JONESBOROUGH, Tenn. (Court TV) — Two siblings convicted in their mother’s death have each been sentenced to life in prison.
Siblings Karen and Michael Murray are charged with murder and neglect in the death of their mother, Sheila Murray. (Tennessee Bureau of Investigation)
In June, a Tennessee jury found Karen Murray and Michael Murray guilty of first-degree murder and aggravated neglect of a vulnerable adult in the death of their mother, 68-year-old Sheila Murray.
For aggravated neglect of a vulnerable adult, the siblings were each sentenced to an additional eight years, concurrent with the life sentences. The judge also gave them three more years to be merged with count two.
The brother and sister were scheduled to be sentenced Sept. 30, however the hearing was canceled due to the aftermath of Hurricane Helene. A new date has not been set.
Sheila died in Aug. 2019 after she was admitted to the hospital, prompting the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation to look into the circumstances of her death. Investigators said they determined Karen and Michael “were responsible for the abuse and neglect that resulted in her death.”
Karen and Michael were indicted and arrested in March 2021.
The indictment, reviewed by Court TV, does not specify any acts of neglect or abuse but alleges that they occurred between April 4, 2019, and August 10, 2019.
DAILY TRIAL UPDATES
DAY 4 – 6/28/24
- The prosecution and defense delivered closing arguments.
- The jury deliberated for more than two hours before returning a verdict of guilty on all counts for Karen and Michael Murray.
DAY 3 – 6/27/24
- The jury heard a recorded interview between TBI Special Agent Brian Pritchard and defendant Karen Murray.
- Both sides rested.
DAY 2 – 6/26/24
- Sonya Henry said that she believed her siblings were trying to care for their mother, but that they were in over their heads.
DAY 1 – 6/25/24
- Assistant Deputy AG Robin Ray made the opening statement for the prosecution, telling jurors many graphic details about the state of the Murray home, the oppressive heat inside, and the overwhelming scent of urine and feces — which only grew stronger as EMTs approached the bedroom in which Sheila Murray was found covered in fecal matter with an exposed tibia from a compound ankle fracture
- Karen Murray’s defense attorney Chris Byrd argued that the State would not be able to prove the pair of siblings knowingly neglected Sheila, and that Tony Murray and the defendants did not realize how far in over their head until it was too late
- Dr. Christy Lawson, who examined the victim at the hospital, testifies
