Jennifer Lynn Lieber, 47, of Minnesota, has been sentenced to 25½ years in prison for the 2024 fatal shooting of her boyfriend, David Nanovic, 45, in a second‑degree murder case that hinged on whether it was an accident or a deliberate act.
How the shooting happened
On the night of March 4, 2024, deputies responded to a welfare‑check call placed by Lieber’s estranged husband after he and Nanovic’s then‑10‑year‑old son reported that Lieber was “acting weird” and threatening to kill herself. Police found Nanovic dead at the bottom of the stairs in the shared home; an autopsy later showed he died from a contact gunshot wound to the head, consistent with the gun being fired very close to or against his skin.
Lieber initially claimed she kicked a gun out of Nanovic’s hand and it went off accidentally, but her story and the evidence did not support that.
What witnesses told police
Nanovic’s son told investigators that Lieber grabbed a handgun that night, held it all evening, and hurled racial slurs and insults at his father, describing life in Lieber’s home as “living in hell” due to her past physical abuse of Nanovic. He told deputies that Lieber and her estranged husband’s two children said their mother was “acting crazy,” and when Nanovic went back toward the house to check on the dogs, Lieber pointed the gun at them and then fired.
A friend of Lieber’s also told police that Lieber called her in a panic, saying “there is blood everywhere and it’s not my fault,” then asked her to come over before she called 911.
Trial and sentence
After a trial, a jury in Scott County found Lieber guilty of second‑degree murder in January 2026, rejecting the idea that the shooting was a true accident. On Tuesday, a judge sentenced her to 25½ years in prison, with credit for 232 days already served. The case underscores how jealousy, threats, and access to a firearm escalated into a lethal domestic‑violence incident that left Nanovic’s son and extended family deeply traumatized.
