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A jury in the
East Texas town of Henderson deliberated for more than four
hours following a three-week re-sentencing trial for Bernie
Tiede, who was convicted in 1999 of the murder of 81-year-old
Marjorie Nugent.
Tiede, 57, confessed to shooting Nugent in 1996 and stashing her
body in a freezer chest at her home in the East Texas town of
Carthage, where it remained for nine months before being found.
After he served nearly 17 years, an appeals court granted Tiede
a re-sentencing trial to hear evidence that emerged after his
conviction.
Attorneys from the Texas Attorney General’s office prosecuted
the case after the original prosecutor, Panola County District
Attorney Danny Buck Davidson, recused himself.
"Our office is on a mission to achieve justice for victims and
their families," Attorney General Ken Paxton said after the
verdict.
During the re-sentencing trial, defense attorneys attempted to
prove that sexual abuse Tiede suffered as a child caused him to
snap after he was victimized by Nugent, shooting her four times
in the back in an act of passion.
The original jury dismissed that argument and sentenced Tiede to
life in prison for premeditated murder. Prosecutors produced
evidence that Tiede had misappropriated about $3.8 million from
Nugent, including $550,000 after her murder.
Nugent's family lauded the verdict.
"The family always believed justice would come for their
grandmother when a fair trial had all the facts and none of the
myth," said spokesman Ryan Gravatt.
Tiede's attorneys were not immediately available for comment.
Tiede had been free on a $10,000 personal bond for nearly two
years, living in Austin on property owned by Richard Linklater.
The film based on the case, directed by Linklater, starred Jack
Black as Tiede and Shirley MacClaine as Nugent.
The film chronicled the relationship between Nugent and Tiede,
who became companions shortly after Nugent became a widow. In
1993, Tiede left his job as an assistant funeral director to
work full-time as Nugent’s personal assistant and business
manger.
(Reporting by Marise Richter; Editing by Chris Michaud and Tom
Hogue)
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