Court Records Detail Threats Made Against SNL Writer's Sister Before Her Death
Documents show two restraining orders filed against Kaylee Markowski in the year prior to Christina Downer's disappearance.
By Lorenzo Marshall ·
Family members of Christina Downer, a writer for the television show 'Saturday Night Live,' have access to legal filings that document specific threats and conflicts in the year leading up to her death. The records detail disputes involving her ex-boyfriend, Delorean Bijon Brandon, and his current girlfriend, Kaylee Markowski, who are both charged in the case.
Downer filed for a restraining order against Markowski in September 2024. In that submission, she stated that Markowski "threatens to beat me up" and "threatens to break into my home." Downer also claimed Markowski sent a topless video of her in her home to unknown individuals. The filing noted that Markowski was holding Downer's orange tabby cat, named Pumpkin, and that Downer "fear for his safety" regarding the animal's return.
Brandon filed his own domestic violence restraining order against Markowski in July 2025. He alleged that Markowski "slashed my tire" and "writes harassing emails." Brandon further claimed Markowski was angry about his relationship with Downer and was "harassing job sites to get Christina not hired." A second filing by Brandon occurred on September 2, 2025. In that document, he wrote that Markowski "was hitting and kicking me as I'm trying to leave" and threatened to "shoot me in the head" if he returned to her property uninvited.
Investigators believe Downer was killed approximately three months before authorities distributed a missing person poster in December 2025. She was 38 years old at the time. Her brother, Jimmy Fowlie, who writes for 'Saturday Night Live,' has publicly mourned her passing.
Prosecutors allege that Brandon murdered Downer and that Markowski assisted in disposing of her body. Neither suspect has been released from custody. Their arraignments are set to take place at the end of December. Authorities have not yet recovered Downer's remains.
The legal timeline places the initial conflict with Markowski roughly a year before the estimated date of death. The subsequent filings by Brandon in mid to late 2025 occurred just weeks before investigators determined the approximate time of the killing.
