BEN HILL COUNTY, Ga. — A Georgia appeals court has tossed out some charges against two men in one of Georgia’s highest profile murder mysteries, citing that the statute of limitations had expired.
Tara Grinstead, a teacher and beauty queen, vanished nearly 20 years ago from her home in Irwin County. Prosecutors in multiple counties charged Ryan Duke and Bo Dukes, who were former roommates, in her death and disappearance.
Ryan Duke was acquitted of murder in Irwin County, but convicted of concealing Grinstead’s death. Bo Dukes was convicted in Wilcox County for making a false statement, hindering apprehension of a criminal, and concealing the death of another.
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Both men were also indicted in Ben Hill County. On Thursday, Channel 2 investigative reporter Mark Winne learned that those charges have now been dropped.
“We have a statute of limitations for a reason,” said defense attorney Ashleigh Merchant, who represents Ryan Duke.
Merchant says the appeals court ruling may wind up the final legal chapter surrounding the death of Grinstead.
After Ryan Duke’s trial in Irwin County, he was indicted in nearby Ben Hill County on charges of concealing the death of another, hindering apprehension, concealment of facts, and tampering with evidence.
Merchant said Bo Dukes had pending charges in Ben Hill County concealing the death of another, tampering with evidence, and hindering the apprehension of a criminal.
She says a Ben Hill County judge denied defense lawyers’ efforts to throw out those charges on the argument that statute of limitations had expired. But now the court of appeals has stepped in.
“The bottom line is that the court has said that they’re barred from prosecuting this case because they didn’t do it when they should have. They took too long,” Robert James said.
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Winne spoke with James, the former district attorney for DeKalb County, for an objective analysis of what the ruling means.
He says the appeals court basically found law enforcement had probable cause to charge the two men many years before they were charged. It means the four-year statute of limitations on the Ben Hill charges had expired by the time they were arrested.
“Essentially the court said that, you know, listen, in Georgia, we have a four year statute of limitation on those crimes,” James said.
“Waiting 19 something years to arrest people when you have probable cause back in 2005 is not OK,” Merchant said.
Merchant said it’s clear that Duke and Dukes were involved in burning Grinstead’s body in Ben Hill County. She said if prosecutors had the evidence, they could still charge Bo Dukes or someone else with murder, which has no statute of limitations in Georgia.
Merchant considers that unlikely because of the murder acquittal for her client, Ryan Duke.
She said after oral arguments before the appeals court, she was confident. Now, she plans to appeal Duke’s concealing a death conviction in Irwin County. He is currently serving a 10-year prison sentence.
“He has about 18 months left on a sentence for concealing a death,” the defense attorney said.
Merchant said she doubts it will affect Bo Dukes’ 25-year sentence in Wilcox County.
Merchant says the prosecution can petition the Georgia Supreme Court to consider overturning the court of appeals ruling, but she says it’s time for closure for everyone on all sides of the case.
Winne reached out to the Ben County DA’s Office on Thursday. His emails and calls have not been returned.
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