Courtney Christine Schulhoff was born on December 27, 1987, in Washington, D.C. When she was young, her parents divorced, and she moved to Altamonte Springs, Florida, with her father. Growing up in Florida, Schulhoff attended Lyman High School. However, she struggled in her studies and eventually dropped out. After leaving school, she started working on getting her GED.

At 15, Schulhoff began dating a man named Michael Morin. They met at a dog race track that was near her high school. Morin was five years older than Schulhoff and was on probation for stealing a car. Her father did not approve of their relationship, but Schulhoff and Morin continued to see each other. They often hung out at a local gas station. During their time together, Schulhoff shared with Morin that she faced physical abuse at the hands of her father.

On February 9, 2004, Courtney Christine Schulhoff's father, Stephen Schulhoff, was killed in his apartment in Altamonte Springs, Florida. After the murder, Courtney and her boyfriend, Michael Morin, drove about 20 miles to a McDonald's using Stephen’s truck. The couple returned to the apartment later that afternoon.

Stephen’s girlfriend, Elaine Bouck, came to check on him a few days later and saw Courtney and Morin leaving the apartment, leading her to call 911. The police apprehended both of them on February 11. Courtney told the police that she and Morin decided to kill her father after he had beaten her. At first, Courtney claimed that she was outside walking her father's dog when Morin killed him. She found Morin covered in blood and saw the baseball bat that was used for the murder.

Morin insisted he did not initiate the murder, saying Courtney had left the baseball bat for him. He claimed to have blacked out during the attack and remembered nothing until afterward. In later interviews, Courtney admitted that she had left the baseball bat for Morin to use and that she waited outside while he killed her father.

Courtney was the first to go on trial, starting on September 26, 2006. Prosecutors argued that she planned the murder even though Morin was the one who physically killed Stephen. Courtney did not testify in her defense. The next day, she was found guilty of first-degree murder, receiving a life sentence without the possibility of parole due to her age at the time. After her sentencing, she stated in court that she accepted full responsibility for her actions and admitted to killing her father.

Morin’s trial began on April 16, 2007. He admitted to killing Stephen Schulhoff during his testimony. Courtney, despite her previous conviction, testified in his defense, stating again that she was the one who struck her father with the bat. On April 26, 2007, Morin was also convicted and sentenced to life in prison without parole.

In 2009, Courtney was interviewed about her life sentence and, in 2017, her sentence was reduced to 40 years.