In October 1996, a young college student with her whole life ahead of her was killed in a cruel way. Everyone involved in the case was deeply affected by it, and Berry Bryant’s family has been dealing with the fallout ever since.
The show “Evil Lives Here: Shadows of Death: The Dark Road” on Investigation Discovery tells the story of how Berry was killed and how the police caught the person who did it. So, let’s get more information about this case, shall we?
How Did Berry Bryant Die?
In March 1978, Berry Alexis Bryant was born in Montana. In high school, she was seen as a well-rounded person who did things like sports, band, and drill teams. The saxophone player was a sophomore at Northwest College in Powell, Wyoming. He was described as a friendly, loving person who got along with everyone. Berry made good friends and was liked in just one month at college.
The 18-year-old went to a school dance and a party in a dorm room on October 5, 1996. Berry left the room at some point during the night, but she had no idea that she would never come back. After getting more information, the police found Berry’s body about 16 miles from Powell. It looked like she and her attacker had fought hard. She had several defensive wounds and was lying in a pool of blood on the ground. Berry’s throat was cut so deeply that she was almost headless.
Who took Berry Bryant’s life?
When Berry didn’t come back, her roommate started to worry. Her car was still in the parking lot, and no one with that name was being treated at the local hospital. The investigation showed that another teenager named Levi Collen, who was 19 at the time, was also at the party. He had met Berry before at a conference. From what I saw on the show, it seemed like Levi was crazy about Berry, but she wasn’t interested.
Berry and Levi were last seen leaving the party. After a while, Levi came back to the dorm covered in blood and said he had fought with another man. At the time, he was bleeding from some cuts on his body. Levi told his friends on the way there that he had killed Berry after raping her. So, they held him down and immediately called the police.
At first, Levi told different versions of what had happened. According to the show, he said that they were in his car and had sex together before Berry got out and hit him with a beer bottle. Levi said he stabbed her as a way to defend himself. The police didn’t believe him, though, so they asked him to show them where the body was. Levi told the police what had happened after he showed them where Berry was.
Levi said that he and Berry left the party and drove 16 miles away from Powell. He tried to have sex with her, but she said no, according to the show. Levi took his knife out, but Berry kept fighting. Then he raped her, cut her throat from ear to ear, and put her body in some bushes. Aside from that, the police also heard from another woman who said Levi attacked her sometime in the summer of 1995.
The woman said that she and her friend were at a bar when they met Levi and went for a drive with him. According to the show, Levi wanted to sleep with her, but she turned him down. He pointed a gun at her, drove to a lonely place, and then raped her. The person who got away told the police that he bit her on the face and arms and threatened to kill her if she ever told anyone about what happened.
Where is Levi Collen at the moment?
Levi was found guilty of murder in the first degree, sexual assault, and kidnapping in November 1996. In connection with the summer of 1995 incident, he was also charged with sexual assault. As a result, he was given three life sentences in a row. Levi is still locked up at the Wyoming Medium Correctional Institution in Torrington, Goshen County, according to prison records.
As a permanent memorial, the granite bench will be put west of the Campus Mall near the Nelson Performing Arts Building.
On the 25th anniversary of her death, which was last October, some of Bryant’s family and friends came to campus for a small-group lunch and planted daffodil bulbs near the garden and bench site. They hope the flowers will bloom by March 21, which would have been her birthday.
The College and NWC Foundation are also working with Bryant’s family and friends to set up the Berry Bryant Memorial Scholarship Endowment as a way to honor her legacy in a positive way.
Bryant was involved in many social activities on the NWC campus, such as 4-H, band, sports, music, and junior leadership. A scholarship in her name will help students who get involved in their communities like she did.
At the event, light snacks and drinks will be available. Those who come are invited to hear stories about Bryant and tell their own. If the weather is bad, the dedication will take place inside.
For more information, call 307-754-6110 and ask for Shelby Wetzel, who is the Executive Director of the NWC Foundation, or write to Shelby
BUCYRUS—For the second week in a row, a talented young golfer from Colonel Crawford won the Heart of Ohio Junior Golf Association tournament.
Last week, Bryant Berry shot a 35 in Marion. This week, he shot a 42 on the back nine and is now 2-0 in the 12-and-under division this summer. From the red tees, he had one birdie, three pars, and four bogeys.
Berry was 10 strokes better than Griffin Gates of Delaware and Nolen West of Pleasant, who both got a score of 52.
Nick McMullen from Galion and Nathan Newell from Pleasant both shot 76 to place second in the 16-18 age group. Minoy Shah from Mount Pleasant won his first tournament of the summer with a score of 73, which included an eagle, three birdies, and ten pars.
Logan Keller of Galion tied for fifth with a score of 79, and Logan Niese of Buckeye Central tied for seventh with an 83.
Wynford’s Wes Prenger was ninth (84) and Micah Greene was 10th (87). Galion’s Nate Barre and Braylan Hart tied for 11th (88), Bucyrus’s Cody Pennington was 14th (90) and Noah Burke was 17th (100), and Galion’s Gavin Crim was 19th with a 111.
Maura Murphy from Pleasant won the girls 13–18 age group with a score of 75, which included three birdies and nine pars. Lucy Myers (89) and Sophie Beck (95) of Colonel Crawford were third and fourth.
Kaden Ottley from Olentangy won the boys 13–15 age group with a score of 79. Carson Walker from Galion came in second with an 85.
The next HOJGA tournament will take place on June 22 at the Marysville Golf Club.
A young college student with her whole life ahead of her was brutally killed in October 1996. Everyone involved in the case was deeply affected, and Berry Bryant’s family has been dealing with the fallout ever since. “Evil Lives Here: Shadows of Death: The Dark Road” on Investigation Discovery goes into detail about what happened before Berry was killed. Let’s find out more about this case, shall we?
Berry Alexis Bryant was born in Montana in March 1978. During high school, she was seen as a multifaceted person who did things like sports, band, and drill teams, among other things. People liked the saxophonist because he was kind and friendly and got along with everyone. He was in his second year at Northwest College in Powell, Wyoming. In just one month at college, Berry became well-known and made good friends.
On October 5, 1996, the 18-year-old went to a school dance. After that, she went to a party in her dorm room. Berry had to leave the room at some point during the night, but she didn’t know that she would never come back. Later, when they had more information, the police were able to find Berry’s body 16 miles outside of Powell. She was lying in a pool of blood on some dirt, and she had several defensive wounds. This suggests that she had fought her attacker hard. Berry almost lost her head because her throat had been cut so badly.
Berry didn’t come back, and Berry’s roommate started to worry. There was no one with that name getting care at the local hospital, and her car was still sitting in the parking lot. The results of the investigation showed that 19-year-old Levi Collen was at the party with the other teens. Berry was someone he had met at a conference before. Even though it seemed like Levi was in love with Berry, the show said that she wasn’t interested.
Berry and Levi were seen leaving the party for the last time. Later, a bloody Levi walked into the hostel and said that he and another man had gotten into a fight. At the time, he was bleeding and had small cuts on his body. Levi told his friends that he had killed Berry because he had raped her on the way there. So, they put him in a hold and called the police right away.
Levi first told different versions of what happened. As shown on the show, he said that they had consensual sex in his car before Berry jumped out and hit him with a beer bottle. Levi said that he stabbed her to defend himself. Since the police didn’t believe him, they asked him to show them where the body was. Levi said that he did what happened after he told the police how to find Berry.
Levi says that he and Berry left the party together and went about 16 miles away from Powell. As the episode shows, he tried to get intimate with her, but she said no. Berry kept fighting while Levi held out his knife. She was then raped, and her throat was cut from ear to ear. Her body was then buried in some bushes. A second woman who had been attacked by Levi sometime in the summer of 1995 also gave information to the police.
The woman said that she and her friend met Levi while they were drinking and then went for a drive with him. According to the episode, Levi wanted to sleep with her, but she said no. He drove her to an empty place, showed her a gun, and then raped her. The victim told the police that the person who hurt her bit her on the face and arms and threatened to kill her if she ever told anyone about what happened.
In November 1996, a judge said that Levi was guilty of murder in the first degree, sexual assault, and kidnapping. In connection with the summer of 1995 event, he was also accused of sexual assault. As a result, he was given three life sentences in a row. Statistics from the prison show that Levi is still a prisoner at Wyoming Medium Correctional Institution in Torrington, Goshen County.