In the early hours of a Wednesday morning in March 2016, the life of 35-year-old Carl Francis Burden of Blacksburg, South Carolina, was tragically cut short. He was seated in the passenger side of a car, with his wife in the driver's seat, when he was fatally shot. The incident was not a random act of violence; all individuals involved were known to one another.
The Cherokee County Sheriff's Office launched an investigation into the homicide.
Their efforts quickly led to the identification of two suspects. Robert Justin Horde was the first to be apprehended, and investigators discovered a gun in his vehicle that was believed to be the murder weapon. Shortly after, a second suspect, Joseph Vance Smith, was also taken into custody. Both men were charged with the murder of Carl Burden.
As the investigation progressed, it was revealed that the motive behind the fatal shooting was a dispute over a tattoo kit. The Cherokee County Sheriff stated that the individuals involved were known to be associated with drug use. In connection with the case, a woman named Teresa Elaine Roberts, who was reportedly pregnant at the time, also faced charges of neglect due to substance use.
Following their arrests, both Robert Justin Horde and Joseph Vance Smith faced the legal consequences of their alleged actions. While the specific details of their trials and the resolution of the charges against Teresa Elaine Roberts are not extensively publicized, the arrests brought a measure of resolution to the initial phase of the investigation into the violent death of Carl Francis Burden.
