North Shore woman accused of poisoning her boyfriend to death with antifreeze

A Salisbury woman was ordered held without bail by a judge in Newburyport District Court on Friday on charges that she murdered her boyfriend using antifreeze, according to the Essex District Attorney’s Office.

Judy Church, 64, is accused of fatally poisoning her boyfriend with ethylene glycol, an industrial compound commonly found in antifreeze, deicing fluid, and hydraulic brake fluid, the district attorney’s office said in a statement.

At around 8 p.m. on Nov. 11, Church reportedly called 911 to request an ambulance for her boyfriend, 46-year-old Leroy Fowler.

Salisbury first responders arrived at the scene and noted that the victim was in obvious medical distress. Fowler was transported Anna Jacques Hospital in Newburyport for treatment. From there, he was taken to Mount Auburn Hospital in Cambridge, and finally Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center where he died on Nov. 13, prosecutors said.

The Office of the Chief Medical Examiner determined that Fowler died from ethylene glycol poisoning.

Following an investigation by Salisbury police, the Essex State Police Detective Unit, and the Essex District Attorney’s Office, Church was arrested by Massachusetts State Police on a warrant Thursday.

Church is expected back in court Jan. 23 for a probable cause hearing.

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