Worst Neighbor Ever: where are they now?

Four episodes, four neighbor disputes, four sets of people who ended up in front of a judge. Netflix dropped the lot on July 1, 2026, and then left the question of what happened afterward entirely to you.

The series comes from director Cynthia Childs, produced by ITV America and Blumhouse Television with Jason Blum among the executive producers — the same production line that gave Netflix Worst Roommate Ever. All four cases are criminally closed. Three of the four principals are still incarcerated. The fourth died in prison eight years ago.

Frances Zaayer: 35 years, parole in 2038

Zaayer was an old friend of Shawna and David Scott before she was a neighbor. She stayed at their Mount Sterling, Kentucky home while renovating her own place across the street, and the relationship curdled from there — a driveway built over the property line, false reports about Shawna's employment, assault charges filed after a scuffle that left no documented injuries, and a running habit of filming the family.

On May 26, 2018, the Scotts' own exterior camera recorded Zaayer walking across the yard toward the house. She shot Shawna in the face and shot David, a 47-year-old Montgomery County deputy jailer, in the chest. He died. Shawna survived, losing sight in one eye and hearing in one ear, and has since had 16 facial reconstruction surgeries.

Zaayer pleaded guilty on January 12, 2022 to murder, second-degree assault, and first-degree wanton endangerment, and was sentenced on February 15 to 35 years. She is at the Kentucky Correctional Institution for Women in Pewee Valley. Parole eligibility: May 4, 2038. Maximum expiration: May 4, 2053.

"I do not forgive you, I don't want to forgive you, and I'm never going to forgive you." — Haley, Shawna's daughter, at sentencing

Richmond Hill: two life sentences, one 50-year deal, and one death in custody

On November 10, 2012, a gas explosion tore through the Richmond Hill subdivision on the south side of Indianapolis with a force investigators compared to roughly three tons of TNT. It killed next-door neighbors Jennifer and Dion Longworth and damaged or destroyed dozens of homes. It was insurance fraud: Monserrate "Moncy" Shirley's homeowner's coverage had been raised to $300,000 shortly beforehand at the urging of her boyfriend, Mark Leonard. Investigators found the water pressure regulator and a fireplace valve removed, plus a microwave rigged with a metal container and a delayed start.

• Mark Leonard — convicted of murder and sentenced to life without parole plus additional time. Died in prison in January 2018.
• Bob Leonard — Mark's half-brother, convicted of murder, also serving life without parole.
• Monserrate "Moncy" Shirley — pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit arson and cooperated with prosecutors. Fifty years, at Indiana Women's Prison, earliest release December 2037.
• Gary Thompson — convicted of murder, 30 years with 10 suspended.

Jamal Thomas got life, and Oakland paid $2.4 million

Thomas had been squatting in a vacant house beside Miles Armstead's East Oakland property since August 2019. From December 2019 the harassment escalated: rocks through windows at least 15 times, threats to burn the house down, a brick thrown at Armstead in April 2020. The family called Oakland police at least 22 times.

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Thomas was arrested on February 26, 2020 for making criminal threats and released two days later on his own recognizance over prosecutors' objections. A judge described him as a chronic nuisance and let him go anyway. On May 1, 2020, he approached Armstead — 44 years old, preparing the house for sale — and shot him repeatedly as he ran.

Officers had told Melina Armstead there was nothing they could do about the rocks. It was vandalism, and vandalism was a property matter.

Thomas was convicted of first-degree murder in July 2024 and sentenced in April 2025 to life with parole eligibility after 28 years and 8 months — February 2040. He is at High Desert State Prison. In 2023 the Armstead family settled a federal suit for $2.4 million: $450,000 from the city of Oakland, $1.95 million from Alameda County.

Caroline Herrling owes $3.8 million and isn't out until 2039

In Beverly Glen, Los Angeles, Herrling declared herself trustee of 71-year-old recluse Charles Wilding's estate, forged the paperwork, and drained his accounts. To keep the fraud running she needed the body gone, and attempted chemical dissolution before resorting to dismemberment and disposal. Police also found she was operating a purported sober living facility where they turned up drug dealing, counterfeit police badges, and weapons.

She pleaded guilty in 2024 to conspiracy to commit wire fraud: 20 years, plus $3.8 million in restitution, currently served at FMC Carswell in Fort Worth, Texas, with an earliest release of March 2039. Matthew Jason Kroth — a career criminal who found Wilding's decomposed body during a burglary and stayed to help — got 16 years and 8 months for conspiracy to commit wire fraud plus methamphetamine charges.

For the record: Netflix's "Worst ___ Ever" shelf now holds roommates, exes, and neighbors. Landlords should probably start checking their voicemail.

Earlier we wrote: Inside Melody Hobson’s life: George Lucas’ wife, businesswoman, and museum co-founder