Brief outburst by the defendant interrupts Tyler McCain hearing on Day 3

“This is bullshit,” Tyler Scott McCain protested in court on Wednesday, Sept. 10. He spoke out from where he was seated next to his attorney mid-morning, while a witness was testifying about photos of the McCain family seen on the walls of the family’s home during a search earlier this year. 

McCain was charged with murder with a special allegation that he killed his wife Nikki Cheng Saelee-McCain last year in order to prevent her from testifying against him on felony domestic violence charges. Saelee-McCain went missing on May 19, 2024, as those domestic violence charges were moving towards trial. Her body has not been found. 

Wednesday morning, McCain could be seen peering up at the photos of his family on the court projector screen shortly before lashing out. He asked the court why placing photos of his family on the wall of his home would be a bad thing before stating emphatically that he should never have been arrested. 

His attorney, Michael Borges, attempted to quell him, turning to face with his hand on McCain’s shoulder, repeating his name. The Honorable Judge Thomas L. Bender, a visiting retired judge from Madera County who’s overseeing the preliminary hearing, called a brief court recess so Borges could meet privately with his client. 

The outburst occurred toward the beginning of another six-hour day of testimony. Two new witnesses were called to the stand Wednesday, including Justin “Too Tall” Karren, who lives in a trailer on the McCain property, and his uncle Michael Ripley, who lived in Happy Valley in May 2024 when Saelee-McCain went missing.

As he was cross-examined by Borges, Ripley said on the stand that he had been offered “amnesty” for testifying in the case, but claimed he didn’t need it because he hadn’t done anything wrong. He said he knows McCain through his sister who married McCain’s brother Brian.

Testimony shared by Ripley focused on a ride he provided his nephew Karren shortly after Saelee-McCain went missing. The two picked up McCain from Bowman Road and stopped at another rural roadside location, Ripley testified, where he saw a Chevy Avalanche behind some bushes. McCain tried and failed to start the vehicle, he said, before it rolled a little way down a hill.

Ripley said he heard Karren tell McCain he “had his back” before the three left the scene. Ripley dropped both men off, then bought gas and went to the casino with the $100 in cash that McCain had given him, he said, noting that he “came out $10 ahead!” 

“Congratulations,” defense attorney Borges answered. 

According to Ripley, he met up with Karren again at his trailer on the McCain property later that night and told him he wanted nothing to do with whatever was going on. Ripley said he didn’t realize the Avalanche had been reported as missing until the next day when he saw the news on TV. 

Earlier this year, he said, a Shasta County Sheriff’s deputy showed up at the door of his new home in Washington State. Asked if he was surprised to see law enforcement at his door, Ripley said no.

“I asked them what took them so long,” he said, drawing laughter from those in the court audience.

The Shasta County Sheriff’s Office has been investigating the disappearance of Saelee-McCain since May 2024. While McCain became an immediate person of interest in the case due to the pending domestic violence charges against him, he was not arrested until August 2025.

Partially-burned evidence includes a comforter and Saelee-Mccain’s ID

Other testimony offered Wednesday indicates a long trail of suspicious evidence that has surrounded McCain over the months of the investigation. 

Shasta County Sheriff Investigative Technician Courtney Leadingham testified about partially burned credit cards with Saelee-McCain’s name on them that were found and turned in by a community member. Photos presented by the prosecution compared the burn patterns on the credit cards with the alleged victim’s partially burned drivers license, which was found in McCain’s wallet. The burn patterns appeared similar. 

Leadingham also testified about evidence found in the garage of Jeanette Hayward, McCain’s mother, who lives off Redding Rancheria Road. A partially burned white comforter was found stuffed in a corner of the garage, Leadingham said, and soot on the garage ceiling and on spiderwebs in the room indicate that burning had recently occurred in the area. 

Under cross examination, Leadingham answered in-depth questions about her knowledge related to body decomposition rates. Borges also questioned her about several different photos of the Chevy Avalanche where it was found, asking her if the vehicle had been moved. She testified that from the time she arrived on the scene off Highway 36 to the time the vehicle was towed away to the sheriff’s evidence lab, it did not move. 

More criminal protective orders 

At the end of day three of the preliminary hearing, Judge Bender discussed a request by the prosecution for criminal protective orders against McCain preventing contact with his four children. The prosecutor said the protective order was requested due to conversations earlier this week between McCain and his mother and sister. Those conversations were recorded at the county jail and later reviewed by a detective. McCain had asked his relatives to “get the children on our side,” prosecutor Sarah Murphy said.

The judge’s response was prefaced by mention of the jurisdiction of the Redding Rancheria’s Tribal court in the case due to the children’s Native heritage. Noting that the next tribal court date related to the children will occur in October, Judge Bender spoke sternly to Chloe Saelee, the sister of Saelee-McCain who has temporary guardianship of the McCain children. 

Judge Bender told Saelee it’s imperative that she contact the tribal court immediately to let them know of her concerns related to the jail conversations, so that the court can make decisions in the children’s best interest. She agreed to do so.

---

Do you have a correction to share? Email us: editor@shastascout.org.