MONTGOMERY – Attorney General Steve Marshall announced that the Alabama Court of Criminal Appeals has affirmed the conviction of Teenya Dashawn Heard, 47, of Oxford, for the 2020 murder of her husband, Maurice Bryant.
Heard was originally convicted in Calhoun County Circuit Court on February 15, 2024, and sentenced to 45 years in prison by Judge Tim Burgess. Evidence presented at trial showed that Heard and Bryant had been involved in an argument during a birthday party in Anniston on the evening of July 24, 2020. Heard later returned home, where Bryant confronted her outside their residence on U.S. 78 West. During the final confrontation, Heard shot and killed Bryant, who was 49 at the time. He was pronounced dead at the scene.
Heard claimed the shooting was an accident and argued self-defense, but those claims were rejected by the jury. The Calhoun County District Attorney’s Office, led by District Attorney C. Lynn Hammond and Assistant District Attorney Alan Dees, prosecuted the case and secured the conviction.
On appeal, Heard sought to have her conviction overturned. The Attorney General’s Criminal Appeals Division argued for the decision to be upheld, and on August 15, 2025, the Alabama Court of Criminal Appeals affirmed the conviction.
Attorney General Marshall commended Assistant Attorney General Anne Adams Hill for her work on the appeal and thanked District Attorney Hammond and her staff for their assistance. The District Attorney’s Office also expressed gratitude to law enforcement officers for their role in investigating the case and stated it was their honor to represent the Bryant family.
