Dateline episode The Killer Among Them aired on NBC last Friday, November 22, 2024, exploring some harrowing details of the murder of an Atlanta resident, Lance Herndon. Lance was found bludgeoned to death in his Georgia home on August 9, 1996.
He was a renowned entrepreneur as well as a self-made millionaire who lost his life at the hands of a jilted lover. On further investigation, the police confirmed it to be a case of cold-blooded murder and they did not find any sign of self-defense.
Lance was supposedly caught off-guard by the killer and succumbed to his injuries right at the moment. The official synopsis of The Killer Among Them reads:
"After millionaire businessman Lance Herndon is bludgeoned to death in his suburban Atlanta home, the search for his killer reveals no shortage of suspects - or secrets."
**Disclaimer: This article contains descriptions of murder. Please be advised.**
What happened to Lance Herndon in 1996?
Lance Herndon, is a 41-year-old resident of Rosewell, an Atlanta suburb, in Georgia. was a tech magnate who founded the well-known computer firm Access Inc. His efforts over the years eventually made him a millionaire and he also got recognized as small business entrepreneur of the year.
He was also famous for being a very social person and the people of the town loved him. Everything was on track until his 41st birthday party where a romantic encounter eventually turned his life upside down.
There he came across Dianne Baugh, a Jamaican immigrant who was married at the moment. Soon, Lance and Dianne grew close to each other and started dating.
But tumult began when Dianne found out that Lance was also seeing other people behind her back. So, she went to his house unannounced on the night of July 10, 1996, and went into shock after discovering Lance with another woman.
She turned violent and a scared Lance was forced to call 911. He immediately severed ties with her and lodged a trespassing complaint against her. The case was set to go to court on August 9, 1996, but, neither of the two turned up.
When Lance remained unresponsive till late and also did not turn up for work, her mother went to check on him and found him lying bludgeoned to death without any clothes.
What did the investigation reveal?
According to Sportskeeda, the investigators found no signs of struggle on Lance's body. It was evident that the murderer had planned everything beforehand.
As per Dateline, the killer hit him more than 10 times. Herndon's maid's statements revealed that all the alarm clocks in his house were unplugged, meaning that the person knew about Lance's daily routine out and out.
The time of death was supposedly sometime between midnight and 4 in the morning as one of the clocks went frozen at 4:10 a.m. After further investigation, Dianne Baugh was found to have connections to the murder of Lance Herndon.
Eventually, Dianna was arrested and convicted of first-degree murder. In her first trial, she got a life sentence. However, owing to technical discrepancies, the decision was ruled out. She later pleaded guilty and was charged with voluntary manslaughter in August 2001.
Dianne was thus sentenced to 10 years of imprisonment. As per the Georgia Department of Corrections, Dianne Bough was released from the Pulaski State Prison in 2011
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