HENDERSONVILLE – A Henderson County woman who was charged with second-degree murder on Jan. 7 after a Laurel Park man was found dead at his home was indicted on a first-degree murder charge Jan. 30 by a grand jury at the Henderson County Courthouse.
Vanessa Ledbetter, 38, made her first Superior Court appearance Jan. 31. She is charged with the murder of 58-year-old Robin Bracken, who had made an incomplete 911 call Jan. 7, according to the Laurel Park Police Department. Laurel Park Police Chief Bobbie Trotter said Bracken was found dead in the back patio area of his home when officers arrived.
Assistant Laurel Park Police Chief Michael Capps told the Times-News on Jan. 31 that it was a domestic dispute that resulted in a fatal stabbing.
“It was a domestic situation. They were a couple,” Capps said.
In North Carolina, the two possible sentences for first-degree murder are life in prison without parole or the death penalty. District Attorney Andrew Murray said he’s not able to speak specifically about ongoing cases, but he did provide an explanation for the change in Ledbetter’s charges.