He Murdered an Old Woman in Cold Blood: Surprisingly, the Townspeople Rallied Around Him

In August of 1997, Bernie Tiede confessed to the murder of 81-year-old widow, Marjorie Nugent.

He was 38 at the time, and he shot Marjorie in the back using a .22 caliber rifle he had reportedly bought at her request to shoot armadillos that were damaging her front yard. As she lay on the ground dying, he walked up to her and fired three more shots point-blank.

He then proceeded to stuff her body in a freezer, lie about her whereabouts for nine months, and spend her money with reckless abandon.

A small East Texas town

It happened in the small East Texas town of Carthage, where the city’s official website describes itself as “The Gas Capital of the United States and the friendliest spot in the world.”

The population at the time of the murder was 6,500. High-profile murder cases that brought media attention to the town was not anything that anyone living there had ever expected.

But that all changed with the murder trial of Bernie Tiede. Many articles have been written about the crime. There was even a movie in 2011 starring Jack Black as Bernie, Shirley MacLaine as Marjorie, and Matthew McConaughey as the district attorney.

Depending on what you read or whether you watch the movie, you may end up with an entirely different opinion on the man who killed Marjorie Nugent. To understand this case, it helps to look at what we know.

The facts

Marjorie Nugent was a wealthy widow living in Carthage, Texas. A quiet woman that kept to herself, she was often seen by others as snobbish.

Bernie was popular and an active member of the community. He was a soloist in the church choir, taught Sunday school, conducted drama performances at the local college, and served on the chamber of commerce’s Christmas decorating committee.

One local told the district attorney, “I don’t care if Mrs. Nugent was the richest lady in town. She was so mean that even if Bernie did kill her, you won’t be able to find anyone in town who’s going to convict him for murder.”

Bernie befriended Marjorie after the death of her husband and began to spend much of his time with her. She trusted Bernie so much that she hired him as her business manager, changed her will to make Bernie the sole heir to her multi-million dollar estate, and gave him access to her bank account.

During their time together, Marjorie and Bernie traveled the world visiting Egypt, Russia, and Europe. They saw Broadway shows in New York. Bernie bought himself a two-bedroom home, earned a pilot’s license, and bought two small airplanes.

After killing Marjorie and hiding her body, Bernie appeared to others to be unaffected and was described as some to be “the same old Bernie.” As her body lay in a freezer, Bernie gave parties in her home, traveled to Europe, sang with the local choir, bought gifts for friends, and lavished expensive home furnishings upon himself. He even accompanied another wealthy widow to Nashville where they shared a hotel room together.

When anyone asked where was Marjorie, Bernie had excuses. She was visiting a sister in Nashville. She was ill. Finally, he announced she had suffered a stroke and was recuperating in a nearby nursing home.

When the body was found, and Bernie confessed to the crime, he admitted to detectives at having premeditated thoughts about murdering Marjorie.

Jack Black’s Bernie

The 2011 movie, Bernie, portrays the man as likable and generous. A sad figure who momentarily snapped after repeated abuse from Marjorie. And this indeed appears to be how he was viewed by his fellow citizens of Carthage.

After the murder, his friends jumped to his defense. People brought him baked goods as he sat in prison awaiting trial, a group of women tried to raise enough money for his bail, the local reverend prayed for Bernie during sermons every Sunday.

Even after the IRS charged him with money laundering and rumors of “compromising” videotapes were found in his possession, his supporters did not fade.

The movie furthered the image of Bernie as sympathetic. While watching the movie, you may get the feeling that Bernie, not Marjorie, was the victim. A severely put upon man abused by a controlling widow.

In real life, in Bernie’s confession, he told detectives that Marjorie was kind in the beginning but became “very hateful,” “very possessive,” and “evil and wicked.”

This view of Marjorie was seconded by the people of Carthage. And yet, as anyone who has spent much time in a small town knows, standoffish people can get the reputation of snobbish. It’s possible Marjorie was an introvert.

A local teacher told a reporter, “She [Marjorie] wasn’t all that unfriendly, but she didn’t go out of her way to be friendly, which can mean a lot in a small town.”

Either way, Bernie was well-liked, and Marjorie was not.

As Bernie gained control of Marjorie’s accounts, he began to slip money to the residents of Carthage. He provided scholarships to students, he bought a young couple a new home, he bought cars for people who couldn’t afford them, and invested in a friend’s business.

“Bernie found himself living a dream,” Bernie’s sister told reporters, “For the first time in his life, he got to be somebody.”

He was beloved, and it’s this Bernie you will see in the 2011 movie. The Jack Black-Bernie was inherently good, with just that one bad moment, brought on by a mean-spirited woman attempting to control his life.

A second trial

Yet, the juxtaposition of this view of Bernie is the fact that this man stole money from Marjorie, shot her, and stuffed her body in a freezer. A jury found him guilty of murder, not once, but twice. A defense attorney appealed his sentencing in 2016, but it didn’t work.

In this second trial, Bernie’s defense was that the murder was committed in an act of passion brought on by a combination of childhood trauma and Marjorie’s abusive behavior.

Prosecutors told a different story. They argued that Bernie was a con man; a thief who stole money from Marjorie and killed her before she could learn what he had done. He was found guilty again and will spend the rest of his life in prison.

Who was Bernie?

Who is the real Bernie Tiede? The man beloved by the people of Carthage? The man who sang in the choir and helped out friends in financial distress? Or the man who shot an 81-year-old woman, not once, but four times. Then stuffed her body in a freezer and lived a grand life while nobody seemed to miss her.

Marjorie’s granddaughter tells a different story than the people of Carthage.

“When my grandmother met Tiede, our family was glad she had a friend. Her husband of 53 years had just passed away, and my family was living in Amarillo.

When our family didn’t agree with her about Tiede’s role in her financial affairs, it strained our relationship. Tiede proceeded to ostracize us, as well as her friends and advisers who tried to provide her with support.

We believe she grew suspicious and concerned about the state of her financial accounts toward the end of her life. Did this play into her murder? We may never know, but I believe this resulted in her murder.”

Guilty as charged

Perhaps the most telling of all is the fact that Bernie had drained Marjorie’s principal investment account out of millions of dollars. She had an appointment to meet with her trustee (who would have surely told her of missing money) shortly before Bernie killed her.

The jury believed that rather than give up his lavish lifestyle, Bernie killed Marjorie, and kept on going with what was left of her money. Until, nine months later, someone finally grew suspicious and found her body in the freezer.

According to attorney Chad Baruch who worked on the trial, “Bernie Tiede is right where he belongs in prison.”

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References: Carthage, Texas, City Website, Texas Monthly, Midnight in the Garden of East Texas by Skip Hollandsworth, Bernie: The True Story of an East Texas Murder by Chad Baruch, Bernie was nothing like the movie by Shanna Nugent

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A previous version of this story was originally published on Medium.