Barbara Anne Hartford, a 68-year-old female, passed away on August 23, 2021, in Grundy, Virginia. A registered nurse at Riverside Medical Clinic and a member of the Grundy Baptist Church, she was a mother and grandmother known for her love of riding horses with her granddaughter.
Her death was the result of gun violence. Deputies from the Buchanan County Sheriff's Office responded to a call at her home on Material Road in the Slate Creek area. Upon arrival, they discovered her body. Investigators also found her husband, Harold Hartford Jr., inside the residence, suffering from what was determined to be a self-inflicted gunshot wound.
Following the discovery, Harold Hartford Jr. was hospitalized with non-life-threatening injuries. The Buchanan County Sheriff's Office announced that he would be arrested upon his release from the hospital. He was subsequently charged with murder and the use of a firearm in the commission of a felony in connection with his wife's death. The incident was investigated as a murder and attempted suicide.
