Barbara Burns

Case information

• Name: Barbara Burns
• Status: Plead guilty to manslaughter and receive 15 years in prison on July 18, 2006

Timeline

• Aug. 14, 1964 — Debbie Burns is born; Barbara is 13.
• 1966 — At age 2, Debbie gets scarlet fever, which leaves her mentally disabled.
• 1967 — Their father dies and their mother goes to work; Barbara, who is 16, quits school to look after Debbie.
• 1981 — Barbara, Debbie and their mother move to Florida.
• Nov. 2, 2000 — Barbara and Debbie's mother dies, leaving the sisters alone; about this time, their brother John also dies, leaving Debbie $350,000.
• 2001 — Barbara and Debbie go to Australia and California tracking soap opera stars; they place a down payment on an $81,126 mobile home in St. Petersburg.
• 2003 — Money starts running out; Barbara stops paying the mortgage; the bank begins foreclosure on the mobile home.
• July 2, 2003 — Barbara files for bankruptcy and starts working at Lowe's; she makes reduced payments on the mobile home.
• Aug. 14, 2004 — During a birthday dinner for Debbie, the sisters argue over money.
• Aug. 15, 2004 — Debbie turns 40; sometime before dawn while she is still asleep, Barbara shoots Debbie in the head, according to police; Barbara goes to work at Lowe's; that night she moves into another bedroom; she continues to live in the mobile home with her sister's body for six weeks.
• September 2004 — A neighbor asks about Debbie; Barbara says she is in California with a sick aunt.
• Oct. 1, 2004 — After abandoning her 1994 Dodge Caravan at the St. Petersburg bus station, Barbara buys a one-way ticket to Virginia Beach.
• November 2004 — Barbara starts working the night shift at a 7-Eleven; as the winter gets colder, she moves into a homeless shelter.
• January 2005 — Barbara's van is found at the Greyhound station.
• March 1, 2005 — Barbara opens a bank account in Virginia Beach and has Debbie's disability checks sent there.
• May 4, 2005 — The mortgage company sends workers to clear out the mobile home; in the master bedroom, workers discover Debbie's decomposed body wrapped in Star Wars blankets; Debbie has been dead for more than eight months.
• May 8, 2005 — Detective Ed Judy flies to Virginia Beach and stakes out the 7-Eleven where Barbara works.
• May 9, 2005 — Barbara is charged with first-degree murder; ultimately, she confesses to the crime.
• July 6, 2005 — Back in Pinellas County, Barbara is arraigned; she is being held without bail pending trial.
• July 18, 2006 — Plead guilty to manslaughter and receive 15 years in prison.
• September 18, 2005 — The mobile home cleanup story is described beginning with May 4, about 1 p.m.

Background

Barbara Burns cared for her mentally disabled sister, Debbie, for 40 years. Debbie was mentally disabled after getting scarlet fever and having her brain damaged; her mind was described as never outgrowing that of a 6-year-old and she was never able to care for herself.

Barbara became Debbie’s main caretaker. She sacrificed many of life’s pleasures to care for Debbie, including taking jobs and working extra shifts to try to make ends meet. The mobile home life became part of a long caregiving routine, with Debbie demanding comforts and Barbara providing care, helping her walk and driving her places.

Barbara grew up in Maryland, just outside Washington, D.C. Her father, John, was a printer who worked nights and drank days. Her mother, Margaret, stayed home with the kids. Barbara had four kids in five years. Barbara was 13 when Debbie was born. Debbie was described as the baby and as being spoiled from the start. Their father died in 1967. Their mother started working, and Barbara quit school to look after Debbie when she was 16.

In 1981, Barbara, Debbie and their mother moved to Florida. Their mother could not work, so Barbara supported the family with minimum-wage jobs at Howard Johnson’s and Bealls Outlet.

In the fall of 2000, their mother died, leaving the sisters alone. About this time, their brother John also died, leaving Debbie $350,000.

Barbara and Debbie traveled to Australia and California, tracking soap opera stars, and placed a down payment on a mobile home near the end of Yellow Pine Street in the Tyrone area of St. Petersburg for $81,126.

The offence

The killing took place on Aug. 15, 2004. Debbie turned 40. During a birthday dinner on Aug. 14, 2004, the sisters argued over money. On Aug. 15, 2004, sometime before dawn while Debbie was still asleep, Barbara shot Debbie in the head, according to police. The shot was fired from 2 feet away from Debbie’s forehead.

Barbara told detectives she walked to the dresser, opened the third drawer from the top and took out a Smith & Wesson .38-caliber revolver. She loaded a bullet and pulled the trigger. After the shooting, she tucked the gun back beneath some clothes in her dresser. The detectives found the gun later among things the cleanup crew had taken out of the double-wide.

After the shooting, Barbara wrapped Debbie in blankets and a shower curtain, and added comforters and a Star Wars calendar. She turned down the air conditioning as low as it would go and masked the smell with air fresheners and baskets of potpourri. She continued to live in the double-wide with her sister’s body for six weeks.

Investigation

After the shooting, Barbara’s court-appointed lawyer was not yet decided whether to enter a plea or take the case to trial, and advised her not to talk about what happened to her sister.

When Debbie’s decomposed body was discovered, the medical examiner unwrapped the body in the front bedroom. A Star Wars comforter formed the outer layer of the shroud. The medical examiner found a brown blanket, and beneath that a white shower curtain. Inside the shower curtain was a 2004 Star Wars calendar marked only with the times of a few TV shows, or countdowns to the shows.

The medical examiner pulled at the sheet and found a skull cradled on two pillows, with the person lying on the left side as described. The right arm was bent at the elbow and draped across the chest, and the left arm was tucked beneath the pillows. The body was so badly decomposed that it could not be determined whether the person was a man or woman, black or white, or old or young. In the front of the skull, right in the center of the forehead, there was a hole where a bullet had gone in.

Detectives logged potential clues from the scene, including a Sony camera, a wedding veil, and a blood-stained mattress and box spring. A call to the power company showed electricity had been cut off seven months earlier. In the two months before that, the power bill had more than tripled. Investigators found that someone had cranked down the air conditioning as cold as it would go and left it there.

Through tax records, investigators learned that the mobile home had been occupied by two women, Barbara and Debbie Burns.

Detectives attempted to identify the victim after the body was found and learned that Barbara was 53 and Debbie was 40. A background check showed neither had ever been arrested. Detectives used picture IDs to determine that both sisters were short and stocky with shoulder-length light brown hair. Debbie had only three teeth, and Barbara didn’t have any. The skull had three rotten teeth, leading detectives to determine it was Debbie Burns who had been shot.

Detectives sought to find Barbara. Barbara drove a gray 1994 Dodge Caravan bought at Pinellas Auto Brokers. Detective Ed Judy called the car dealership and talked to a woman who remembered the Burns sisters, including that when they made their car payment they would bring cupcakes. The woman hadn’t seen them since last year, and repo men had searched for the van after they stopped paying.

Investigators tracked Barbara to Virginia using bank records. Debbie’s disability checks were being cashed while detectives discovered money being sent to a bank in Virginia Beach, Va., into the account of Barbara Ann Burns. Bank statements also showed Barbara received paychecks from a 7-Eleven in Virginia Beach. Detective Judy called the convenience store, and the manager said Barbara was on the schedule for the next night. Detective Judy and his partner flew to Virginia Beach and staked out the 7-Eleven.

Detectives introduced themselves at daybreak when Barbara’s shift ended. Barbara told detectives she was living in a homeless shelter and swore she had never owned a mobile home. She insisted she had never lived in any double-wide in St. Petersburg and said she never had a sister, repeating that she never had a sister.

Over the course of the interview, detectives showed Barbara deed and utility documents and pictures that included Barbara holding a long-haired chihuahua and Debbie hugging the same little dog. Barbara’s face fell when she saw the pictures and she responded that she had “never seen her” and then later began to tear up. After almost three hours, Barbara admitted she had a sister and described Debbie’s preferences, including soap operas, Star Wars, and a little dog named Leo. Barbara told detectives how she had left Debbie in the van and that she never called Debbie after that.

Barbara ultimately told detectives what she had done, and why.

Arrest

After detectives traced Barbara to Virginia Beach through bank records and staked out the 7-Eleven, detectives introduced themselves at daybreak and followed up with an interview at the Virginia Beach police station. Barbara was later arrested on a first-degree murder charge.

Barbara was arraigned in Pinellas County on July 6, 2005, and was held without bail pending trial.

Trial

Barbara pleaded guilty to manslaughter and received 15 years in prison on July 18, 2006.

Sentencing

On July 18, 2006, Barbara Burns pleaded guilty to manslaughter and received 15 years in prison. The sentencing included credit for time already served in jail and gain time, and it was stated she could be out of prison in less than 12 years.

Appeals

No appeal information was provided.

Outcome

Barbara Burns pleaded guilty to manslaughter and received 15 years in prison on July 18, 2006.

Other details

Mobile home and dog-related details

The body was found in an abandoned double-wide near the end of Yellow Pine Street in St. Petersburg. McCain and his son Jason had been hired by their bank/foreclosure process to clear the place. McCain unlocked the door at about 1 p.m. on May 4. The house was dark and blinds were drawn. The air was described as thick and hot with a rancid smell.

It was described that someone had attempted to mask the smell with dozens of cardboard air fresheners and plug-in air fresheners blooming from every outlet. Empty spray cans filled a trash can, tub, and sink. The smell grew as the closed door was opened. Sheets and blankets were piled on a bed, and potpourri baskets were spread across the covers. When Jason began peeling back the layers, he ran screaming from the house.

A Star Wars theme appeared throughout, including Star Wars posters, games, magazines, little R2-D2s and a Yoda.

In the jail interview, Barbara discussed the little dog Leo. She said that “Leo” was real sweet and that when she left, she had to put him in a shelter. She said she hoped someone nice took him home and that she didn’t want to drop him off there but said she didn’t have a choice.

Neighbour statements

Shirley Greilick told detectives that the sisters moved in four or five years ago and they always stayed to themselves. She said she saw Barbara going in and out to her car but never saw any company come. She said Debbie was harder to understand and that Debbie was retarded or something. She said Debbie didn’t drive and Barbara had to take her everywhere.

Greilick told detectives she hadn’t seen Barbara in months and that it had been longer since she had seen Debbie. Greilick asked about whether Debbie was sick; Barbara replied that Debbie was in California and that she was taking care of their aunt.

Employment and money details

Barbara’s credit application at the auto broker showed she worked for 10 years at Howard Johnson’s in St. Pete Beach, then at Bealls Outlet and Lowe’s. Her employers described her as quiet and reliable, straightforward, honest, and one of the most patient people they had met.

Barbara’s supervisor at Bealls, Linda Ware, described that Barbara would bring Debbie along on birthdays and holidays for a drink on Treasure Island. Linda said Debbie walked with a limp and had the mind of a child, and that Debbie could be demanding, complaining loudly when Barbara was having fun and saying she was tired and ready to go home “RIGHT NOW.” Linda said Barbara was always kind to Debbie and would help her up from her chair and drive her home, even if Barbara hadn’t finished her first Coors Light.

Linda Ware said that sometime around 2000 Debbie had inherited some money and that she did not know how much. Barbara filed for bankruptcy July 2003 and started working at Lowe’s as a cashier for $7 an hour. Barbara’s boss, Jason Carrier, said she was always on time, never argued, was friendly to customers, was voted Employee of the Month, and gave a co-worker a smiley face coffee cup. Carrier said Barbara abruptly quit after more than a year, saying she needed to take care of a sick relative, in late August 2004.

Detective Judy discovered someone was still cashing Debbie’s disability checks and that the money went into Barbara Ann Burns’s account in Virginia Beach, Va.

Confession and detective quotes

Barbara told detectives during the interview that she had a sister and described details of leaving. Detective Ed Judy later told the Times that “She kept crying. She said she wished she hadn’t done it. She was sorry,” and that: “She's a really nice person, as far as murderers go. She's the nicest murderer I've ever met.”

In a quote attributed to Detective Ed Judy describing Barbara’s interview, Judy said: “She's a really nice person, as far as murderers go.

Barbara said: “I just took it all in to the breaking point,” and “Then I exploded.”

Legal positioning and prosecutor statements

Prosecutors and Burns’ attorney allowed Burns to plead guilty to manslaughter and receive 15 years in prison. It was stated that if convicted of first-degree murder, Barbara could have received life in prison without the possibility of parole or the death penalty.

Assistant public defender Michael Hays said: “It's just an unusual, compelling situation.” He also said: “She didn't have any prior criminal history at all. She was just in a situation where she just snapped.”

Prosecutor Kendall Davidson said: “I would not expect her to be a danger in the future.”

Robert Burns wrote in a letter: “She is a gentle person,” and “Everyone she comes in contact with likes her. I don't think she belongs in a prison for hardened criminals. She will not survive. That would be like putting a gentle beagle in a room full of attack-trained pit bulls.”

“Saint” biography elements

A “The Saint” timeline described Barbara Ann Burns’s birth on June 4, 1951 in Maryland. It described Margaret and two older brothers and later a younger sister. It included: Aug. 14, 1964 Debbie Burns is born; Barbara takes over most of the babysitting. It listed 1966 as scarlet fever. It listed 1967 as father dying and mother going to work. It listed 1981 as move to Florida. It listed Nov. 2, 2000 mother dies and leaving Debbie $350,000. It included trips to Australia and California, and placing a down payment on an $81,126 mobile home in St. Petersburg. It included 2003 as money running out, bankruptcy July 2, 2003, and reduced payments. It included Aug. 14, 2004 as a birthday dinner argument. It included Aug. 15, 2004 as the shooting, and continuing to live with the sister’s body for six weeks. It included September 2004 as Barbara saying Debbie was in California. It included Oct. 1, 2004 as abandoning the 1994 Dodge Caravan at the St. Petersburg bus station and riding the Greyhound to Virginia Beach. It included November 2004 as starting the night shift at a 7-Eleven and moving into a homeless shelter. It included January 2005 as the van being found at the Greyhound station. It included March 1, 2005 as opening a bank account in Virginia Beach and having disability checks sent there. It included May 4, 2005 as the mortgage company clearing out the mobile home and discovery of Debbie’s decomposed body wrapped in Star Wars blankets; Debbie had been dead for more than eight months. It included May 8, 2005 as Detective Ed Judy flying to Virginia Beach and staking out the 7-Eleven. It included May 9, 2005 as Barbara being charged with first-degree murder and ultimately confessing. It included July 6, 2005 as arraignment and holding without bail pending trial.