Tara Grinstead‘s murder trial happened over a decade after she mysteriously vanished on October 22, 2005. The Georgia teacher and former beauty queen was last seen alive leaving a dinner party that night. The case remained a whodunnit until two suspects—Bo Dukes and Ryan Duke—surfaced in 2017. In fact, at the time of the disappearance, Bo had been a student in one of Grinstead’s classes.
According to CBS News, the following events involved a detailed confession from Bo. He claimed that Ryan, his then-roommate, murdered Grinstead while trying to rob her. As per the confession, Ryan then used Bo’s truck to move the body where they burned the remains until “it looked like it was all ash.” Ryan also offered a similar detailed confession.
Police arrested Tara Grinstead’s alleged killers in 2017, charging Ryan with murder and Bo with covering up the crime. The latter’s charges resulted in a conviction, while Ryan, the alleged killer, testified at his May 2022 trial about lying in his confession. He accused Bo of murder. A jury acquitted him of murder charges but convicted him of concealing a death.
CBS 48 Hours episode “The Tara Grinstead Mystery” has previously chronicled the puzzling case.
Tara Grinstead’s killers: What happened to Bo Dukes and Ryan Duke & where are they now?
During Ryan Duke’s May 2022 trial for Tara Grinstead’s murder, he recanted a previously made confession. CBS News reported that Ryan testified that he offered investigators a false confession after his accomplice Bo Dukes’ confession in 2017. Bo, who was convicted of helping cover up the murder, had accused the defendant of being the killer.
However, Ryan claimed to have taken painkillers before the voluntary GBI interview when he confessed shortly before his arrest. He also alleged that he was scared of his friend Bo. In his testimony, the defendant further accused Bo of being Grinstead’s real killer and admitted to having helped Bo move the victim’s body before the latter set it ablaze.
The outlet reported that investigators had found Ryan’s DNA on a latex glove found in Grinstead’s yard. Nonetheless, he testified that it was Bo who woke him up in 2005 inside their shared mobile home and told him that he killed Grinstead. The defendant also claimed that the then-roommate showed him the victim’s purse and wallet.
Ryan’s testimony was in contrast with Bo’s previous confession. The latter had previously admitted to playing a role in Tara Grinstead’s murder, claiming that Ryan woke him up one morning and told him he “accidentally” killed the former beauty queen. The latter had reportedly said he was trying to rob her in her house when it happened.
Bo had also alleged that Ryan used his truck to move the victim’s body to a pecan orchard owned by the former’s family. Moreover, the alleged killer even showed Bo the exact location where he had dumped Tara’s body. Tara Grinstead’s alleged killers then burned her body in a fire pit, and it took them two days to complete the task. Investigators later found bone fragments at the site, but DNA tests were inconclusive at the time.
People Magazine reported that after more than seven days of testimony, a Georgia jury acquitted the 36-year-old of all murder-related charges in Tara Grinstead’s trial. The jury only found him guilty of concealing the 30-year-old teacher’s death. He received a 10-year prison sentence.
According to the Georgia Department of Corrections, Ryan Duke is currently serving his sentence in Wrightsville’s Johnson State Prison. His possible release date is February 12, 2027.
Elsewhere, Bo Dukes is currently serving a 25-year prison sentence after his 2019 conviction in Tara Grinstead’s murder trial. A jury had found him guilty of concealing the victim’s death. Moreover, he recently pled guilty to unrelated rape charges from two separate cases. The plea deal lets him avoid additional prison time, reported CBS.
As per the Geogia Depart of corrections, Bo remains incarcerated at the Central State Prison. His possible release date is March 20, 2044.
