Steven Beard died from injuries he sustained on October 2, 1999 when he was shot by
Tracey Tarlton at his home while he was sleeping. Tarlton told authorities that she shot Beard because
Celeste Beard Johnson claimed that he was abusing her. Tarlton testified against Johnson after learning that she had remarried then hired someone to kill her. Tarlton was released from prison on parole in August 2011 after serving 10 years. Johnson, who was defended at trial by
Dick DeGuerin, denied that she and Tarlton were ever intimate, was convicted of capital murder in 2003 and sentenced to life with the possibility of parole after 40 years.
