CLARKSVILLE, TN (CLARKSVILLE NOW) – A man who was wanted in deadly shootings in the spring of 2018 was convicted of murder and attempted murder Wednesday afternoon.
A jury found Timothy Elijah Ogburn guilty of five counts: first-degree premeditated murder, two counts of attempted first-degree murder and two counts of using a firearm during a felony, all of it in connection with the death of 36-year-old Tanesha Hardy.
“It was a long time coming; four years ago this happened,” District Attorney Robert Nash told Clarksville Now. “This was just a senseless killing – a young lady lost her life. I’m glad we could bring some measure of justice to the family.”
Night of gunfire
On May 23, 2018, at around 12:40 a.m., Clarksville Police were flagged down by a man who said a passenger in his car had been shot.
On Mitchell Street, officers found Hardy inside the Chrysler 300 with gunshot wounds. She was taken by ambulance from the scene and died from her injuries.
That day around noon, the Clarksville Police Department in conjunction with Oak Grove, Kentucky, Police Department took Ogburn into custody.
Detectives were later able to piece together some elements of what sparked the shooting.
Earlier that night, someone had shot up the home of Ogburn’s mother. Testimony and evidence indicated that she then called Ogburn and told him what happened. He got an AK-47 rifle and forced another man, Devion Lisenby, into his car, believing Lisenby knew who was responsible for the shooting, witnesses said.
“It could have been anyone – anyone he perceived as being responsible for shooting up his mother’s home,” Nash said in closing arguments.
They came upon a car on Mitchell Street. Witnesses said Ogburn leaned out the window and opened fire. The Chrysler was hit with 11 30-caliber rounds. Police found 11 shell casings at the scene.
“(The driver) tried to get away, but Ms. Hardy didn’t get away,” Nash said.
Two of the rounds and fragments struck Hardy, in the head and neck.
The driver and a second passenger in the car weren’t injured.
Jailhouse admission
Months later, Ogburn was in the same jail as the driver, and he found out that Ogburn was a suspect in the shooting that killed his friend.
He testified this week that he asked Ogburn why he shot at him, and Ogburn responded, “I thought you were someone else.”
While Ogburn may not have been specifically targeting that man or Hardy, Nash explained to the jury, premeditated first-degree murder doesn’t require intent to kill a specific individual, but only intent to kill.
“You don’t unload an AK-47 into a car unless you’re intending to kill someone,” Nash said.
Relying on witnesses
Ogburn’s attorney, Chase Smith, tried to undermine the credibility of the witnesses, pointing out that all three are convicted felons.
“There’s no physical evidence tying Mr. Ogburn to the crime. Instead, you have the testimony of these three people,” Smith said in closing arguments.
“They have no more reason to tell the truth than they have to follow the law.”
The AK-47 was never recovered.
“Who puts it in his hand?” Smith asked the jury. “Who puts him in that car? Who puts him firing those shots?”
Nash said that for the three witnesses to be conspiring against Ogburn, with independent accounts over the course of four years, “That’s impossible.”
He also pointed out that the witnesses corroborated one another in their account of the crime.
What’s next
The jury took less than an hour to return a verdict of guilty on all five counts.
During the reading of the verdict, Ogburn was surrounded by six deputies, with another six positioned around the courtroom.
With the murder conviction, Ogburn, who is 31, faces life in prison, which carries a minimum of 51 1/2 years, Nash said. On the attempted murder convictions, he faces two sentences of 25-40 years each, plus 6 years each on the gun charges.
His total time served will be determined at an upcoming sentencing hearing.
Smith had no comment on the verdict.
Police Chief David Crockarell thanked everyone involved in the investigation and prosecution. “For the victim, we prevail,” he said.
This isn’t the only homicide from spring 2018 that Ogburn was pulled into. Just four days before the shooting up of the house and the Hardy murder, 21-year-old Julian Torres was killed, and Ogburn was charged in that case. In July 2021, Ogburn and another defendant, Rasheem Lewis, were found not guilty.