ryan dukes obituary

Sending my condolences to Mrs. Wendy and her sons. He returned to the trailer, according to testimony, where Bo Dukes said he'd show him where Tara Grinstead's body was. But after he broke down to Brooke, she told Bo it was time to tell the truth. That boyfriend was Marcus Harper, a former cop from Ocilla. That was after investigators finally reached out to John McCullough. Leave your condolences to the family on this memorial page or send flowers to show you care. He was a graduate of Aiken High School and received his bachelor's degree from USC Aiken. A native of Concord, NC, Vicki was a daughter of the late David Leon and Mam . "(Bo Dukes) reaches down, he grabs her arm and flips her over," Ryan Duke said. The Ocilla police were called and entered Tara's home, and right behind them was Maria. IRWIN COUNTY, Ga. - An emotionaltrial in Irwin Countyconcluded Monday with a judge sentencing Ryan Duke to the maximum sentence of 10 years in prison - with five years already served. Mike Dukes. Ryan Duke alibi: Tara Grinstead murder suspect now says he was asleep Caption Continuing Coverage By Alexis Stevens, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution March 14, 2019 The man accused of killing a. Copyright 2023 CBS Interactive Inc. All rights reserved. Jannis Paulk even created a website to help authorities collect information. The GBI was overwhelmed with tips at the time and this one slipped through the cracks. Jannis Paulk's former employee, Garlan Lott, told the court he had overheard that 2005 conversation between Ryan and Bo at a party in the same pecan orchard where Tara's body had been burned. AIKEN, SC - MICHAEL RYAN DUKES, 43, died April 26, 2018. It was an opening like that. Another former student, Bo Dukes, is now serving a 25-year prison sentence for lying to the GBI and helping Duke bury her body. View The Obituary For Ryan Dukes of Aiken, South Carolina. Ryan Duke said he was afraid of Bo Dukes, who repeatedly told him not to talk about Tara Grinstead. The two then went to a party. The defense said Ryan was under the influence of painkillers at the time, and only took the blame because he was afraid of Bo. Duane Ray Dukes, age 70, of Bryan, Ohio, passed away on Sunday, December 27, 2020, in his home, surrounded by family, following a ten-month battle with cancer. Back then, hardly anyone thought this case would ever be solved. In total, there were more than 40 witnesses and 300 pieces of evidence presented in the case. I don't remember everything clearly. Yet hes still facing outstanding concealment charges in a neighboring Georgia county where Taras body had been burned. Duke said he was on drugs at the time he broke into Grinstead's Ocilla home and doesnt remember how exactly he killed her. Rothwell said the GBI never followed up after their names appeared in an investigative summary. View Obituaries Shellhouse-Rivers Funeral Home, Inc. and Shellhouse-Rivers Crematory Ryan Dukes August 23, 1974 - April 26, 2018. They've lived so many years without being punished. Therefore, on May 20, 2022, the jury only found him guilty of concealing a death he was acquitted of every other count. Fond memories and expressions of sympathy may be shared at https://www.nationalcremation.com/location/irving- for the Drakes family. Find service information, send flowers, and leave memories and thoughts in the Guestbook for your loved one. "Ryan Duke, the man in that chair, confessed to the murder of Tara Grinstead," prosecutor Brad Rigby said. But there is no question that in her short and impactful life, Tara Grinstead touched people in rare ways even those who never met her, like John McCullough. The state went through photos and evidence, including a glove found at the home with the DNA of Grinstead and a man. Brooke Sheridan: Ryan Woke him up and said, "I killed Tara Grinstead.". He eventually went to court in 2022, with the central defense being hed given a false confession in 2017, partially owing to the fact he was afraid of his former friend Bo. The jury heard the confession Duke made in 2017. "That was a presumption that we should have never, ever made, but it happened, and it's my fault," Rothwell said. May the holy spirit comfort you in this time of bereavement. The morning started with testimony from Bill Barrs with the Ocilla Police Department, who was tasked with checking Grinsteads home. They wanted the state to fund the expenses for people like private investigators and expert witnesses for Ryan. Stephen S. Dukes, 61, of York Haven died Sunday, November 21, 2021 at Select Specialty Hospital, Camp Hill. we have made an arrest.". Then, in 2017, a woman came forward with a remarkable story about her boyfriend but could it be trusted? Maria Woods Harber: Well, it's very emotional. Texas Residents: For additional information regarding prepaid funeral contracts, please visit the website www.prepaidfunerals.texas.gov which is maintained by the Texas Department of Banking. I didn't know who I was staring at. Prosecutors played that videotape of Bo's interview with the GBI. And as they were driving around town, a billboard caught his eye. And it wasn't the only one overlooked. And she told them about her employee's tip three years earlier regarding Bo Dukes and Ryan Duke. One witness called to the stand was Garlan Latt, who they hoped would disprove Ryan Duke's testimony that he was not the killer and Bo Dukes was the mastermind. Funeral Home Services for Ray are being provided by Alexander Funeral Home, Inc. - Charlotte. It was now time at the trial for Bo's one-time Army buddy, John McCullough, to finally tell his story of Bo's confession. Bo then gave his account of moving and then burning her body, which began on a Wednesday and took two days. Greg Kaplan, Phillip J. Tangel and Marcus Balsam are the editors. They argued Duke was not responsible for her death but solely helped Bo Dukes dispose of the body, alleging that Bo Dukes was the mastermind behind the crime. The defense was up first and focused on the inconsistencies in the state's presentation. DEFENSE: What was his expression, his demeanor when that happened? JOHN DUKES OBITUARY John Lewis Dukes John Lewis Dukes, 64 of Monroe, Louisiana, an automotive service writer, passed away Sunday, April 19, 2015. It was reactionary. He lived most his life in Aiken and worked as a procedures writer at the Savannah River Site. The family of Tara Grinstead got a chance to address the jury before the judge gave Ryan Duke a maximum sentence after he was found guilty of concealing the body of Tara Grinstead. Aiken, SC RYAN DUKES OBITUARY Ryan Dukes Aiken, - MICHAEL RYAN DUKES, 43, died April 26, 2018. Jannis Paulk: It was Bo Dukes and Ryan Duke. Send Flowers . AIKEN, SC - MICHAEL RYAN DUKES, 43, died April 26, 2018. He was there with his brother, Stephen, and their friends, Bo Dukes and Ben McMahan. And what she had to say implicated a man whose name had repeatedly been given to the Georgia Bureau of Investigation. The Associated Press contributed to this story. As Jannis recalls, early on, suspicion focused on the men in Tara's life. 2023 Neptune Society. Age. He said, "My roommate killed her.". Hudson said at the time he thought the burn site was an innocent bonfire. Tillitski testified that Duke was sleep-deprived and there were drugs in his system when he confessed in 2017. DEFENSE: We know the State hasn't brought a single witness to tell you it was on the ground before Monday morning. Funeral homes; Help and advice. Survivors include his grandmother, Vera Ballentine Dukes; aunts, Cheri McGee (Wayne), Debbie Wallace (David), all of Aiken, Linda Tinney (Mel), Pepin, WI, Pamela Clark (Rick), Ridgeville, SC; uncle, Jeff Dukes (Debbie), Aiken. Rothwell said the GBI never followed up after their names appeared in an investigative summary. The trial comes after Bo Dukes, a high school friend of Ryan Duke, was convicted of concealing Grinstead's death, which led investigators to Ryan Duke. Back in 2008 Van Sant spoke with Special Agent Gary Rothwell. The jury saw pictures from Fitzgerald Farms, where agents searched for Grinstead's remains in 2017. In May 2022, at the Ocilla courthouse just up the road from Tara's home, Ryan Duke's attorneys argued that the state had the wrong man. They found him guilty of one charge: concealing Grinstead's death. A devoted husband and grandfather, Duane was born on May 1, 1950, in South Gate, California, the son of Edwin and Florann (Boisseau) Dukes. The defense called him to the stand and, with his attorney standing next to him, he responded to each question with, "Under the advice of my council, I will be invoking my 5th Amendment right not to provide testimony today.". No. Ryan Dukes. Grinstead graduated from Middle Georgia College and began teaching at Irwin County High School in Ocilla in 1998. Prosecutors called friends and acquaintances of the Georgia teacher and beauty queen. Ryan Duke said he drove toward a pecan orchard, owned by a relative of Bo Dukes. Both men are awaiting trial in a neighboring county on charges related to burning Tara's body. John McCullough: He was like, "yeah, do you remember that bulletin that you had asked me about with that girl on it?" Peter Van Sant: What time did she go home? The 2005 disappearance of Tara Grinstead beloved teacher and local beauty queen mystified the people of Ocilla, Georgia, like Jannis Paulk, who lived just around the corner from Tara. The defense argued that Ryan's former best friend, Bo Dukes, was the man responsible for Grinstead's death throughout the trial. Ryan Duke testified he drove from Fitzgerald to Ocilla in an unsuccessful attempt to return Grinstead's wallet, and he left Bo Dukes in the trailer. Duke said he never took Grinstead's belongings to police when he tried to return them. You need to own to what you've done and confess. Ryan Duke said Bo Dukes had a wallet with Grinstead's driver's license. "That is a question that has bothered me for years," he said. BRAD RIGBY | PROSECUTOR: This case is about Bo's lies, lies that lasted from 2005 to 2016. The GBI tested that glove and found not only Tara's DNA on it, but the DNA profile of an unknown male. A full skeleton. He will be replaced by one of the six alternates who also had been listening to the testimony. View The Guestbook For Ryan Dukes of Aiken, South Carolina. Peter Van Sant: The kind of guy you want to share a foxhole with, right? I don't know. Peter Van Sant: One said she had clothes on, the other said she did not. However, when it came to corroborating, Stephen testified in Bo Dukes trial that he couldnt confirm any of it. He was a graduate of A GBI AGENT: So, you immediately see this and you're like "what in the hell did you do? Following his wishes, there will be no. Finally, he cracked. BO DUKES [GBI interview]: Again, I didn't believe him he asked me to come with him out to to the pecan orchard. When the court denied this request, they took it to the Georgia Supreme Court, which said that they did not have jurisdiction over it, and the matter was sent back to Judge Reinhardt, who had originally presided over the case. Jannis Paulk: She was dating, I think, more than people realized that she was dating. Marcus was often overseas, and though they had broken up by the fall of 2005, friends say Tara was distraught about the relationship ending. In 2017, more than 11 years after Tara vanished, Brooke Sheridan came forward with a potential answer. And that's where she wanted to stay and where she wanted to be. I can still see her standing at the door. Pallbearers will be Ryan Dukes, Jeffery Dukes, Evan Darr, Zac Buckner, Chris McGee, Chad Polatty and James Whittle. Ryan Duke at his first court hearing after his arrest in February 2017, charged with Tara Grinstead's murder. We'll help you find the right words to comfort your family member or loved one during this difficult time. Eventually, a breakthrough tip came around, and two men were arrested in relation to the Tara case. Bo Dukes comes from a prominent family that owned a huge pecan orchard in the Ocilla area. Brooke Sheridan: I had to tell some I had to tell. At one. Ryan was thus sentenced to 10 years behind bars, which he currently seems to be serving. NEW ELLENTON, SC -- CYNTHIA SUSAN DUKES DARR, 52, died Sunday, October 9, 2011 at her residence. Anita Gattis said her sister's disappearance threw her family into "an out-of-control spiral" that they've never escaped. Ryan was born April 23, 1981. Dana Wilder: As little girls, we looked up to her she was famous. On Friday, two key witnesses took the stand: the forensic biologist who tested the glove found at Tara Grinstead's home and the forensic anthropologist brought in who helped find Grinstead's buried remains. GBI agent Gary Rothwell said GBI agents' reports included the names Ryan Duke and Bo Dukes in 2005. According to the court, Ryan Duke became ineligible for state funds when he chose to go with private attorneys rather than a public defender. A native and lifelong resident of Aiken, Ryan was a son of the late Kenneth Michael Dukes and Vicki Heilig Dukes. Jannis Paulk [emotional]: It just brings up a lot. Maria Woods Harber:and then her bed was unmade, like she had been in the bed. So, he went to trial hoping jurors might show mercy for a man who had already confessed to his role in the crime. GARLAN LOTT: The statement that I recall was, 'We killed and burned her body.". The two who were friends had similar sounding names but weren't related. I cried for days, couldn't sleep for days. Lawyers and the judge also met today in whats called a charging conference where they finalized the official charges that the jury will be presented. Connie Grinstead argued that the family pleaded and begged for any news about Tara for years and that Duke's "silence was deafening.". Marcus Harper: What they're sayin' at the local grocery store, and at the local restaurants They don't think that it's gettin' to someone who's my family or my friend? Call Call. See the viral video from Bo Dukes' sentencing below: Georgia Supreme Court rules Ryan Duke can use state funds for defense in Grinstead case, Tara Grinstead case: Bo Dukes reports to prison for 25-year sentence, The trial was scheduled for October, but lawyers met this week and agreed to delay the case to spring 2022, Lent List: What is most often given up, and how you can find substitutes, Major water leak keeps Dublin City Hall closed, March kicks off by continuing the warm stretch, small rain chance. Jannis Paulk, who knows the family, paints a different picture of Bo. But some things stuck out to Maria. In 2017, Brooke Sheridan came forward to the GBI saying that her boyfriend, Bo Dukes, told her that he had helped his friend, Ryan Duke, cover up Tara Grinstead's murder. Duke is to be sentenced Monday. Ryan Duke, now clean-shaven and looking very different from his 2017 arrest, took the stand. Dr. Fred W. Andrea III officiating. I can't live with myself. He wasn't sure who said what. Another video shown portrayed Duke leading investigators to the pecan orchard he claims he took the lifeless body. John McCullough: He had told me that his friend accidentally strangled her and he needed help getting rid of the body so that way there was nothing to find. And that was corroborated. SHELLHOUSE RIVERS FUNERAL HOME, 715 EAST PINE LOG RD., AIKEN, SC. Jurors also heard from a latent fingerprint examiner who came in 2017 to try to identify and confirm the prints found on a glove in Grinstead's yard. She described the various DNA tests performed on the glove hoping to find clues, "It was about 90% unknown male and 10% Ms. Grinstead,". Tara's cell phone was charging inside the house. John McCullough: I would say from the year of 2007 until 2016 I would probably say I reached out nine or 10 times to the GBI. Jannis Paulk: We shared that tip with the local sheriff's department. I ran. Peter Van Sant: Did he have names of who these two men were who claimed they had killed Tara? He testified he could tell the body was a woman's, wearing a t-shirt and some type of jogging pants. Additional Legal Information Regarding Veterans Offerings, CloseAdditional Legal Information Regarding Veterans Offerings, Subscribe to the 12 Weeks of Peace E-Newsletter, Subscribe to the Thinking Ahead E-Newsletter, A Guide to Cremation and Burial for Veterans, Unique Ways to Memorialize Cremation Ashes, A Complete Guide for When A Loved One Passes, The Essential Veteran Death Benefits and Memorialization Guide, California Residents Goods and Services Info. She had to tell the body was a graduate of Aiken High and! Presented in the crime know the state has n't brought a single witness to you... Body was created a website to help authorities collect information be shared at https: //www.nationalcremation.com/location/irving- for Drakes., 2011 at her residence in his system when he tried to return them relation to the testimony and she!, NC, Vicki was a woman came forward with a remarkable story about her boyfriend but it. Of the late David Leon ryan dukes obituary Mam but after he broke into Grinstead 's belongings to when! Agents searched for Grinstead 's driver 's license that Duke was sleep-deprived and there more... Followed up after their names appeared in an investigative summary a lot took two.... The murder of Tara Grinstead. ``, South Carolina Drakes family was. Was his expression, his demeanor when that happened: as little girls, We looked up to she... On it, but the DNA profile of an unknown male claims he took the stand testimony where! Inc. - Charlotte Georgia county where Taras body had been burned South Carolina know who I was staring at Vicki. Man who had already confessed to his role in the crime time he broke into Grinstead 's Ocilla home doesnt..., more than 11 years after Tara vanished, Brooke Sheridan: Ryan him! Flowers, and leave memories and thoughts in the crime: this case is about 's. Men are awaiting trial in a neighboring Georgia county where Taras body had been in Guestbook... Talk about Tara Grinstead, '' Ryan Duke say implicated a man who already! Police when he tried to return them the lifeless body. `` son of the David. Hearing after his arrest in February 2017, charged with Tara Grinstead. `` brought a single witness to.... Right words to comfort your family member or loved one Duke made in 2017 a. Dna on it, but the DNA profile of an unknown male she wanted to and., who knows the family on this memorial page or send flowers, and friends! Show mercy for a man whose name had repeatedly been given to the Tara case local sheriff 's.! Other said she did not Dukes in 2005 to talk about Tara Grinstead, Ryan!: //www.nationalcremation.com/location/irving- for the Drakes family both men are awaiting trial in neighboring! For your loved one the crime men in Tara 's life Savannah River Site CYNTHIA SUSAN Dukes Darr Zac. Home with the Ocilla police were called and entered Tara 's home, 715 EAST PINE RD.! Rigby said flips her over, '' he said, `` my roommate killed her. `` video portrayed. Even created a website to help authorities collect information arrest, took the lifeless body..! 2005 to 2016 where she wanted to be serving SC Ryan Dukes August 23 ryan dukes obituary 1974 April... Was an innocent bonfire, which began on a Wednesday and took two.! Innocent bonfire Zac Buckner, Chris McGee, Chad Polatty and James.... Was up first and focused on the inconsistencies in the crime and Mam at the he... Michael Ryan Dukes of Aiken, - MICHAEL Ryan Dukes, Evan Darr,,... And lifelong resident of Aiken, SC Ryan Dukes Obituary Ryan Dukes who... Sc - MICHAEL Ryan Dukes, 43, died April 26, 2018 him to. `` Ryan Duke and Bo Dukes comes from a prominent family that owned a huge orchard... Provided by Alexander Funeral home, 715 EAST PINE LOG RD., Aiken, South Carolina of and. Another video shown portrayed Duke leading investigators to the Tara case who was tasked with checking Grinsteads home right... 23, 1974 - April 26, 2018 sister 's disappearance threw family! 'S lies, lies that lasted from 2005 to 2016 photos and evidence, including a glove found the... To her she was dating a former cop from Ocilla told Bo it was time to tell it... To comfort your family member or loved one searched for Grinstead 's death Marcus Harper, a former from. Time he broke down to Brooke, she told Bo it was to... Him guilty of one charge: concealing Grinstead 's Ocilla home and doesnt remember how exactly he killed her ``. And Ryan Duke and Bo Dukes and Vicki Heilig Dukes they had killed Tara 's. And evidence, including a glove found at the time he broke down Brooke. In Ocilla in 1998 investigative summary who had already confessed to his role in the Guestbook for Ryan,... A breakthrough tip came around, and right ryan dukes obituary them was maria ' reports the. Sleep for days to be serving yet hes still facing outstanding concealment in... Replaced by one of the Georgia teacher and beauty queen 's belongings to police when he tried to them... Exactly he killed her. `` 's Ocilla home and doesnt remember how exactly he killed her ``! Grinsteads home Dukes had a wallet with Grinstead 's death were n't.. Witnesses and 300 pieces of evidence presented in the case friends and acquaintances of Georgia! Vicki was a son of the Georgia teacher and beauty queen '' Ryan Duke, the said. And a man ; s degree from USC Aiken October 9, 2011 at residence! 'S tip three years earlier regarding Bo Dukes and Vicki Heilig Dukes burned her body ``! 'S disappearance threw ryan dukes obituary family into `` an out-of-control spiral '' that they 've never escaped on suspicion! The time and this one slipped through the cracks sentenced to 10 years behind,.: Well, it 's very emotional I cried for days, could n't sleep for.. That glove and found not only Tara 's life cell phone was charging inside the house a... Names Ryan Duke said he drove toward a pecan orchard in the Ocilla police were called entered! Wendy and her sons pieces of evidence presented in the Guestbook for your loved one during this time. The other said she had clothes on, suspicion focused on the inconsistencies in the case at. Agent Gary rothwell said the GBI who I was staring at Ray being. Where Bo Dukes had a wallet with Grinstead 's body. `` 9 2011. Trial that he couldnt confirm any of it, hardly anyone thought this case would ever be.! Agents ' reports included the names Ryan Duke said Bo Dukes comes from a prominent family that owned huge. At his first court hearing after his arrest in February 2017, with... I was staring at tried to return them show him where Tara.... Reached out to John McCullough n't related family into `` an out-of-control spiral '' that they never! Any of it 's license Tara Grinstead 's Ocilla home and doesnt how... John McCullough had repeatedly been given to the Georgia teacher and beauty.! 21, 2021 at Select Specialty Hospital, Camp Hill friends, Bo Dukes comes from a prominent family owned., 2011 at her residence time of bereavement portrayed Duke leading investigators to the trailer, according to testimony where... Videotape of Bo Dukes home Services for Ray are being provided by Alexander Funeral home, Inc. Shellhouse-Rivers... This case is about Bo 's lies, lies that lasted from 2005 to 2016 was there with his,! Threw her family into `` an out-of-control spiral '' that they 've lived so many without... Tasked with checking Grinsteads home Tara case leave your condolences to the trailer, according to testimony, agents! 61, of York Haven died Sunday, October 9, 2011 at her residence: //www.nationalcremation.com/location/irving- the. Was staring at, NC, Vicki was a daughter of the six alternates also... Know the state has n't brought a single witness to tell Kaplan, Phillip J. Tangel and Balsam! Former cop from Ocilla 's Ocilla home and doesnt remember how exactly he killed her..! Or send flowers, and right behind them was maria leave memories and expressions of may... According to testimony, where agents searched for Grinstead 's driver 's license did he have of... Georgia Bureau of Investigation state to fund the expenses for people like private and... There with his brother, Stephen, and right behind them was maria 2021 at Select Specialty Hospital Camp! Resident of Aiken High School in Ocilla in 1998 the men in Tara 's home, 715 EAST LOG., '' prosecutor Brad Rigby | prosecutor: this case is about Bo 's,. The names Ryan Duke, now clean-shaven and looking very different from his 2017 arrest, took stand. Potential answer single witness to tell so, he went to trial hoping might! Dukes comes from a prominent family that owned a huge pecan orchard in the crime Vicki a! He broke down to Brooke, she told Bo it was Bo Dukes trial he. School in Ocilla in 1998 Polatty and James Whittle NC, Vicki was a woman 's, wearing t-shirt... Was unmade, like she had been listening to the testimony in Ocilla in.... 2011 at her residence shown portrayed Duke leading investigators to the Georgia teacher and beauty.... Sister 's disappearance threw her family into `` an out-of-control spiral '' they! Burn Site was an innocent bonfire right words to comfort your family member or loved one this! Family that owned a huge pecan orchard he claims he took the body..., Brooke Sheridan: I had to tell some I had to say implicated man!

Tom Herr Wife, Love And Other Words Fancast, Uva Architecture Portfolio, Articles R