The Tribune

By RASHAD ROLLE

Tribune News Editor

rrolle@tribunemedia.net

LINDSAY Shiver, a former beauty queen from Georgia who allegedly conspired with two Abaco men to kill her husband, had a judge revoke her bail on Friday, citing blatant breaches of bail conditions and her engagement in pre-trial publicity.

Terrance Bethel, 30, one of the men with whom she allegedly conspired, also had his bail revoked for the same reasons.

Shiver, 37, Bethel and Faron Newbold, Jr, 29, were charged last year with conspiracy to commit murder. They allegedly plotted to kill Shiver’s husband, Robert Shiver, on July 16, 2023. Authorities discovered the plot after seizing a phone while investigating another crime in Guana Cay.

Supreme Court Justice Cheryl Grant-Thompson initially granted Shiver $100,000 bail, requiring her to wear an electronic monitoring device, follow an 8pm to 6am curfew, stay at least 100 feet away from the complainant and witnesses, and refrain from travelling abroad without court permission.

In December, the court varied her bail conditions, allowing her to travel to the United States, but forcing her not to enter Georgia, where her husband lives, unless to engage in custody and divorce proceedings. She was required to stay at her residence on 8830 Country Road 57N, Abbeville, Alabama 36310.

Justice Cheryl Grant-Thompson learned on October 3, 2024, that Shiver and Bethel were interviewed on Good Morning America, allegedly giving in-depth information about their trial, which had not started.

The Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions submitted several affidavits in support of an application to revoke Shiver and Bethel’s bail.

In one, Mr Shiver said his estranged wife had not been residing at the mandated location in Alabama and had left the state multiple times without the court’s notification or approval.

He said Shiver was on vacation in Marianna, Florida, on June 15, 2024, and later that month in Panama City, Beach, Florida and Tampa.

He noted that according to an article by Jason Kandel of Law & Crime, Shiver told police her boyfriend, Dorey Ryan Love, tried to choke and suffocate her with a pillow at her residence in Dothan, Alabama, on July 24. Shiver filed charges against him on July 29.

In addition, Metro Security Solutions, the company responsible for electronic monitoring, reported that Shiver was not compliant with her bail conditions.

Justice Grant-Thompson said Shiver and Bethel’s interview on Good Morning America was a “blatant disregard for the court’s leniency and indulgence,” adding: “This cannot and will not be tolerated.”

“What the respondents have done can be seen by the applicant as a spit in the face of justice,” she added. “The applicant has submitted this could influence the views of the potential jurors intending to sit in this trial. Thus, potentially affecting the administration of justice. If it were the other way around had counsel for the Crown proceeded on a frolic of their own, making unnecessary comments to the international media, the respondents would likely be ‘up in arms.’”

The judge also rejected arguments from the defendant’s lawyers about whether she breached her bail conditions.

“It was clearly laid out that if Mrs. Shiver wished to travel or move outside of the designated area, she was first to contact and request the permission of the court,” she wrote.

She said in revoking Shiver’s bail, she was also “taking her out of harm’s way”, noting the report that her boyfriend tried to “choke and suffocate her with a pillow in Alabama”.

“This is a serious concern for the court because this potential situation may inhibit Mrs Shiver’s ability to attend the trial for this matter,” she wrote.

As for Bethel, his bail conditions were varied in June so he could move to Treasure Cove in New Providence. However, prosecutors said he did not follow rules for signing in at a police station. Migrafill Electronic Security Company said he violated his sign-in conditions 12 times between April 29, 2024 and October 4, 2024. He repeatedly failed to sign in at the Elizabeth Estates Police Station and conducted interviews with foreign news stations.

“The court does not distribute written and printed bail rulings to the parties because it has nothing better to do nor because it is enamored by the feel of printed paper,” Justice Grant-Thompson wrote. 

“Written orders and rulings are handed out to the parties to ensure that there is no confusion as to what conditions the accused person must adhere to.”