Civil Suit in U.S. Finds American Woman Responsible for Death of Timothy McNamara in Belize
It took a long time coming, but on Friday the family of an American man killed in Belize eight years ago finally got some justice. A jury in Washington State found Tracy Nessl guilty for committing battery against her uncle, Timothy McNamara, who she was also in an incestuous relationship with. These actions of hers lead to his death at his home in Boston Village on Christmas Day in 2014. Belizean authorities had wanted to prosecute her following the death but were unable to get her extradited after she fled back to the U.S. two days after the incident. News Five’s Paul Lopez has details of the killing that was originally believed to be a suicide. He also explores the efforts of law enforcement and scenes of crimes personnel in Belize as well as the legal team in the United States, lead by Attorney Karen Koehler. They all worked tirelessly to dismantle Nessl’s defense and convince the court to award over three million dollars in damages for the victim’s family.
Paul Lopez, Reporting
Timothy Patrick McNamara died in Belize at the age of sixty six years old. His cause of death was an alleged murder that occurred on Christmas Day 2014. It is alleged that he and his niece Tracy Nessl got into an argument and that she followed him outside with a nine millimeter pistol and shot him to the back of the head. When police arrived at the scene, some two hours later, Nessl claimed it was suicide. In a 2015 deposition she told the interviewer that she came across McNamar’s body.
Interviewer
“Alright, so you opened the door and where was he?”
Timothy McNamara
Tracy Nessl, Defendant
“He was on the deck.”
Interviewer
“Where was he facing?”
Tracy Nessl
“I don’t know which direction.”
Interviewer
“What were you looking at when you opened the door?”
Tracy Nessl
“He was laying on the side.”
Interviewer
“Was he facing you?”
Tracy Nessl
“No I saw his back and his legs and I thought he was joking.”
Interviewer
“Then what happened?”
Tracy Nessl
Tracy Nessl
“I went to him and I didn’t see any blood. I didn’t see anything on him.”
While Belize authorities were investigating the case, Nessl reportedly fled to Washington State to live on McNamara’s family farm. Belize’s authorities subsequently discovered substantial evidence implicating Nessl in the murder. Orlando Vera, Forensics Analyst at the National Forensic Service found that the absence of scratches and damage to both the front and rear sights of the weapon indicate that the firearm did not fall from a height, but was rather placed where it was found. Vera also found that blood splatter on the front, back and top of right sleeve of the blouse Nessl was wearing indicated that blouse was in close proximity at the time McNamara was shot.
Tracy Nessl, Defendant
“He didn’t respond.”
Interviewer
“And then?”
Tracy Nessl
“I started screaming for help for the neighbor and nobody came.”
Interviewer
“And then what?”
Tracy Nessl
“Then I laid with him.”
Interviewer
“How far was the neighbor?”
Tracy Nessl
“Across the road.”
Interviewer
“How far is that?”
Tracy Nessl
“I can’t tell you the distance I am not good with that.”
Interviewer
“Can you see their house from your house?”
Tracy Nessl
“Yes ma’am.”
Interviewer
“Then what happened?”
Tracy Nessl
“Then I laid with him and continued to ask for help.”
Interviewer
“You laid with him how?”
Tracy Nessl
“I spooned with him.”
Pictures taken and analyzed by Robert Henry, Scene of Crime Specialist on the night of McNamara’s death revealed that no blood spatter was seen on the hands of the victim, indicating that his hands were never holding the firearm. Blood seen on the back of his shirt and the firearm indicated a blow back effect. Henry concluded that McNamara was not the one who fired the shot, that he was in standing position at the time of the shooting, and that the gun may have been placed in the area it was found at the time the scene was being processed.
Interviewer
“How did you see the gun?”
Tracy Nessl, Defendant
“Because I walked out and saw the gun on the rocks and I could see it when I laid with him.”
Interviewer
“So, from the point of where you were lying with him, where was your head? If you look at page forty-two and you were lying with him, where was your face?”
Tracy Nessl
“At the back of his head.”
Interviewer
“Did you at any point while you were lying with him notice that there were blood?”
Tracy Nessl
“I didn’t for a while until the forensics came.”
Interviewer
“My question is, did you notice any blood while you were lying there with him?”
Tracy Nessl
“No, I did not.”
John E. Rudon, Forensic Analyst attached to the firearm unit, documented a postmortem examination on McNamara. He determined the entry wound is from the left to the right, back to the front, and from down to the top of the head. Rudon concluded that the position of the entry wound is extremely uncomfortable for the victim to have fired the shot. Rudon further concluded that McNamara was not the one who fired the shot. On March twenty fifth 2022, after hours of deliberations, the jury in Grant County, Washington announced its verdict in favor of criminal murder. McNanara’s family was awarded three point three million U.S. Dollars.
Karen Koehler
Karen Koehler, Lead Attorney for Plaintiff
“The whole time Belize was talked about like it is a third world country, that your police weren’t good, that they were corrupt, that you shouldn’t trust them. The defense told the jury that Belize was dangerous; she never wanted to go back. Not because of the warrant, because it was such a dangerous place. And, we felt it was such a disservice to Belize, because all the people that testified for Mr. McNamara were so wise and strong and true. So, in many ways this verdict was for Belize also. The jury that heard this was farmers in America and they did not believe that Belize was a corrupt, dangerous, horrible place. They believe that this woman killed Mr. McNamara and tried to blame everyone else for not doing a good job of figuring out what happened.”
Reporting for News Five, I am Paul Lopez.
