Bryan "Steven" Lawson

Just like my last blog, this is a case that I learned about on the show Accused: Guilty or Innocent. Also, just like the last case, this one also involved a video, although the one in this case is much longer, that helped collaborate the defendants story. In the last case that I blogged about the defendant took his case to trial and was acquitted on the charges that he faced. I believe that if Lawson would have taken his case to trial, rather than accept a plea deal, he likely would have been acquitted at least on the most serious charge he faced, first degree murder. He also faced the charge of reckless endangerment that I am unsure he could have been able to beat, but that charge is nothing compared to first degree murder. That being said, I am also unsure that if Steven Lawson would have been a women he would have faced any charges at all, let alone murder charges.

On January 27, 2017 Steven Lawson called 911 from his home in Rogersville Tennessee. He reported that he had shot his wife in their home and he was pretty sure she was dead. The one thing that I believe kind of worked against Steven in that phone call is that he never mentioned his two year old son, Brayden, being present in the home at the time of the shooting, or the time of his phone call. However, Steven did mention to the dispatcher that his wife had been beating on him that morning and that he “couldn't take it anymore.” Now, if one were simply to look at Steven and Beth, aka Chandra, one would think there is no way that small woman could have been “beating” on that big man. Of course that is how most people generally look at domestic violence issues.

I have done several cases that involve domestic violence that had occurred prior to a murder, not that murder does not qualify as domestic violence. I have also blogged about how for decades really domestic violence was not taken seriously at all. In fact, prior to probably around the 1980's it was often considered common place and almost seen as a “duty” for a man to keep his wife “in line.” But then in the late 1970's and early 1980's there were several instances in which women had sought refuge from law enforcement to no avail and either they were murdered, or they murdered their abuser. One huge case often noted was that of Francine Hughes. She had been in an abusive marriage for many years. Later she and her husband divorced but he refused to leave their home and she could not escape. One night in 1977 Mickey Hughes had gone on one of his drunken rampages where he had beaten Francine for over an hour. When he passed out in his bed Francine knew she had to do something, and something that would end the cycle of abuse forever. She proceeded to pour gasoline around the bed that he was laying in and set it on fire. Her case is often thought of as being the beginning of the “battered woman's syndrome.” The problem was that at that point while domestic violence against women was taken more serious than it ever was, it almost crossed a line in many ways. All a woman had to do after that was simply claim a man had laid a hand on her and they were arrested and often faced charges. This became a “tool” of sorts for women who themselves were abusive. It also began the idea that there is no way a man can be abused in a relationship.

I would like to say that things are different now but they are not. I think the cases involving Johnny Depp and Amber Heard is a prime example. She accused him of abuse and he obtained a label that was unflattering to him and to his career. Everyone jumped on the Amber train. Later it was revealed that he had not only not done many of the things he had been accused of doing, but that Amber herself had been abusive. Depp recently sued a British newspaper for an article they wrote that had continued to accuse him of being abusive. He lost the case. He has also lost roles in movies based on the now proven to be false accusations and yet Amber Heards career flourishes. Not just that but recently it was announced that she is now making appearances and speeches about domestic violence and is raking in the cash.

As I stated before, I do not believe if Steven Lawson would have been a woman he would have been criminally charged, and definitely not with the charge of first degree murder. Why do I say this? Because there is clear evidence that he was being abused by his wife as well as video proof of her substance abuse issues which not only alters ones behavior, but also often their strength. Despite being of of small stature and size Chandra Lawson was already likely stronger than a lot of women despite a disabling injury.

Between the years of 2006 and 2012 Chandra had been a member of the Tennessee National Guard. She had also done two tours in Iraq. At some point she “sustained a neck injury” that in some reports claim was a broken neck, and it forced her to retire from the Guard. Soon after she became addicted to narcotics that would include intravenous use. For his part Steven was a very large guy at six foot three and nearly three hundred pounds. He had been born with a club foot that was never repaired appropriately and caused him pain throughout his life. At some point he too was addicted to drugs. He indicated on the television show that I watched that some time in probably 2014 or 2015 he had gone to rehab. This was mentioned because he stated while he was there Chandra, who he had been with since about 2007, informed him she was pregnant.

Chandra already had another son, who in 2017 was a teenager. On the morning of January 27^th he had left for school before the incident between Chandra and Steven began. The couple had at least two video cameras in their apartment. It was said that they had gotten them because there had been some recent break-ins in the area. One was in the front room of the home and there was another in the bedroom that the couple shared. Without these cameras being present and running I truly believe that Steven would have had no evidence helping him and I have to wonder if prosecutors would not have sought the death penalty against him.

Sometime it seems around seven that morning the video (there is not audio) shows Steven sitting in a recliner in the front room. The camera in the bedroom had also been recording and showed Chandra “shooting up drugs” four times before she went into the front room where Steven was located. You can see Chandra in his face screaming. Steven would claim that she was threatening to “beat his ass” and at one point said she was going to “bash” his brains in so his mom would have to clean it up. She slapped him a few times and then went and got a baseball bat. She was waving the bat around and you could clearly tell she was still yelling. Steven stated she was threatening to his him in his club foot and the movement of how she was with the bat indicates this was true. Within the yelling Steven also said that Brayden had ruined her life and that after she was done killing him she was going to take Brayden in the bathroom with her and kill him and herself. Each time she would hit Steven or even gesture as if she was going to you could see him flinch and duck for cover. Not once did he appear to scream back at her or lay his hands on her.

During this time Brayden, who was two, could be seen laying on their bed in the bedroom. After a while Chandra went into the bedroom, retrieved some things and then got Brayden. While she was in the bedroom Steven was seen on the other camera getting up out of the chair, going behind the couch and putting a gun in the pocket of the jacket he was wearing. Soon Chandra was back in the room with him, this time with Brayden also. Chandra began screaming at Steven again. She then hit him, open handed several times, again Steven ducked. But, as she seemed to be taking a break from physically hitting him for a few seconds Steven fired the gun through his jacket and into Chandra's stomach three times. She fell to the floor. Steven immediately picked up Brayden, who had been more near him than Chandra during the shooting and then the phone where he called 911.

Obviously law enforcement arrived and the coroner was called. While I found nothing specific in my research, as I recall from the television show it appears that Steven may have not been immediately arrested. In fact, it seems that everyone ended up going to the hospital. Of course it is possible that he was also being checked to see if he had injuries. Again, if I recall the television show correctly, it was at the hospital that Steven got an even bigger surprise than being told his wife was dead. A man had showed up and proclaimed to be Brayden's biological father. Steven would say that until that moment he had had no idea that there was even the slightest chance that Brayden was not his son. DNA tests would be taken and it would be confirmed that Steven and Brayden were not biologically related.

Steven did end up being arrested and charged with Chandra's murder. In addition to that because of the reckless endangerment charge as well as the fact that he was confirmed to be Brayden's father and Chandra's family wanted nothing to do with him a restraining order was granted against him from seeing Brayden. Steven would be let out on bail to await his trial.

Prior to his trial taking place prosecutors offered Steven a plea deal. It called for him to plead guilty to voluntary manslaughter and the reckless endangerment charge. The plea also agreed to a fifteen year sentence which was much more than the normal 3-6 years given to a first time offender of this charge. However it also agreed to allow him to be eligible for parole after serving only 20% of his sentence rather than the customary 30%. This plea deal had been offered with the consent of Chandra's family. They did not want to go through a trial and while her son, Liam had openly stated that he had forgiven Steven and was certain that drugs and his mother's behavior played a role, the rest of the family wanted to see at least some punishment and would not publicly state otherwise.

The television show showed the anguish in which Steven was in trying to decide what to do. His attorney's were confident that the video showing what had occurred before AND at the time of the shooting would possibly exonerate him but at the very least they did not think he would be convicted of first degree murder. The video had simply shown too much for people to think otherwise. However, Steven had something else on his mind. He had expressed that while he had not been allowed to see Brayden his mother was still being allowed to have contact with him. He feared if he turned down the plea deal that Chandra's family would not allow that to continue. To be fair I am unsure whether that really would have mattered in the end. My research stated that Brayden's biological father was fighting Chandra's family for custody of him in 2019. I am unsure if this has been settled or what the outcome may have been.

At any rate rather than take his case to trial Steven took the plea deal in January of 2019. Because of the agreement allowing him to be eligible for parole after serving 20% of his sentence he is eligible in June of 2021. I checked with the Department of Corrections as I wondered if COVID-19 may have gotten him released earlier but that does not seem to be the case. If he is required to serve his entire sentence he will be imprisoned until June of 2033 but I do not see that happening.

I have been keeping up with true crime stories and articles for a very long time. I have been researching and doing this blog for over eight years now and have researched more than 750 cases (I have researched many that I never published). There are other blogs out there and article comments that I have read and in so many cases the majority of the general public condemn convicted murderers, especially those who have clearly killed someone, no matter the situation. There are even those who have not been convicted obviously that are publicly condemned. What you do not see as often is a case in which nearly everyone agrees that the perpetrator should have never been charged. I saw that in this case. To be fair most of that can be attributed to the television show I mentioned earlier airing and showing the video from the home. I think Steven's case is a good lesson for people to see that men can be abused, no matter their size and the same can go with women who are abusers. While few condone Steven shooting Chandra with Brayden present, most believe he had little recourse or options.