Karen Spence Pleads Guilty to Accessory in Carpenter Case, Gets Suspended Sentence

Spence Murder Trial Moved to Pontotoc County

Karen Spence, a former Clarion-Limestone school nurse and one of three former Jefferson County residents charged in connection with the 2022 murder of Tippah County businessman Kirby Carpenter, has pleaded guilty to a reduced charge. According to court filings, Spence entered an Alford plea on Friday, September 19, 2025, to…

Karen Spence Pleads Guilty to Accessory in Carpenter Case, Gets Suspended Sentence

TIPAH CO., Miss. (EYT) – Karen Spence, a former Clarion-Limestone school nurse and one of three former Jefferson County residents charged in the 2022 murder of Mississippi businessman Kirby Carpenter, has pleaded guilty to a lesser charge on Friday. According to court documents filed in Tippah County Circuit Court, Spence entered a guilty plea to being an accessory after the fact to grand larceny on Friday, September 19, 2025, under the provisio…