair continued to deteriorate until things came to a head on Valentine’s Day in 1995.

Why did Sally McNeil murder her husband?

Sally McNeil and her husband Ray (Netflix)

On Valentines Day 1995, the professional bodybuilder called the police to say that she had murdered her husband Ray.

She shot the bodybuilder twice with a shotgun - once in the abdomen and once in the head.

Sally told the operator that she killed her husband as he was abusing her.

She said: "I just shot my husband because he just beat me up."

Sally claimed that she acted in self defence as a result of her husband’s abusive behaviour.

Her children that she shared with Ray also corroborated that he was abusive, both to Sally and to them.

However, when the trial went to court, it was revealed that the couple had been using steroids.

This linked the murder to 'roid' rage, which is a sudden outburst of violence that can take place due to the use of steroids.

Sally was then convicted of second degree murder and sentenced to 19 years to life in prison.

Where is Sally McNeil now?

Sally and Ray were married for eight years before the murder (Netflix)

The former bodybuilder appealed the conviction on several grounds and it was initially overturned by an appeals court.

However, the State of California appealed to the Supreme Court which reversed the ruling.

The lower court reconsidered the case and supported the initial conviction which was then reinstated.

Sally was granted parole in May 2020 after serving 25 years in prison.

The now-62 year old lives in Northern California and recently married her new partner.

Following the murder, Sally's children John and Shantina were put into a care home before they moved in with their grandparents.

As they grew up, they would visit their mother once a year due to living 3,000 miles away from the prison Sally was placed in.

Both John and Shantina went on to have careers in the military and they attended their mother's second wedding.

Killer Sally, a three-part series, is on Netflix now.

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