The Murder of Tara Munsey
For this case I watched an episode of Forensic Files. It’s season 14 episode 10, titled ‘Filtered Out.’
A sixteen year old girl disappears after leaving work.
Background
Tara Munsey
Tara Rose Munsey was born on February 2, 1983. Tara lived in Radford, Virginia with her family. Her dad described her as one of a kind.
Tara had been dating a boy named Nick, who was in the Navy, and stationed in Illinois at the time. They had a “fast and furious” relationship, according to Tara’s dad Bill. They had plans to get married, but unfortunately, Tara’s life was taken before they could even see each other again.
The Disappearance
On January 25, 2000, Tara left her job at Taco Bell around 7:30pm. She never returned home, and it was unlike her to not at least call to check in with her parents. They called the police, but the police didn’t take them too seriously at first. They said Tara would probably be home in a few hours.
By the next day, she was still missing. Her car was also discovered still in the Taco Bell parking lot. The car unlocked, Tara had left her hat and to go food in the front seat. However, her keys and purse were missing.
Many people believed Tara had run away to be with her boyfriend Nick, but when the police spoke to him, he said he hadn’t even heard from her in a few days. The police also spoke to his commanding officer, and he had been on the base the whole time.
One of Tara’s co-workers also told the police that Tara had worked the drive thru the day before she disappeared, and had gotten into an argument with two males. There was no way of seeing this argument or where Tara went on January 25, because the Taco Bell didn’t have any surveillance.
The Discovery
Tara’s case was picked up by the local media, and hundreds of searchers came out in the freezing cold and snow to look for her.
Weeks passed, but on February 10, 2000, hikers found a body in a 70 ft. ravine, just 7 miles from Tara’s home. Tara was identified, she had her ID in her back pocket. She was found naked from the waist up, she had been shot four times and she had injuries consistent with being pushed down the ravine post mortem.
Tara’s body was well preserved due to the freezing temperatures. The crime scene was hard to search through, many people would often discard items in this ravine. Eventually, the police did find a .22 caliber shell casing. Tara’s keys and a cigarette was found. The filter of the cigarette was found separated from the cigarette butt. Tara’s shirt was also fond, and on the front was a outline of an athletic shoe.
The Autopsy
Tara’s autopsy was performed. She had been shot once in the chest, and three times in the face all at close range. Tara had blood under her nails, proving that she had fought her killer.
A rape kit was performed, which came back negative, but there was semen found on Tara’s body. The DNA was sent in for further testing.
The shell casing was also tested. It left unusual grooves on the bullet. The forensic scientist named David Gibbs said that the gun was either a revolution, marlin or sears gun.
He Said-He Said
After Tara’s body was discovered, her friends told the police that on the day Tara disappeared, they had smoked weed after school. They said that an older man named Jeff Thomas had been there, and he was the one who provided them with the weed.
Jeff knew Tara because she babysat his six year old daughter. Jeff was 30 years old, unemployed and often lived in his girlfriend’s basement. Oh, and he apparently hung out with teenagers. Jeff also had a criminal history, he had spent 2 years in prison for attacking a neighbor with a baseball bat.
The police brought Jeff in for questioning. Jeff said he had an alibi, but the police couldn’t determine where Jeff had spent the night on the night of the murder. They asked him if he owned a .22 caliber, and he said no, but his friend Kevin Williams did.
Kevin Williams (not sure if this is his real name, it said that Forensic Files changed some of the names in the episode) was questioned. The police went to his home, hoping to look at the .22 caliber weapon. However, Kevin said that Jeff was in possession of his gun. Kevin told the police that they could look in his backyard, because he had used the gun before for target practice. Sure enough, the police found two shell casings. They matched the ones found at Tara’s crime scene.
The Motive
The police were focusing on Jeff Thomas as the killer.
A witness named Barbara came forward after she had been stopped for a traffic violation. Barbara said that she knew Jeff, and he had actually been staying with her at the time of the murder. She said on the night Tara was killed, Jeff came home muddy and agitated. Barbara told the police that Jeff told her he had messed up.
A small clip of Barbara’s taped interview was played in this episode. She said that Jeff told her that Tara wouldn’t have sex with him, and it made him mad. He also confessed to shooting Tara three times “execution style.” The number of times that Tara was shot was never released to the public.
A search warrant was obtained for Jeff’s car. In the trunk, the police found a pair of sneakers. A forensic scientist named Andrew Johnson said that he compared the sneakers to the pictures of Tara’s shirt, and that the shoes could’ve made the pattern.
Three strands of blonde hair with the root still attached were also found in Jeff’s car. The hairs were tested against Tara’s DNA, and it was a match. The evidence against Jeff kept coming. His DNA was found on Tara’s body, clothes, shoe, under her nails and on the cigarette at the crime scene.
Trial and Conviction
The prosecutors and police believed that Jeff waited in the parking lot for Tara to leave work on January 25, 2000. They said he asked her to smoke weed with him again, and they left together. Jeff made sexual advances towards Tara, and she fought back, which made him angry. He then shot her and pushed her down the ravine.
The murder weapon was never recovered, but in March 2001, Jeff was found guilty of capital murder. He was sentenced to death, but Tara’s mom Kitty opposed this sentence. She said:
“The loss of Tara has been terrible, but we don’t wish to see another person die,” “We don’t wish to see Jeff die.”
In 2002, the Virginia Supreme Court gave Jeff Thomas a sentence of life without parole.
Jeffrey Thomas
Other
Bill and Kitty remarried after the loss of their daughter. Kitty passed away on June 21, 2006, after a battle with cancer.
FINAL THOUGHTS
Jeff Thomas is scum. He obviously didn’t have much going for him either. He spent time not working and hanging out with teenagers. Tara caught his eye, probably because she was nice to him and had babysat his daughter. Jeff tried to take advantage of her, and she lost her life because she said no and fought for her life. I feel so sorry for Tara’s family, and that was extremely brave of her mom to say let’s give this man life without parole. Jeff deserves life without parole, so he can pay for what he did to Tara, and not be given the easy way out.
Sources
https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/28702869/tara-rose-munsey
https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/48171246/kitty-munsey
https://www.southwesttimes.com/2014/08/ice-cold-killers-films-episode-in-pulaski/
https://www.commonwealthattorney.net/commonwealth-v-jeffrey-allen-thomas/
