Jerry T. Bunyard, a 76-year-old California prison inmate, has died after spending more than 45 years on death row for the 1979 slaying of his pregnant wife, Elaine Bunyard, and her unborn child.
Background of the Case
Bunyard was convicted of first-degree murder for the killing of his wife, who was found dead on November 1, 1979, in the garage of their San Joaquin County home. Elaine Bunyard died from a massive shotgun blast to the head, and the unborn child died from a lack of oxygen moments later.
According to court records, Bunyard had hired a childhood friend, Erwin Popham, to commit the murders. Popham, a drifter and small-time criminal, had lived with the Bunyard family intermittently. Bunyard had offered his wife a $50,000 settlement for a divorce, but she refused. He also wanted to clear the way to be with his new girlfriend.
Popham initially declined to commit the murder but eventually agreed to do so for a $1,000 fee, followed by additional money once Bunyard received the proceeds of his wife’s life insurance policy. The murder was supposed to be staged as a suicide, but Popham abandoned this plan due to the extreme amount of blood at the scene and instead made it look like a robbery.
Original reporting: Fox News (HLL/CB) — read the source article.
