In the early morning hours of November 19, 2014, the life of 29-year-old Keara Crowder was tragically cut short in her Memphis, Tennessee, home. The promising young woman, a native of Chicago, was shot multiple times during a heated domestic dispute with her wife, Jaselyn Grant. At the time of the incident, Grant was an off-duty Memphis police officer.
The fatal encounter unfolded in their residence in the Hickory Hill area of southeast Shelby County.
The couple, who had married in Illinois earlier that year, were reportedly in the process of separating. The argument that morning escalated to a horrifying level of violence. Crowder’s 12-year-old son was a witness to the tragedy. He testified that as he fled the home to seek help, Grant fired a shot in his direction. Crowder was rushed to a nearby hospital but succumbed to her multiple gunshot wounds approximately five hours later. Responding officers found Grant at the scene, uninjured, with her service weapon, which was determined to be the weapon used in the shooting.
Initially, Grant claimed she acted in self-defense, but the investigation led to her arrest and subsequent charge of second-degree murder. The trial brought to light a history of abusive behavior by Grant, including harassing phone calls and physical violence. In February 2017, a jury rejected her self-defense claim and convicted Jaselyn Grant of second-degree murder. She was also found guilty of reckless endangerment and aggravated assault for firing at Crowder’s son.
Following the conviction, the former police officer was sentenced to 20 years in prison for the murder of her wife. The case, handled by prosecutors specializing in domestic violence, underscored the devastating impact of intimate partner violence. Keara Crowder's family, particularly her young son, were left to grapple with the profound and lasting emptiness of her loss.
