EP. 254 - MICHIGAN: When Jealousy Kills: The Senseless Murder of Tara Lynn Grant

Warning, the following podcast is not suitable for all audiences. We go into great detail with every case that we cover and do our best to bring viewers even deeper into the stories by utilizing disturbing audio and sound effects. Trigger warnings from the stories we cover may include violence, rape, murder, and offenses against children. This podcast is not for everyone. You have been warned. Wednesday, February 28, 2007 would be a day that Michigan would never forget. For a local dental hygienist, that day started off like any other. She got up, made her coffee, and read the local news. Michigan had endured a particularly cold and snowy winter that year. So finally, when she could feel the sun rays warming her skin, she thought, "What better way to enjoy it than with the hike?" So early in the afternoon, she set out toward Stony Creek Metro Park, a vast outdoor park about 45 minutes north of Detroit. It was a path she had taken countless times before, but this time she noticed something different. A bright flash of sunlight reflected off a piece of plastic and the distance, catching her eye. At first, she thought it was just a piece of litter, so wanting to leave the trail better than she found it, she approached it. But something wasn't right. As she got closer, she saw that the plastic bag, duck underneath some tree branches, was bright red against the stark white snow. The bag was covered in a red liquid, and there was so much of it that it began pulling in the snow. Immediately, she took the plastic bag to authorities, hoping that the liquid wasn't what she thought it was. Authorities held their breath as they got the results back. And just as they suspected, it was human blood. And right then, they knew exactly who it belonged to. This is the story of Tara Grant. I'm Courtney Browin. And I'm Colin Browin. I'm your listening to "Moder in America." [Music] It was January 7th, 1972, one of the happiest days of Gerald Dusty does tramp and marry Heinz's lives. Just three years prior, Dusty had been drafted to serve in the military during the Vietnam War. During his time serving the US Army, Dusty had earned the specialist rank SP4 and was honorably discharged after two years. Well did he know that his trip back home would change his life forever? It was there that he met the love of his life, Mary. Immediately, their sparks flew, and Dusty knew that this was the woman he wanted to spend the rest of his life with. So soon after on January 7th, 1972, the two said their "ideaus" and began the next chapter of their lives together, and it wasn't long before their family grew. With Joy, they welcomed Tara Lynn does tramp into the world on June 28th, 1972, and before long her little sister Alicia joined the family in 1973. Ever since the girls were little, they were inseparable. Tara, with her contagious smile and curly pigtails, saw the good in life, and was eager to make friends wherever she went. Alicia, the doting little sister, looked up to Tara. She felt a strong connection to her sister that was special, one that no one could break. The girls grew up on a 20-acre farm in Perkins, Michigan. Perkins is a quiet rural community, located in a heavily wooded area that borders the Great Lakes. And Tara and Alicia absolutely loved it. They spent their days outside, enjoying time with each other, and the number of animals they kept on the family farm. As the girls got older, their mother Mary worked as a dental assistant, but when she wasn't in the office, she could always be found working outside in the family garden, intending to their animals. Her father Dusty worked at the wastewater treatment plant, located at the nearby Air Force Base. Dusty and Mary worked hard to provide for their girls and give them everything they needed. They also taught them responsibility from a young age. Soon, Tara would start school, and she was overjoyed that she would meet so many new people. She had always been talkative and friendly, and Alicia recalls that Tara never had a problem striking up a conversation with a perfect stranger, a trait passed down by her father. And both several of Tara's teachers would note her tendency to talk on her report cards to Tara's family, this was just who she was, a beautiful young girl who loved life and everyone in it. Tara was eager to be active and get involved, and soon enough she would participate in a number of activities including Girl Scouts, cheerleading, basketball, track, and the youth group 4-H. She also took piano lessons, and was even the first chair clarinet in her high school band. Tara worked hard on the things she enjoyed. In 1990, she had received the grand champion title for one of her hogs that she raised and entered at the Upper Peninsula State Fair. Her particular pride in joy was her Apollosa horse named RJ's broken finger. Together, the girls would spend their evenings and weekends taking writing lessons, collecting maple syrup from nearby trees, and playing in the river near their house. As I got older, Tara took a particular interest in shooting sports and hunting, so Dusty did everything he could to teach the girls everything he knew about gun safety and handling. Alicia remembers that Tara became an excellent markswoman who participated in multiple shooting sport competitions and enjoyed going on hunting trips with the family. Before they knew it, Mary and Dusty's girls had graduated high school. Immediately, Tara knew that she wanted to study business, so after two years at community college, she enrolled in Michigan State University. The year was 1992. Her sister Alicia recalled, quote, "It was a sad day when Tara moved away from home, but I was excited for her too. She was off to experience new things, meet new people, and most importantly, follow her dreams." And Tara had big dreams at that. She seemed to have a natural talent for marketing and business, and it wasn't long before her peers noticed and started to get to know the girl with a vibrant personality and a passion for her work. But there was one person in particular who was very impressed with Tara, someone that she met in college who would change her life forever. His name was Stephen Christopher Grant. Stephen was born on January 18th, 1970. He had grown up with his sister Kelly and Eastern Detroit, and unlike Tara's upbringing, their childhood hadn't been easy. Growing up, Stephen and Kelly had to witness frequent arguments between their parents that led up to their eventual divorce. Stephen was about 14 at the time. He was a quiet child and stayed mostly with his mom after the divorce. He was an average student, and in his free time, enjoyed working on cars and shooting in the woods near his house. Stephen hadn't really been involved in any activities in high school, and his high school friends described him as "fair" but "undestinguished" in both school and work. Eventually, Stephen would attend Michigan State University with an interest in politics, which is where he met Tara. Tara, who had always been goal-oriented and involved in extracurricular activities, couldn't be more different from Stephen, but Stephen was instantly charmed by Tara's bright smile and bubbly personality. In the beginning of their friendship, Stephen had asked Tara out multiple times, but each time, she said no. He was so enamored by Tara that at one point in their friendship, he actually drove all the way from MSU to Eskinawa for Tara's grandmother's funeral. They weren't even dating. In fact, Stephen wasn't even invited to the funeral, nor had he informed Tara or her family before making the 375 mile drive. But during the service and the midst of her grief, Tara spotted him in the crowd. She was so surprised that he drove six hours just to support her, and it seemed as if it was that moment when Tara's feelings for him changed. In fact, the next day, Tara called him, and she told him she loved him. Stephen would later say that this unprompted trip to Tara's grandmother's funeral didn't just win her over, but also Tara's father. To them, this was a man who truly cared about her, and not long after, the two started dating. That spark between Tara and Stephen continued to grow, until finally in September of 1995, he proposed to Tara on the steps of one of her favorite places, the Detroit Institute of Arts. Tara said yes, and she couldn't be more excited for their future. By that point, she had graduated with her bachelor's degree in business administration, and shortly after, began working as a temp with Washington Group International, an engineering and construction firm. Tara, full of personality, immediately made an impression on her peers, and it wasn't long before she was hired on full time. This was a busy time in Tara's life. She earned her degree and found a solid job all while planning a wedding. Stephen, meanwhile, had dropped out of MSU and taken a position working for former Michigan State Senator Jack Faxid. Around 1996, Tara and Stephen took their relationship one step further and joined their lives together through marriage. In the early years of their marriage, Tara took time to travel and grow her career all while remaining close to her sister, Alicia, despite the distance. Her family was so proud of the woman she was growing into. Tara had an incredibly bright future ahead of her, and it would only get better from there. By the year 2000, Tara was in the first place. Then, Tara was ready to share her joy and grow their family. Together, they welcomed their daughter Lindsay into the world, and immediately Tara was in love. She felt the pure, unconditional love that exists between a mother and her child. Then to Tara and Stephen's surprise, in 2002, Lindsay would become a big sister when the family welcomed baby Ian into the world. Tara loved her children more than anything. She wanted nothing more than to see their faces light up with joy and happiness, and she did everything in her power to give them the love and support they needed. Tara's sister, Alicia, saw all of the traits she loved so much in her sister passed down to her children. She would later say, quote, "Lindsay is little Tara, her personality, even though she is her own person, I definitely see Tara in her all the time, no doubt." Ian is a really loving kid, and that was Tara, end quote. Now when Tara wasn't working, she spent all of her time devoted to her children, excitedly planning birthdays and holidays so they would be extra special. And soon enough, Tara's sister Alicia was ready to start her own family. When Alicia told Tara that she and her husband were going to start a family of their own, Tara happily said, quote, "Our kids will grow up together and be close, just like you and I." Now, at this point, Tara was at a very comfortable spot in her career. She had been working with Washington Group International for more than 10 years, and had been promoted to an operations manager position, complete with a six-figure salary. So while their kids grew up, Tara became the breadwinner, giving her family a comfortable life while Steven stayed home to care for Lindsay and Ian. The family had purchased a large two-story house in the Washington Township suburbs in Macomb County, about 30 miles north of downtown Detroit. This particular community was relatively high-income and peaceful, crime rates were low, and the neighbors took time to get to know each other. But Tara, this neighborhood seemed like the perfect place to raise their children. At first, Steven seemed okay with managing the responsibility as a stay-at-home dad. While Tara was away at work, he would take the kids to their appointments and activities. He would cook for them, put them to bed each night. In his free time, he would spend a few hours each week working in his father's small two-man machine shop, USG Babit, making automobile bearings. Tara's nickname, Steven, missed her mom because of his stay-at-home dad role, and he seemed to enjoy it. But as time went on, Tara was being called to travel for her job more and more. These trips took her across the country and even overseas for a significant period of time. It was hard for Tara to be away from her kids. She loved her family, and despite her time away, she did everything within her power to see them as much as possible. When she was gone, she called all the time. She visited them every weekend, and she made sure to send her kids' cards from abroad to remind them just how much she loved them. Ian and Lindsay looked forward to seeing their mom, and giving her a big hug each time she came home. They kept every single card their mom sent, tucked away somewhere safe. For Steven, however, Tara's weekend visits were not enough. While she called almost every day and visited home every opportunity she could, these periods with her way began to wear down on her and Steven's relationship. Steven began to feel the full weight of caring for the kids full time, and he often complained that it was too much for him to handle. So slowly, he began to resent her. He believed Tara was not spending enough time with her children, or with him. And as Steven's resentment grew, he and Tara argued more and more about her busy work schedule. He also struggled with the power dynamic in their relationship. He was hard for him to accept that he was not the breadwinner of the family, that he didn't have that control, and control seemed to be something he so desperately wanted. Tara's sister Alicia recounts numerous arguments she and her husband Eric had with Steven. When they talked, Steven was so desperate to be in control of a conversation that he frequently put people down. He did it to everyone, but especially to Tara. For Alicia, it was hard for her to hear the person who was supposed to love and protect her sister, say such hurtful things, and as time went on, they grew to dislike Steven. So much so that they started cancelling plans and trips just so they wouldn't have to be around him. Tara began to notice her sister pulling away, and eventually, Alicia decided to bring it up to her sister. She told Tara that Steven's behavior was concerning. Alicia believed she was being emotionally abused, but Tara didn't see it that way. Sure, she and Steven had been arguing more, but she loved him and she wanted to make it work. So, there wasn't much Alicia could do. She would later say, "At the time, preserving my relationship with Tara was more important than speaking my mind." But as time went on, Steven and Tara's relationship only got worse. Steven became more manipulative and paranoid. Because Tara was often away at work, he began to take control of their finances at home without Tara's knowledge. Her frequent time away also convinced him that Tara was having an affair with her boss, and this caused them to argue even more than before. Tara noticed the increased tension, so in an attempt to mend their relationship, the two attended marriage counseling. But for Steven, this was still not enough. He was so unhappy with Tara's work schedule and their crumbling relationship that he had actually contacted an attorney and was considering a divorce, although he never went through with it. It didn't work hard to get to where she was in her career, although it was hard for her to be away. She wasn't going to just give it up. And after listening to Steven's concerns, she came up with a solution to alleviate some of his stress. They decided to hire an opair to help Steven with the kids while she was away. Tara hoped that maybe if he wasn't so overwhelmed, he would be happier. But when searching for the right opair, Tara was picky. She didn't just want someone who would watch the kids, but someone who would enrich their lives, like taking them to different activities, teaching them a new language or skill. However, Steven's priorities were much different. When he looked through the list of nannies, he wasn't focused on their skills or qualifications. He admitted that he was picking out the most attractive women. Now in total, the grants had hired six nannies to help, but they all quit after just a few weeks. And as if they just couldn't find the right fit. For some, Tara had high expectations that they didn't meet. For others, the opairs didn't feel right about the position, and caring for Ian and Lindsay, while also being around Steven every day, was not easy for them. So by the summer of 2006, Tara and Steven were searching for help through the agency opair in America. And eventually, they stumbled across the profile of a 19-year-old named Farina Dirkus. Farina was a tall slender blonde, who lived in Germany. She had just graduated high school and was looking for an opair position in the United States. Her profile also stated that she wanted to be a teacher one day. For the grants, she seemed like the perfect fit, so they hired her. In August of 2006, Farina flew across the world to start this new chapter. Upon arriving at the grant household, everything seemed to be going well. Both Tara and Steven got along with her, but more importantly, their children, three-year-old Ian and five-year-old Lindsay, absolutely loved her. There was one occasion Farina remembers fondly when the entire family went out together to a baseball game. Farina seemed to fit right into the family, and something she loved was that Tara and Steven also supported her dreams of one day becoming a teacher. In fact, on top of being an op-ar to the family, she was also taking classes at the McComb community college to work towards that goal. Well, for a while, everything was working out great for both parties, however, before long, things would take a turn. While Tara was away for work, Steven began to get flirty with the 19-year-old opair who was almost 20 years his junior. At first, it was just comments. Steven would frequently compliment Farina on her appearance and her body. Then on one occasion, he suggested a threesome between himself, Farina, and one of his friends. Farina laughed and brushed it off, thinking it was just a joke. But for Steven, it wasn't a joke, and it was just the beginning. On another occasion when Tara was away in London, Steven told Farina that he wanted to kiss her. Again, she declined, brushed it off, and the two continued on. But then Steven started to invite Farina to shower with him, and soon after that, he was inviting her to sleep with him in bed while Tara was away. Farina would later say that she declined these advances time and time again, but that didn't stop him. Steven began to obsessively message an email, Farina, telling her all about his explicit thoughts and desire to have sex with her. And while in the beginning, she would decline his advances. Slowly but surely, Steven was building a relationship with her, one that he could use to manipulate and exploit her. Clearly, there was a huge power dynamic here. Steven was her boss. Farina was vulnerable, young, and from a completely different country. Meanwhile, Tara had no idea what her husband was doing behind her back. In October 2006, Tara's work took her abroad for a long-term project in San Juan, Puerto Rico. For months, Tara would commute over 1,900 miles between her job and her Michigan home. Without exception, she came home to her kids every weekend, keeping in touch throughout the week as much as she was able to. Tara and her sister also remained close despite the differences between them, and on February 9, 2007, Tara called Alicia while she was waiting in the Newark airport to come home. The sisters talked about their lives, their children, and their plans. Together they had planned a trip in March to go back to their family farm and teach their kids to tap maple syrup, just as they had done. as kids. Tara told Alicia that she couldn't wait to get home and see her children, ready to save her every moment of it. She seemed upbeat as she told Alicia her plans to return to Puerto Rico on Monday. Then, after about 40 minutes, the girls said goodbye and hung up their phones as they had countless times before. This time, however, would be different. This time would be the last time that Alicia would ever get to speak to her sister. It was Valentine's Day, February 14, 2007. The day started off like any other, despite the gusty winds and falling snow. For Tara's loved ones, they got ready to face the day, having no idea that within the next 24 hours their lives would change forever. This was the day that 37-year-old Stephen Grant put on his shoes and coat and drove to the Macomb County Sheriff's Office. Officers watched, as Stephen entered the lobby. Immediately, they noticed a large scratch on Stephen's nose that had already scabbed over. As Stephen sat down in the office, he told the officers that he needed to file a missing person's report for his wife, 34-year-old Tara Grant. He told the officers that he and Tara had gotten into an argument in their home on Friday, February 9, and that in the midst of their argument, she stormed out of their house. Stephen said that he hadn't heard from her since. Now the officers did a little mental math. Stephen said he stormed out of their house on February 9, and today was February 14, meaning Tara had been gone for five whole days. They made a mental note of that and let Stephen continue. But something else they noticed was that Stephen was speaking so quickly that they could barely keep up with what he was saying. According to Stephen, Tara had been on a work trip a week prior to her disappearance, and they started arguing before she ever even made it home. She had been gone a lot recently, traveling to and from Puerto Rico for work. On February 9, she called him from the airport and said that her flight was delayed, so she'd be getting home later than expected. Now Tara was only supposed to be home for a few days before she had to fly to Puerto Rico again, and on the phone with Stephen, she told him that for her next trip, she actually had to fly out a day earlier than she expected. Stephen was upset. They started arguing about the fact that she wasn't going to be home for very long. And soon after, when Tara finally arrived at their house, the arguing continued. In fact, it got even more heated. Stephen said that in the middle of their fight, Tara grabbed her phone to call someone. He didn't know who she called, but she told the person on the other end, quote, "I'll be out in a minute." Then, according to him, she abruptly left the house, stepping into a black sedan pulled up to the edge of their driveway. And that was the last time Stephen said he had seen or heard from Tara. In the days following her disappearance, Stephen told the officers that he tried to contact her multiple times with no response. Now, as we mentioned, Tara was supposed to leave for Puerto Rico again that week, so on February 12, Stephen said he called her boss to see if she arrived, but she hadn't. Tara was not in Puerto Rico. Stephen said that on the phone, Tara's boss urged him not to report her missing just yet, so he didn't. Instead, Stephen called Tara's family members. He spoke to her sister, Alicia, and her mom Mary, but they hadn't seen Tara either. And finally, after five days of not hearing from her, he decided to report her missing. Now, like any investigation, the officers had some questions for Stephen. One being, "What do you think happened to her?" And Stephen's response was strange. He told the officers that his theory was that because of Tara's high-profile work, with Washington Group International, she may have been kidnapped by terrorists or maybe even exposed to chemical weapons in Puerto Rico. For detectives, that scenario did not seem very likely. And throughout Stephen's time in the police station, they just couldn't ignore that big scratch on his nose. They asked him about it. He replied calmly that it was a work-related injury he had gotten well in his father's shop. Silently, officers noted scratches on Stephen's hand and a large bruise on his leg. As they listened and watched, they had a feeling that there was something Stephen wasn't telling them. They were surprised when Stephen abruptly remarked, "I talked to my father, and he said the first person who was always suspected in cases like this is the husband." At this point, officers had no evidence that Tara's disappearance was related to a crime. But despite this, Stephen had just named himself as a suspect right in front of them. Stephen continued to talk to officers about his and Tara's relationship, his suspicions that her having an affair, and he even mentioned the couple's op-ar, Verena Deercas. When Stephen told officers Verena was only 19, they had a sinking suspicion. They asked if Stephen was having any kind of relationship with her. He admitted that he had an interest in her, but denied that he was having an affair. Eventually, Stephen wrote his statement down for police and left the McComb County Sheriff's Office, continuing on with his day as if nothing had happened. Tara's family, on the other hand, had a feeling something was terribly wrong. They knew Tara had always been an overachiever and hard worker. Her sister Alicia couldn't remember Tara even missing one day of work, and the 13 year she spent at Washington Group International. But more than that, was Tara's complete devotion to her children. Her family knew that she would never disappear and leave them behind, especially with no explanation. And ever since that phone call was Stephen, they had this sinking feeling. On the call, Stephen told Alicia that it was no big deal that Tara hadn't been heard from. Alicia listened to him and disbelieved as he told her that he wouldn't be surprised if Tara was "shocked up in a motel with some guy." Alicia was floored. She knew her sister better than anyone, and immediately she knew something was wrong. So without hesitation, Alicia and her husband Eric packed up their things to make the five-hour drive north to Ohio to look for her sister. Meanwhile, officers began looking into Tara's case. They called her boss who confirmed that Tara was supposed to fly to Puerto Rico on Monday, February 12th, not Sunday, the 11th, like Stephen had claimed. Now, her boss had worked with Tara for 13 years. He knew Tara's personality, were cabbets, and her family. He told officers that this was so unlike Tara that he knew something was wrong. Next, officers looked into Tara's cell phone activity, email activity, and credit card charges for any clues on her whereabouts, and the results troubled them. As it turns out, Tara had not used her phone, work email, or credit card since Friday, February 9th, the night that Stephen said she stormed out of their house and got into that black car. And the officers knew that in missing person cases, every minute counts. The fact that Tara hadn't had any phone email or card activity was not a good sign, and this information was especially troubling because it proved that Stephen lied. Remember when he told investigators that Tara called someone in the midst of their argument? Then shortly after that she got into that black sedan? Well, there was absolutely no record of a call, and the more officers kept digging, the more discrepancies they saw, and Stephen's story. Later that same day, the McComb County Sheriff's Office received a call. To their surprise, it was Stephen Grant calling again just a few hours after filing Tara's missing persons report. He wanted to know what they had found. This was actually really convenient for officers, because after looking into Tara's disappearance, they had a suspicion that there was something that Stephen wasn't telling them. So, with Stephen on the line, they asked him if it would be okay if some investigators went over to the Grant family home to look around and ask some more questions. And Stephen agreed. So, without delay, officers Pam McLean and Brian Koslowski soon pulled into the Grant's driveway. The two-story, Taltbrick home, was dusted with snow, but that didn't discourage them. They were greeted upon arrival by Stephen, who introduced them to his two children Ian and Lindsay, and their live-in, Apar, Farina Diercus. Farina was amicable to officers, but she seemed to be in a hurry to leave. After some insistence, officer McLean was able to talk to Farina alone about the night of Tara's disappearance. And quickly, she told officers that the night Tara had disappeared, she had been out with some of her friends at a local bar. She said that when she returned to the Grant residence at 11.30pm, Tara was already gone. That night, Stephen told her that he and Tara had gotten into a heated argument before Tara walked out the door. Now, after telling investigators this brief story, Farina insisted she needed to leave. So, from there, they were left to talk with Stephen and the children. While officer Kuzlowski talked with Stephen, Ian and Lindsay excitedly gave officer McLean a tour of their home. The kids took her to their mom's room, which looked spotless. Strangely, nothing was out of place, but as officer McLean walked around the room, something stuck out. Tara's glasses were sitting on the nightstand. All of her clothes and shoes were neatly put away. Nothing seemed to be missing. Officer McLean made a mental note of this, as she continued through the house. Downstairs, officer Kuzlowski was also noting strange behavior. Stephen, who seemed more than willing to invite officers to his home, was anything but calm. He was shaky and jittery as he conversed with them, jumping from one subject to the other. And his story was shifting. Remember how Tara allegedly told him that she had to leave a day early for Puerto Rico. According to Stephen, she said that she needed to leave Sunday instead of Monday, which is actually why they started arguing that night. But when investigators talked to Tara's boss, he said that wasn't true. Tara wasn't supposed to leave early. So, they brought this up to Stephen. Why did you tell us that? This time, he said he was mistaken. Tara was not leaving on Sunday, but on Monday, like she had originally planned. Rapping up their visit, the officers were even more convinced that Stephen Grant was involved in his wife's disappearance. They were so concerned that they asked Stephen if he could come down to the station later to answer questions for a third time and to take a polygraph test. Stephen broke down in tears, but eventually he did agree to come down to the station the following day. From there, the officers took some photos of the home and of Stephen's scratches, and then they left, hopeful that tomorrow would give them some answers. But to their disappointment, Stephen never took that lie detector test. The day after he filed Tara's missing persons report, Stephen hired a lawyer. David Green was a well-known Metro Detroit lawyer who defended multiple high-profile cases in McComb County. David was not only adamant that Stephen refused to take the lie detector test, but that he also only communicate with officers through writings sent through his attorney's office. So instead of receiving answers, officers received another set back in the search for Tara. So that morning, instead of heading to the McComb County Sheriff's office like he had promised, Stephen left his home with two envelopes full of cash. While we don't know exactly where he was headed, it was known that Tara kept envelopes of cash in her dresser to pay the bills. So maybe Stephen was just running errands. Regardless, Stephen never made it to his final destination. As he made it turn on to another street, he failed to signal. As luck would have it, there was a cop nearby that saw this, and pulled Stephen over for a traffic violation. Stephen then became my rate. He screamed at the officer. I know why you're pulling me over, it's because of my wife. The officer had no idea what Stephen was referring to as he took Stephen's license, but as it turned out, Stephen had a pretty terrible driving record. Apparently, he'd been arrested multiple times in the past relating to his driving record, had multiple speeding tickets, parking fees, and traffic fines that often went unpaid, as well as reports of reckless driving, and a few instances of carrying a concealed firearm without the proper permits. Since the early 2000s, Stephen's license had been suspended multiple times for not paying his tickets, and this day was one of them. So just one day after he had filed Tara's Missing Persons report, Stephen was placed under arrest for suspicion of driving on a suspended license. The officer took Stephen to the McComb County Sheriff's office, where he was detained for about six and a half hours. Stephen was furious with the officers. They reassured him again and again that he had been arrested for his driving record, and nothing more. But Stephen remained convinced that he was being targeted and interrogated in connection with his wife's disappearance. Eventually, Stephen was released, but neither he or his lawyer believed his arrest was just a coincidence. Meanwhile, officers followed any lead they could to find Tara. They contacted Opaire America, the agency that had placed 19-year-old Verina into the Grant's home. After a brief conversation, the agency's and officers agreed that the Grant home was no longer fit for Verina because of the ongoing investigation into Tara's disappearance. So just six months after she had taken the position, Verina was asked to pack her bags and return to Germany. Now, Stephen relied on Verina to care for Ian and Lindsay. As you may recall, he struggled to care for the children full time, which is why they hired a nanny in the first place. So after Verina was sent home, Stephen's sister Kelly came to help care for Ian and Lindsay, while the search for their mom was ongoing. At this point, news about Tara's disappearance began to spread. By Saturday, February 17th, eight days since Tara was last seen, flyers were sent to local media, and Tara's story had lined in the Detroit news. By Sunday afternoon, Tara's sister Alicia, her husband Eric, and his sister Jeanine had arrived in town to assist search efforts. They talked with detectives. They put out flyers around town, desperately trying to find answers. That day, after a long morning handing out flyers, they decided to visit Stephen with takeout to brainstorm what could have happened to Tara. As they pulled into the Granch driveway, the one they had visited so many times before they had a feeling that something was wrong. Stephen greeted them, but he seemed different. Alicia's husband Eric got the impression that Stephen wasn't happy about their unannounced visit, almost like they were wasting his time looking for Tara. Alicia also felt uncomfortable. She and Stephen had never really gotten along in the past. In this time, there was even more tension between them. She noticed that he seemed jittery, irritable, and she had the suspicion that he was hiding something. And that day, when they finally left the grand home, they were confident that Stephen was responsible for Tara's disappearance. Detectives, meanwhile, kept looking. Unable to find any evidence that Tara had paid for a car to come pick her up on the night of the ninth, they began to believe that there wasn't a mysterious car at the Granch household that night at all. As their suspicions about Stephen grew, he was increasingly distancing himself from investigators. Then, on February 20, 11 days into Tara's disappearance, investigators got an interesting call. It was from one of Stephen's ex-girlfriends. She saw the news about Tara's disappearance, and she had some information for them. As it turned out, Stephen had been messaging her lately. In fact, they were emailing each other just days before Tara disappeared. Now, she handed over all the emails between them and the authorities began looking through them. In one email sent January 25, 2007, just 15 days before Tara disappeared, Stephen wrote, "I just think of marriage vows like speed limits. Sometimes you have to break them and sometimes you get caught." In other messages, Stephen told his ex that he believed Tara was having an affair with her boss. In some of the messages, Stephen told his ex that he was lonely. And there were even emails that were sexual in nature. One said, "I do want to see you naked." Now, his ex-girlfriend confirmed that they hadn't just talked through emails. The two had even met up twice in January while Tara was out of town. This was a huge development in the investigation. These messages gave investigators concrete proof that Stephen believed Tara was cheating, and that he himself was not committed to their marriage. They now had a possible motive leading to Tara's disappearance. News of Stephen's released emails spread quickly among the media, but Stephen didn't seem to mind. At the same time that Stephen was distancing himself from the police, he was actually making numerous media appearances. In one interview, Stephen cried and looked into the camera, telling the world that he hoped Tara would walk through the door. Stephen appeared breathless, and many who saw the footage noticed his bulging eyes and melodramatic speech. In another interview, Stephen told reporters that he would rather find out that Tara was with another man than in harm's way, wishing she would come home because her kids were worried about her. On television, Stephen even said that he understood why he was a suspect. Keep in mind, at this point, the police had never officially stated that a crime had even taken place, let alone named any official suspects. Stephen was doing all this on his own. Now, as the days went on, Stephen had stopped contacting investigators completely, and he had denied their requests to search the home or provide some of Tara's clothing for dogs to trace. Sheriff Mark Hackle of the McComb County Sheriff's Office stated, "We're getting support from other family members and from Tara's workplace. The only person who is not cooperating with us is Stephen Grant." Stephen Grant, who had been so willing to talk to officers, had now become a brick wall. Investigators were frustrated that they weren't able to get any more answers from him, however, Stephen's frequent media appearances gave them another source of information. So, the McComb County Sheriff's Office began to watch and record every media appearance that Stephen made, trying to piece it all together. By day 13 in Tara's disappearance, investigators were confident that there was foul play involved. They knew the chances of finding Tara alive were dwindling every hour that passed. Now, winter and Michigan that year had been a particularly cold one. Snow was piled up all around, making it difficult to search. So, as soon as investigators heard that the upcoming weekend was going to be warmer, melting away some of the snow, they became hopeful that if Tara were out there somewhere, they would have a better chance finding her. They just didn't know where to look. Sheriff Hackle remembered a location that had come up again and again, and his conversations with Stephen, the Stoney Creek Metro Park. He had a hunch that this was the first place they should look, so he announced to the media that during the upcoming weekend, there would be a search. Carefully, Sheriff Hackle paid close attention to Stephen's reaction during his media appearances. At first, Stephen told the media that he would be an asset because he knew the area of Stoney Creek Metro Park well. But the fact was, the Sheriff's Office didn't want him there, in a press conference before the search, Sheriff Hackle said that having Stephen involved would be a hindrance, and that they "don't need him there unless he knows where she is." Now that comment was not received well by Stephen, or his attorney, they believed the police were We're negative. impact Stephen's public image, but eventually, at his attorney's insistence, Stephen declared that he would remain home while they searched the park for his wife. When the day of the search arrived, investigators were prepared. At almost 4,500 acres, the Stony Creek Metro Park is a vast outdoor recreation park. At the center of the park lies a large lake surrounded by wetlands and open prairies. The less traveled areas of the park consist of dense woodlands and trails. All this to say that the search for Terra's remains would not be easy. Teams searched by foot, on horseback, and with ATVs in an attempt to find anything hidden somewhere in the snow banks. Helicopters flew overhead, looking for any sign of Terra in the more desolate areas of the nature preserve, and while Stephen remained at home with his sister and the kids, Terra's sister Alicia and her husband Eric spent all day searching with authorities. They looked everywhere from high traffic areas to the desolate edges of the park, but sadly, no one was able to locate anything. At this point, all lies were on Terra's disappearance. Authorities were so desperate for answers that the Michigan State Police and the National Center for Missing Adults became involved. Quickly, her case had garnered widespread national media attention. The media had picked up on Stephen's nickname, Mr. Mom, and soon enough, everyone knew about the stay-at-home dad with a missing wife. Stephen seemed to enjoy his notoriety. He continued giving countless interviews and statements, while at the same time maintaining no contact with police. He was so focused on his public image that each morning, he would actually walk over to nearby gas stations to purchase every newspaper that had his name in the headlines. Stephen had become obsessed with his publicity. W.D.I.V. Channel 4 News reported that Stephen had called them as many as five times every day, offering comments and interviews. But at home, Stephen never really told his kids what was going on. At first, they believed their mom was out on a work trip. They missed her, but she had always come back before, so why would this time be different? However, as the days progressed, the kids were still asking about their mom. And eventually, Stephen set them down. He asked them, "Do you remember how our dog got lost that one time?" The kids shook their heads in agreement. "Do you remember how he eventually came back home?" He asked. "Well, mommy is like the dog. She's lost right now, but eventually she'll find her way back home." His implication that Tara had simply wandered away made it seem like it was an intentional choice. One that gave them hope that she could wander back at any moment. But as you've likely suspected, that was not the case. By Wednesday, February 28, it had been almost 20 days since Tara was last seen. As soon enough, her loved ones would get the answers that they had been searching for. That afternoon, a local dental hygienist decided to take advantage of the warmer weather and take a walk along Mount Vernon Road, which led into the Stony Creek Metro Park. Just four days earlier, investigators and community volunteers had searched the park with no luck. The hikers luck, however, would be different. She enjoyed hiking and taking in the natural beauty of her surroundings, and as she walked, she recalled the police telling hikers in the area to keep an eye out for anything suspicious. There was, after all, a missing woman in the area, so she knew to be vigilant. As she followed the path she had taken countless times before, something caught her eye. The bright flash of sunlight reflecting off of plastic. It was very common to come across litter on the trails, so, in an effort to leave the park cleaner than she found it, the hiker walked up to collect the trash. But, as she got closer, she noticed something else, something strange. Shove underneath the two tree branches was the clear plastic bag, but it was covered in some sort of red liquid. Around the bag, she noticed that the liquid had pooled underneath, standing out against the stark white snow. Immediately, she had a bad feeling. Taking a closer look, inside the bag, she could see a pair of rubber gloves and some metal shavings. Her heart sank. She had a feeling she knew what that red substance was. She needed to get this to the authorities, but she didn't have access to a phone. So, the hiker quickly picked the bag up, took it home to her garage, and immediately called the sheriff's office. Could this have been the break in Tara's case they were looking for? Not wanting to waste a second. Investigators took the bag for testing, and had the hiker take them to exactly where she had found it on the trail. They had a feeling this was the piece of the puzzle they had been missing, but they couldn't jump to conclusions just yet. The bag could have been discarded by poachers, which was a plausible explanation. Still, there was one thing that didn't make sense. The metal shavings in the bag, investigators were called that Stephen worked in a small shop with his father, producing ball bearings. Work like that would certainly produce metal shavings, similar to what was found in the bag. Upon closer inspection of the contents, they also found hair in the bag. Not human, but animal hair, and it looked like it belonged to Stephen's dog. Working on a hunch, investigators turned the bag over to MSP Crime Lab for processing. Because of the high profile case, the bag was processed immediately, and the results arrived the following day. The news gave them the answers they had been suspecting all along. The blood in the bag was identified as human. Now they couldn't confirm just yet if it was Tara's blood, but they had a pretty good idea, and if it was Tara's, they knew that this meant the chances of finding her alive were sadly not in their favor. But with this discovery, investigators now had enough evidence to request a search warrant for Stephen Grant's house. Without delay, on Friday, March 2, officers McLean and Kuzlowski were once again preparing to search the Grant House and Stephen's father's workshop. At the exact same time, Stephen was across town doing an interview with Detroit News. In the interview, Stephen's public persona shifted. This time, he talked about Tara in the past tense. In front of a national audience, Stephen shared exactly what he thought of his wife. He described Tara's alleged infidelity, complained about the change in her appearance since their marriage, and criticized Tara's parenting, stating, "I was a better mom than Tara was. There's no other way to put it. I was the perfect mom, not Tara." It details about their marriage, messages, and Tara's past relationships were being shared without proof or consideration for the person they belonged to. He blamed the argument they'd had on the evening of February 9th on her, claiming that she made him so tired of arguing that he didn't want to do it anymore. So tired that he let her go without another word. When he was finished, surprisingly, Stephen wasn't the only one headed back to his two-story home. It was about 5pm when officers pulled into the driveway. As it turns out, Stephen had actually scheduled another interview with WDIV Channel 4 News in his garage that evening. So as police padded Stephen down and escorted him to their cruiser, cameras were rolling. Initially, Stephen was calm. At this point, officers didn't have enough to arrest him, so he was let go, and he complied with the search warrant, handing over his keys to the house. While investigators began the search, undercover officers in the area watched as Stephen grabbed a leash and took their family dog Bentley out for a walk. And because they didn't want to blow their cover, they decided not to follow him. Instead, they watched as Stephen and his dog walked away from the house and into the falling snow. As soon as Stephen was out of sight, he called a friend who lived just two miles away, asking for a ride. When he picked Stephen up, his friend noticed that Stephen was acting strangely. He said that he was, quote, "acting very nervous." He was sweating and looking over his shoulder, he asked, "Are we being followed?" Stephen told his friend that the police had impounded his vehicle, so he had no way to get around. So when they pulled up to the friend's house, he offered to let Stephen borrow his yellow truck. Without a word, Stephen took the keys and he and his dog drove away into the cold winter night. Meanwhile, a large team of investigators were searching every inch of the grandson's home. Sarah Kuzlowski was standing in the garage, trying to stay out of the way of the evidence technicians. As his eyes adjusted to the light, something caught them. There was a large green container placed along the wall next to a bucket full of toys. The container was labeled "boy clothes." But to officer Kuzlowski, something about it seemed out of place. Curious, he walked over and tried to open the box, but it was tightly sealed shut. For a moment, he pulled harder on the lid. Finally, when he was able to pry the top open, he saw a large black garbage bag inside. Gently, he pushed on the back. It felt soft. He was able to push the contents around. Initially, he thought it was just some sort of sand, or maybe a heavy old bag of clothes. He almost closed the lid and moved on, but something in his mind wouldn't let it go. So just to be sure, he ripped open the bag, but he could have not been prepared for what he found. For a fleeting second, he told himself that it was just a deer carcass. But then, he saw the black braw. Instinctively, he jumped away yelling "what the fuck?" Prompting the other officers to see what was going on. They all gathered around the box, peeling away the bag. They discovered a dismembered female torso. There were still pieces of her clothing attached, even more strange. The entire torso was covered with bits of leaves and twigs, debris that shouldn't be there. The officers were appalled, but finally, they found the answers they had been looking for. As Tara's disappearance drew on, they knew the chances of finding her alive or less in less each day, but the horrible and brutal way in which they found her remains will forever be seared into their memory. After the shock wore off, they felt a strange sense of relief. Finally, they had found her, and they had proof that Stephen Grant was not the man he said he was. But there was one problem, Stephen and his dog had walked away into the snow, nowhere to be found. Well for a brief ad break. Anyways y'all, let's get back to the show. As you can imagine, the media was very invested in this case. Sharif's tried to keep their discovery as quiet as possible so that Tara's loved ones did not have to hear about her brutal end through the media. Sharif hackle broke the news to Tara's sister Alicia in person 5.30am Saturday morning after she had driven all night from Ohio. Alicia remembers, "It was like your worst nightmare come to life. We held out a glimmer of hope that she may still be alive, but this was just the worst possible scenario. It's something you never would have imagined." While they tried to track down Stephen's location, authorities prioritized finding the rest of Tara's remains. Investigators theorized that Stephen had heard the news that the Stony Creek Metro Park would be searched, so when no one was around, he made his way to the park and removed the largest portion of her remains, keeping it in his home until things cooled down. But Tara's torso was the only portion of her remains that were found at the home, so there was a chance that more of Tara's body could still be hidden within the park. The following day investigators returned to the park to conduct another search. Sergeant King, who was familiar with the area, took a team back into the less accessible wooded area of the park, and he didn't have to search long. Walking through the forest, he noticed something pink sitting atop the white snow. With a heavy heart, he walked closer. Right in front of him, sitting atop the stark white snow was one of Tara's thighs. He recalled that the cut looked clean. The skin was pulled back, immediately after this discovery. Another team of searchers found an even more shocking discovery, wedged underneath an uprooted tree trunk, was Tara's decapitated head. With her distinctive curly brown hair, they immediately knew it was her, and even though it had been more than three weeks since her murder, her remains were pristine. There was barely any decomposition because of the snowy February weather. So from here investigators promptly secured the area until they could find every last piece of Tara's remains. They searched all day until it was dark, expending all of their energy to bring Tara home. By the end of that day, they had found Tara's right hand sitting behind a bush, nearby, was a large femur bone that had been picked clean by wildlife. Then they found Tara's left hand, which had also been picked down to just the bone tendons, Tara's foot was atop the snow. Her leg was placed in a hollowed out log. In total, police recovered 11 pieces of Tara's body, all scattered within a three-quarter square mile portion of the park. Tara's right arm left lower leg, and her right foot were never recovered and remained missing to this day. Investigators also found a red sled covered in blood nearby, and some discarded saw blades. At that moment, they didn't know what terrible secrets these items held, and they were still missing one crucial piece of the puzzle, Stephen Grant. Little did they know, Stephen was currently on the run in that yellow pickup truck. After he had borrowed the truck, Stephen first took a trip to see his sister Kelly. She wasn't home, but he let himself in anyway. Stephen was panicked, he knew what officers had found in his garage, what they would find in the park, and he told himself he needed to run. Stephen knew that officers would be looking at his cell phone data, so quickly he powered his phone off, leaving it at Kelly's house, and in a hurry, he went through her belongings hoping to find a gun. Instead, he left his dog inside and pocketed a bottle of vikin in, and his spare phone before leaving the house, heading west in a yellow truck. Following his route, Stephen stopped at multiple gas stations to purchase alcohol, razor blades, sleeping pills, another disposable phone, a toy gun, and a black permanent marker he had used to color the bright orange cap of the toy gun black. At first, he didn't know where to go, then an idea struck him. He would run to one of the first places he and Tara had visited together, Michigan's wilderness state park, more than 200 miles north of his home. By this point, Stephen was so panicked that he turned to suicide. His plan was to go out to the wilderness to die rather than go to prison, seeing no other option after he had been found out by authorities. To calm his nerves, Stephen decided to take some vikin and pain killers while he was driving. He then continued to drive towards Michigan's lower peninsula, at full speed ahead. Stephen had some unfinished business. On the way, he called the sister Kelly, he didn't give her details, but he told her that it was really bad. That if they found him, he would be arrested. Kelly had never heard Stephen act this way, so concerned she pressed him for details. Eventually, she got Stephen to tell her that he was headed towards the wilderness state park. Kelly became so worried that Stephen was going to take his own life. She immediately contacted the police with Stephen's location after they hung up. But along this drive, Stephen also called his former O'Pare, Marina. He told her how sorry he was, crossing another goodbye off his list. In the late hours of the night, he also called his lawyer, David Graham. David reported that Stephen called him twice, sounding incoherent and suicidal. And while he could not persuade Stephen to surrender to police, he did try to convince him not to end his life. He reminded Stephen of his two young children, children who had just lost one parent and couldn't lose another. Despite his best efforts, when David hung up the phone, he was convinced that Stephen would attempt to take his own life. But Stephen kept going. By Saturday afternoon, he pulled into the wilderness state park and brought the car to a stop. The park was dense and easy to get lost in. At this point, Stephen had taken several vigodim pills and another handful of painkillers, all washed down with whiskey. While he was still conscious, he was starting to become delirious. He sat in his car, attempting to write a note to say goodbye to his children and part, the note read, "I know you two don't understand what happened to mom. Just know that I love you both more than anything. Things kept getting worse between your mom and me and things got physical. I ended up hitting mom and hurting her bad. I was afraid of losing you too, so I ended up taking mom's life in a panic. I know it will be hard to lose me after your mom was taken from you. I've decided to end my life and know it is better." Stephen gathered his note pad, the toy pistol, more pills and alcohol, and he set off into the snowy wilderness. As soon as police had an inkling of where Stephen was headed, they made their way to the park to find him. Stephen was on the run from a homicide and believed to be armed and dangerous. So authorities wasted no time pushing through the snow and ice to apprehend him. Within a few hours, the park was evacuated so that officers could make sure that Stephen would not hurt anyone else. The US Coast Guard helped search the park via helicopter, men equipped with night vision goggles scoured the ground in brush, and canine units were on call while other officers explored on snowmobiles. Everyone in the area was looking for one person, Stephen Grant. The park was large, dense and rural, so finding Stephen wouldn't be easy. On top of that, the snow kept piling up all around authorities. At about 8.45pm, they came upon a discovery, Stephen's bright yellow getaway vehicle was stuck in a snowbank on the side of a narrow crossroads. Officers approached cautiously, ready to move if Stephen was inside. Slowly, they appeared inside the vehicle, but it was empty. Stephen Grant was still on the run. To make sure Stephen couldn't come back and make another run for it, the officers let the air out of the tires and then continued deeper into the woods. As the night wore on, temperatures continued to drop by midnight. It was well below 20 degrees on the shore of Lake Michigan. Officers had been prepared to search all night, but even with their specialized gear to arrest Stephen, the cold wore them down. After 4am, their flashlights caught something new, Stephen's shoe print in the snow. Based on the distance between prints, they figured that Stephen had been sprinting. They theorized that maybe he had been trying to avoid the search lights, jumping in and out of the trees. His path was chaotic and frantic, often going in circles and abruptly changing course, but that wasn't all. Alongside his shoe tracks, Stephen left investigators with another trail. They saw his watch, the toy gun he bought, a bottle of whiskey, a notebook, a candy bar, and a pair of pliers that were all lying in the snow beside his tracks. Further along the path. They found something even more strange, a full body imprint, where Stephen had seemingly laid down right in the snow. By this point, temperatures had dropped as low as 14 degrees Fahrenheit in the park. Officers had been prepared for the cold, but Stephen had not. He'd been outside for hours. hours with nothing more than the clothes on his back. According to the National Weather Service, in temperatures this cold frostbite can develop in as little as 30 minutes at hypothermia within a few hours. Without protection, it would be unlikely that anyone would survive a whole night. Stevens' erratic path and lost belongings had officers suspecting that he was losing his motor control and succumbing to the cold. With a renewed sense of urgency, authorities quickly followed Stevens' path, and his tracks led them right to him. At about 6.30 a.m. on Sunday morning, March 4, officers finally spotted their target. They approached, but Stephen, curled up underneath the pine tree, made no movement. Upon closer inspection, authorities noticed that not only was he barefoot, but he had no jacket, gloves, or hat, as he lay in the snow. His hands were pale and waxy. They shouted at Stephen to put his hands in the air, and weakly, Stephen moved his arms. The officers promptly flipped him over, and placed him under arrest for murder and mutilation. Finally, they had apprehended Tara's killer, but the battle wasn't over. Stephen was not far from death himself. While he was able to identify himself, his speech was slurred, and his limbs moved uncontrollably. It was clear that he was rapidly succumbing to hypothermia and frostbite, but the officers had a mission. They needed to keep Stephen alive, so that they could finally know what happened, and give Tara's family the justice, they so greatly deserved. Now Stephen was unable to walk, so the officers dragged him a quarter mile through the snow to get him to the helicopter for immediate medical treatment. By 7.30am, Stephen had arrived at the Northern Michigan Hospital. As officers had suspected, paramedics quickly diagnosed Stephen with hypothermia and frostbite, and Stephen's internal temperature was only 87.8 degrees Fahrenheit, 10 degrees below normal. Stephen remained strapped to his bed while doctors worked to minimize the damage, but even when they warmed Stephen up, he still seemed groggy and had bloodshot eyes. When Stephen was able to talk, he told his nurses that he had taken five of the viket in pills he had stolen from his sister and 16 benedrial tablets. It was evident to them that Stephen had tried to end his life. At that point, Tara's discovery and Stephen's chase were all over the news. Stephen's lawyer, David Green, promptly announced to reporters that he was dropping his client over irreconcilable differences. During an evening press conference, Tara's sister Alicia told the media, "As Tara's only sibling, I feel passionately about maintaining my sister's voice since it's become impossible for her to speak for herself. Those truly close to Tara remained confident throughout this whole ordeal that she would never desert her children or her employer. While this outcome represents the worst possible scenario imaginable to anyone, we take comfort in the fact that Tara is now in a better place. We are filled with grief and are horrified at the manner which Tara's life was namelessly taken and are filled with many, many unanswered questions." It wouldn't be long before Tara's family and investigators would have those devastating answers. That evening, Detective sat down with Stephen. And to their surprise, he confessed to everything. First, he took them back to Friday, February 9th. That night, Tara returned home late from a delayed layover. The house was quiet, the kids were asleep, and Tara was relieved to finally be home. Stephen was getting ready for bed. As Tara quietly walked up to their bedroom and began unpacking, Stephen questioned her about her travel schedule. A few weeks prior, Tara had told Stephen that she was going to try and adjust her workload, so she wasn't traveling so much. So according to Stephen, when Tara mentioned that she wanted to leave early for Puerto Rico on Sunday morning, a day earlier than planned, it made him upset. His jealousy quickly incited a heated argument, as he accused Tara of spending way too much time with her boss and not her family. But after a long day of travel, the last thing Tara wanted to do was put up with Stephen's accusations. So frustrated, Tara turned to leave the room, but Stephen wasn't finished. He grabbed her wrist, forcefully pulling Tara back into the bedroom. Tara turned back and slapped Stephen hard across the face, which only made him angrier. He admitted that he hit her back with enough force to knock her down, slamming her head against the floor. And at that moment, Tara had made up her mind. According to Stephen, she told him, quote, "That's it, I'm going to take the kids, you're going to be fucking homeless, you're a piece of shit," end quote. Stephen said that this pushed him over the edge. He was infuriated. Tara was threatening to take away his children, his home, his way of life. Everything that he had come to take advantage of was going to be gone. And he couldn't stand that feeling of not being in control. The only thought that broke through his clouded vision was that he wanted Tara to stop talking. Stephen said he only knew one way to do that. She beat Tara, forcefully pushing her onto the ground. Then he wrapped his hands around her throat and began squeezing. Tara fought back. She scratched Stephen and tried to reach for her phone to call the police, but Stephen didn't let up. He kept beating her, pushing her back to the ground, wrapping his hands around her neck, tighter and tighter until Tara lost consciousness. At that point, Stephen covered Tara's face with a piece of clothing so he didn't have to watch the life drain from her eyes. He told investigators, quote, "I think at one point she realized I wasn't stopping, but it was too late. I couldn't stop then. I knew I was going to prison. I panicked." Stephen continued squeezing Tara's neck for four agonizing minutes until finally she went limp until her last breath. Stephen felt that life leave her body. He said he didn't know what to do so he stood up, walked downstairs and started crying. She texted their own pair of Verina, telling her not to come home, disturbingly, as his wife's body lay upstairs. He then texted Verina, quote, "You owe me a kiss," end quote. He left another handwritten note on Verina's pillow, but out of fear that Verina would come home and see what he had done, Stephen went back upstairs to Tara's lifeless body. To make sure she was dead, he wrapped a belt tightly around her neck. He knew that he wouldn't be able to carry Tara downstairs, so using the belt tightened around her neck, he dragged Tara downstairs, threw their home, all the way to Tara's truck in the garage. They'll keep in mind, when the argument started, Stephen was getting ready for bed, meaning he had already undressed for the night. Stephen admitted that the entire time he murdered Tara, dragged her body through the house and hoisted her body into the truck. He had been completely naked. Standing in the garage, Stephen tried, but he wasn't strong enough to lift Tara into the bed of her truck. So he got into the bed, and using the belt, he tried to pull her up, but he dropped her. Stephen remarked that, quote, "When she fell, it was the most disgusting, like, it sounded like dropping a watermelon on the cement," end quote. Eventually, he was able to pull Tara's body into the back of her truck, where he covered her with a cargo liner. Stephen saw headlights down the road, and quickly ran upstairs and put some pajamas on as Verina pulled into the home. She had no idea what she was walking into. From another room, he yelled at her to leave, but Verina misunderstood and believed Stephen was talking to Tara, not her. Stephen then switched gears. He told Verina that Tara was gone, that she had just left for the airport after a heated argument. As she loosened, Verina noticed the scratches all over Stephen's body. He saw her suspicious glances and told her that their argument got physical. After a moment of silence, she took Stephen's word that everything was okay and returned to her room. She had no idea how wrong she was. For the rest of the night, the house was silent as Tara's body lay in the garage. Now according to Stephen, Ian and Lindsay had been sound asleep in their beds the entire night. He said that he had taken special care not to wake them, and had even checked on them after the murder to make sure they were still asleep. Once later, however, Lindsay approached her and Alicia, with tears in her eyes, needing to talk to someone she could trust. Lindsay confided that she and her brother had actually witnessed the horrific murder of their mother that night. According to Lindsay, she and Ian were awoken by Stephen and Tara yelling. Wanting to know what was going on, they snuck down the hall, walking into a scene that would shatter their world. Lindsay, who was six years old at the time, said she saw Stephen beating their mother and holding her down to the ground. She was in complete shock, hidden quietly while this nightmare played out in front of her. After Stephen had gone downstairs, Lindsay said she went into the room, placing her hand on Tara's warm face, hoping that the person she loved the most would wake up. She stayed by her mother's side as long as she could, but when she heard her father coming back, she hid once again. Horrifically, she then watched as he put a belt around her neck and dragged their mother's body out of the room. Lindsay said she laid in bed the rest of the night not knowing what to do or who to trust. Now to this day, Stephen denies that this happened, but whether he believes it or not, within this ban of just four minutes, he had taken the person his children loved the most and completely shattered their lives. The morning following the murder, Stephen needed to clear his head so he went out to run errands. He visited the post office, the bank, anywhere he could to avoid the consequences of what he had done. All he could think about was where he could hide Tara's body. He knew that he wasn't strong enough to carry her and that she was too big for him to hide alone. Eventually, he returned home panicked and without a plan. Steven. wanted was a distraction, so not even 24 hours after he had murdered his wife and while her body lay in the garage, he invited Verina to spend the night with him in their bed. They kissed, cuddled, and fell asleep in each other's arms with no regard for who that bed belonged to. On Sunday, February 11th, Stephen woke up early, he thought of a plan. He left the house, telling Verina his father had asked him for help at the shop. Then he called his father to make sure that he wouldn't be at the shop. Stephen needed to be completely alone. To Stephen's relief, his father confirmed that he already had plans that day, so Stephen hastily grabbed the plastic tarp and bows off from the house, and he took off down the road and tariff's truck with her body and all of her personal belongings in the trunk. When Stephen arrived at his father's shop, he backed the truck into the bay door, closing it behind him. The shop was so small that the truck barely fit, but it didn't matter. No one could see what he was about to do. On the ground, Stephen laid out a sheet of plastic so he would have a place for Tara's body. By that point, Rick or Mortis had set in. Tara's arms and legs were extended to the side, making it harder for Stephen to pull her out of the truck bed and onto the ground. Finally, Stephen quickly moved the truck back outside so he would have room to work. He weighed down the plastic with some scrap steel, took a long drink of whiskey, and then set to work, dismembering his wife, Lim from Lim. His first thought was to use the bow saw he brought from home, starting with Tara's hand. Stephen ground the saw against flesh and bone harder and harder, but it just didn't work. Bow saws are made to cut through wood, not bone, Stephen panicked. He washed his hands and took another drink of whiskey, trying to figure out what to do next. Sitting around the shop, desperate for a solution, he noticed a band saw, band saws are powerful tools using a sharp, continuous blade to cut through metal, wood, or plastic. To put it to the test, he first used the band saw to destroy Tara's laptop, instantly the laptop shattered, sending shards of glass and pieces of hard drive everywhere. Next, Stephen destroyed all of Tara's personal documents and her briefcase, but satisfied with the destruction, Stephen collected all of the pieces of the laptop and placed them in a trash bag, with Tara's purse and other personal belongings. Then, after another drink of whiskey, he was focused again on his wife's remains. At first, Stephen thought he could use the high powered band saw to dismember Tara, but he saw what it had done to the laptop. If that happened to Tara, he knew it would be too big of a mess for him to clean up. So instead, he broke a nearby hacksaw blade into pieces, wrapped it up in some rags, and tried to remove Tara's hand. This time, he was successful. First, he cut her hands off, then another cut at her elbows. From there, he worked his way up, dismembering her body joint by joint. He realized that while the blades he used worked, they got dull quickly. So as he worked, he kept breaking the blade into more and more new pieces. In his confession, Stephen admitted that this wasn't easy for him. Multiple times during Tara's dismemberment, Stephen threw up into a nearby trash can, unable to stomach what was in front of him, but that didn't stop him. Each time he threw up, he got back up, took a drink of whiskey, and kept going. He would later say that what surprised him was that as he left each piece of Tara lying on that plastic sheet, there wasn't more blood. For cutting her arms into multiple pieces, Stephen moved to Tara's legs. He was unable to remove Tara's pants, but that didn't slow him down. He ripped the pants from the bottom, all the way up to the waistband, and then resumed sawing Tara's legs into multiple pieces. When he was finally done, Stephen had cut Tara's limbs into 12 pieces and decapitated her head. He wrapped the pieces of Tara's limbs in trash bags and placed them with her torso and head into a large blue plastic bin. In that same container, he also threw the blades and dirty rags that he had used to dismember her. Next, Stephen cleaned up the floor of the shop, making sure that it was spotless. When he was finished, he loaded Tara's truck back up with a bag of her belongings, and the plastic container that held her remains. On his way home, in an effort to cover his tracks, Stephen called Tara's phone, leaving her this message. "It's absolute bullshit that you can't call me or your kids." This message, along with the many others he left, weren't panicked or worried. They were calculated. Stephen clearly wasn't worried about what had happened to her. He wandered in alibi. Sadly, Tara's remains would stay in that truck for yet another day as Stephen returned home and spent the rest of his Sunday afternoon with Ian, Lindsay, and Verina. 3am Monday morning, February 12th. Stephen woke up early yet again, to execute the next step of his plan. Grabbing a red sled from their garage, he loaded it into the truck, setting it right next to the bend that held Tara's remains. He still had no idea where to dispose of her body, so he drove around aimlessly trying to find a good spot. Eventually, he pulled over near a power line that led into the Stony Creek Metro Park. Stephen was afraid if he drove any further, the truck would get stuck. The ground was covered with inches of snow, but he had thought ahead. Out of the truck bed, he pulled out the sled and placed the container with Tara's remains on top. Then, he walked. He needed to hide Tara's remains and a place no one would find them. In the dark, it was difficult to see where he was going, but he pressed on, tugging the sled behind him. Eventually, he came upon a hill, pulling the sled up the hill in the snow wasn't easy, but Stephen believed he had no other choice. Thirding all of his energy, he finally reached the top. He took a moment to catch his breath, savoring the relief from pulling the sled. Now, he could let gravity do the work for him. As Stephen descended the hill with the sled in tow, he let it go. He watched as the sled that carried his wife's remains, go barreling down the hill. Stephen ran after it, but he wasn't fast enough. Before he could catch it, the sled lost balance and toppled over, throwing the plastic container with Tara's remains on the ground. In the process, the container broke open, scattering Tara's remains around the area. Stephen panicked, not knowing what else to do. He decided to bury Tara's torso and the other pieces of her body in the snow and nearby woods. He also threw the saw blades, his shoes, and other physical evidence randomly around the area, right and plain sight. The blue plastic bin that held Tara's remains was left right there at the scene, right where it had fallen and broken open. Then as every day before, Stephen left and returned home to his kids and Marina before they woke up, as if nothing happened. But inside, Stephen was paranoid that someone would find Tara. He was so obsessive that later that day, he actually drove back to the park and retraced where he had been in those early morning hours. This time, he used gloves to move all of Tara's remains around again, making sure that her torso was buried separately from the rest of her body parts. When he was finished, he picked up the broken blue plastic bin and placed it into the trunk. He then drove to a dumpster near his childhood home to dispose of Tara's personal belongings. But Stephen still wasn't satisfied. In his confession, he admitted to investigators that, "I did a very bad job of hiding anything. It's right there in the open, so Tuesday I went back." After Stephen had gotten off of work the following day, he returned to the park for the third time. He once again piled up the sled with Tara's remains and moved it further down a trail across the woods. There, he took off the pieces and hid them around the area, under logs, in trees, behind bushes, anywhere he could hide the evidence of his horrific crime. Then, he hid the plastic bag in a tree, and he threw his hat and winter gloves into the nearby river. Stephen then went home, saw his children, flirted with Verena, and acted like everything was okay. Stephen didn't want the police looking at him for any reason, so worried that something would pop up on his record, Stephen decided to pay $900 worth of traffic tickets that he had accumulated over the years. On Wednesday morning, on the way over to make his missing persons report, Stephen threw all of the clothes he had been wearing that day into another dumpster. And from there, he filed a missing persons report, hired an attorney, and proceeded on with his life. That was until Sheriff Hackle publicly announced the search of Stony Creek Metro Park. Stephen knew that they would find Tara's remains. So at 3.30 am on Saturday, just hours before officers searched the exact same spot, Stephen jogged from his house to the park. He found Tara's plastic wrap torso, picked it up, and carried it over to a nearby tree to hide it. But he was still terrified that they would find it. So later that morning, Stephen returned to the park, yet again. This time with Tara's truck, he placed her frozen torso into some more trash bags, before loading it into the back of the truck. That he took Tara's torso back to his father's shop, where he hid it in a loft above the office. It remained there, encased in four trash bags, unbeknownst to the people working down below. Stephen's torso remained in that loft for four entire days, before Stephen moved it again. To a green plastic container, labeled "Boys Close" in his garage. Stephen thought this was a good place to keep it until further notice, but the very day after Here he stored her torso in his garage. He's would come by to search it. Stephen's recorded confession from that hospital bed was over three hours long. While relieved that they finally knew the whole story, officers were disturbed by the atrocity of Stephen's crimes. They knew he needed to face justice. As soon as Stephen was in stable condition, officers needed to transport him back to the McComb County jail. In order to do that, they would need to get past the media frenzy waiting outside the hospital doors. But wanting Stephen to receive any sympathy by being pictured in a hospital gown, Sheriff Hackel drove back to his office in McComb County in search of something for Stephen to wear. As it turns out, there were no prison uniforms available that would fit Stephen. Instead, Sheriff Hackel grabbed his old inmate Halloween costume, making Stephen wear it for their trip to the McComb County jail. He reflected that, Stephen Grant was a prisoner, and I wanted to reflect that. Plus, if he escaped, I wanted him to be wearing something visible. But alas, Stephen was wheeled out of the hospital in a striking black and white striped prison jumpsuit costume with white cloth boots to keep his frostbitten feet warm. As Sheriff Hackel had suspected, reporters swarmed Stephen, snapping pictures and asking questions. But by that evening, Stephen was back at the McComb County jail. He was placed in a high security solitary cell within the medical unit and placed on Suicide Watch. Stephen was then held without bond and appointed a public defendant. Meanwhile, Tara's home still sectioned off with police tape, became a gathering spot for the community. More than 200 people gathered in the snow, with flowers, candles, and other mementos to honor Tara. An organization called Turning Point organized another vigil the following Saturday at the Stony Creek Metro Park, where Tara's remains were found. The organization set up a fund in Tara's name to raise awareness about domestic violence. They believed that although Stephen didn't appear to be physically abusing Tara, his unhealthy obsession with power and control constituted domestic abuse against Tara and their children. On March 25th, a funeral was held for Tara at the first Lutheran Church in Gladstone. Lindsay, wearing a pink flower dress and Ian in a blue and yellow shirt and tie, watched and listened with a swollen understanding of what happened. Detectives on the case paid their respects while reporters were quiet, respecting Tara's peace. To some surprise, Stephen's sister Kelly and her father also attended the funeral. Shortly after, Tara was buried at Gardens of Rest Cemetery in North of Escanaba. Lindsay pressed her hand into Tara's casket, telling those watching she was leaving her fingerprints so she could be with her mom forever. Lindsay and family threw daisies on Tara's casket as she was lowered into her final resting place and her plaque read, "Loving Mother Daughter's Sister." The crab apple tree that grows above Tara's grave was decorated with photos, winchimes, flowers, and other mementos from those who loved her most. Following Stephen's arrest, social services removed Lindsay and Ian from Stephen's sister Kelly's care and placed them with Tara's sister Alicia. On May 1st, the motion was also filed to revoke Stephen's parental rights. Stephen and Kelly did not agree with this decision and an ugly custody battle ensued. Alicia also filed a wrongful death lawsuit and a motion to force Stephen's right to any beneficiary assets from Tara. She vowed that Stephen would never make another penny off her sister and eventually Alicia was awarded $50 million, approximately $750 per day in damages for Ian and Lindsay each for their expected lifespan, plus funeral expenses, and Tara's salary for 30 years. The judge not only granted this, but denied Stephen from collecting any money from Tara's death including her life insurance. Sitting in his jail cell, Stephen watched as the media turned against him. He made multiple phone calls to his sister, where he showed no remorse for his actions. In fact, in the calls, he insisted that Tara was the abuser in their relationship, not him. Believe it or not, his sister Kelly even referred to Tara as "the most emotionally abusive bitch I've ever met," both Stephen and Kelly seemed to believe that his actions were a result of Tara's behavior and they never backed down. Their feelings only intensified, as Stephen's trial loomed closer. Finally, on November 27th, 2007, Stephen went to trial for first degree murder and mutilation. Then wide, people tuned in to watch his fate. The media attention was so intense, in fact, that the judge banned live broadcasts and photos of the proceedings. But that day, Stephen was escorted into the courtroom wearing a black business suit. Before jurors had even entered the room, Stephen stood before the judge and pleaded guilty to mutilation of a corpse. While sudden, this was not unexpected. The defense had hoped that by pleading guilty to mutilation, all details surrounding the mutilation of Tara's body would no longer be relevant and wouldn't be presented in front of the jury. The judge disagreed with this, and the trial continued to determine whether or not Stephen was guilty of first degree murder. Now by this point, there was no doubt in anyone's mind that Stephen had murdered Tara. So instead of proving his innocence, the defense needed to convince the jury that Tara's murder was not premeditated, but an impulsive reaction to a strained and unhealthy marriage. They knew that a sentence for manslaughter or second degree murder would be lower than for first degree murder, but convincing the jury of this would not be easy. Prosecutors believed the flirtatious messages shared between Stephen and his ex demonstrated Stephen's volatile state of mind regarding his and Tara's marriage, and then there was Verena. For the trial, she flew all the way from Germany to take the stand. Still only 20 years old, she had now dyed her hair brown and wore a grey suit into the courtroom. While on the stand, she confirmed that Stephen had made multiple advances towards her before Tara's murder. She testified that the night before Tara's murder, the two slept in Stephen's bed and participated in oral sex for the first time. She said that Stephen then told her he loved her, demanding that she not tell a soul about their relationship because he could lose the kids. Verena confirmed that she didn't know what Stephen had done to Tara until he called her during his getaway chase. Following betrayed, she immediately called the police and told them what he had said. Despite it all, she admitted to jurors that she had, in fact, been in love with Stephen Grant. It seemed clear to prosecutors that Stephen's own affair with Verena, along with his accusations about Tara's infidelity, demonstrated obvious motive and intention. Next, the medical examiner testified, confirming that Tara's cause of death was strangulation. This body had visible bruising on her neck, hands, and face, and injuries to the cartilage in her neck. There were blunt force injuries to Tara's shoulder, chest, and lower back that indicated she had fought back. Tara's sternum was also broken, which they stated would have required an extreme amount of force. Based on their findings, medical examiners believed that Tara had likely lost consciousness after 90 seconds and had died within four minutes. This was important because the defense's argument that Stephen had not intentionally killed his wife, rested on whether or not there was enough time for him to consider what he was doing, and then intentionally make the choice to continue anyways. In Stephen's confession, he admitted that he made the choice to kill Tara because he knew he would go to prison for choking and beating her. His confession, in its entirety, was played for jurors, and from there, it was up to them to decide on his fate. For some, Stephen's verdict seemed obvious, so it came as a big surprise to everyone when it took jurors three days and over 15 hours to reach a consensus. Keep in mind, at this point, Lindsay had not told her aunt what she saw that night. So jurors had to rely on Stephen's confession and the physical evidence to make their determination. Finally, after a two-week trial on Friday, December 21, 2007, Stephen Grant was found guilty of second-degree murder. The jury had not been convinced beyond a reasonable doubt that Tara's murder had been premeditated. This was not what many people wanted to hear. Tara's sister, Alicia, broke down in tears, disappointed that Stephen was not found guilty of first-degree murder, but still, there was some relief that justice had finally been served. Stephen, on the other hand, seemed thrilled. According to officers, as they escorted Stephen back to his room, telling him that he would be on suicide watch, Stephen replied, "Why would I kill myself? I just hit the lottery at court today." Stephen's sentencing day arrived soon after on February 21, 2008, just over a year after Tara's murder. Stephen could still be sentenced to life in prison, but because he was convicted for second-degree murder, not first, he could still be eligible for parole. Reporters gathered around the courthouse eager to capture the news everyone was waiting for. Stephen was escorted into the packed court room while wearing a blue prison jumpsuit. Before his sentencing was announced, Tara's boss was the first to give his victim impact statement, tying the court. Tara's family, especially her children, was always at the front of her mind. It's true she loved her career, but she loved her family more. I've heard it said that time heals all wounds. However, this is one wound that won't be healed. Next, Tara's brother-in-law Eric approached the stand. He told the court about his love for Tara and her children, stating that, "A way from Stephen, Tara was a very different person." Stephen was her Achilles heel. that ultimately brought her to this darkest point in our lives. I often watch silently as he manipulated Tara, her mother, and later their kids, often lying and verbally overpowering them to make them believe he was superior. Finally, Tara's sister Alicia took the stand. In an emotional statement, she told the court about the mental and physical abuse that Tara endured from Stephen and the trauma he had caused their children. Alicia said, quote, "He's not worthy of being called human. And I'm going to take it one step further. Stephen Grant is Satan in the flesh. I think God has a master plan. I believe he recognized the kids were living in a horrific home, and he decided to get them out of that situation. Even if it meant sacrificing Tara's life, they suffered years of mental abuse. He ripped the innocence from his children." Stephen listened quietly, showing no signs of emotion. And when the judge gave him a chance to speak, he chose to remain silent. But from there, everyone held their breath as the judge announced Stephen's sentence. The judge explained that this was an exceptional case. Not only had Tara's murder become very public, but it also caused extreme psychological trauma to their children. The judge believed that a heavy sentence was warranted because of the demonic, manipulative, and barbaric actions in this case. So, for mutilation, Stephen was sentenced to six to ten years in prison with the possibility of parole. And for second degree murder, he was sentenced to 50 to 80 years in prison, also with the possibility of parole. Until his minimum sentence has been served in 2058 when he will be 88 years old. Today, Stephen is serving his time at the Oaks Correctional Facility in Manastee County, Michigan. Finally, Tara's family felt the sense of justice and relief. Ian and Lindsay would never have to see their father again, and they could finally heal from this nightmare. After his trial, Stephen voluntarily renounced his parental rights. After a long and emotional custody battle, it was decided that Tara's sister, Alicia, would be given primary custody of Lindsay and Ian, while Stephen's sister, Kelly, retained her visitation rights. Following Tara's death, Alicia hosted in a state sale at the Grand Home on July 14. The house was then put up for sale at auction, but it was so notorious that no one bit on it, despite the heavily discounted price, and eventually the house was in foreclosure. But all of the proceeds from the estate sale went to Lindsay and Ian. It was then that Lindsay and Ian packed up their lives in Michigan and moved to Ohio to live with their aunt and began healing the horrific loss of their parents. Since her murder, an organization called Turning Point partnered with Tara's family to host Tara's 5K run and walk each September. This event is designed to gather the community to honor Tara's legacy and raise awareness around domestic violence. The funds from this event go toward survivors of domestic violence, and each year, Tara's sister and children return to Michigan to take part in the event. Tara's daughter, Lindsay, stated, "Tara's 5K is such an amazing way to celebrate the life my mother lived, as well as raise awareness for domestic violence and how it impacts not just survivors, but their families as well." Today Lindsay is almost 25 years old. After the dust had settled, she decided to go to Ohio State University to study pediatric psychology. She told reporters, "I want to work with kids because that was the most impactful time that I had working with psychologists when I was younger, after everything that happened with my mom." Lindsay knows what it's like to be on the other side of that table, and she wants to use her own experiences to help other kids who need it the most. Tara's son Ian moved to Wisconsin to pursue his own college degree, and both children are vocal advocates for domestic violence awareness, working to prevent others from suffering the same trauma that they endured. Neither of them have any interest in seeing their father. Lindsay told reporters, "For a long time, I felt like I needed to speak to him to have closure, but I think that I created closure for myself. I recognize everything happens for a reason, and I live by that every single day, so I don't need him for the closure that I got." What happened to Tara was a horrific fate that no one deserves, and while the brutality and graphic details of Stephen Grant's actions, often overshadow who Tara was, we don't need to let it. Tara will always be remembered as a bright and beautiful daughter, sister, and mother. Her impact on her co-workers, friends, and family will never be forgotten. And while she was pulled from her children's lives far too soon, she gave them her appreciation for life and her love for everyone in it. I truly believe that Tara would be so proud of who her children have become, and glad that her final words were to protect them. Through them, her life and memories continue on, and Tara Grant's story is proof that life, love, and joy can still grow from even the darkest of moments. For today's episode in honor of Tara Grant, we will be making a donation to the National Coalition against Domestic Violence. Hey everybody, thank you so much for tuning in to this week's episode of Murder in America. We have some really great episodes in store moving into the fall, and Courtney and I just can't wait to share what we've been working on with you guys. 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