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SUPREME COURT OF ARKANSAS

No. CR-16-7

TIMOTHY LAMONT HOWARD

APPELLANT

V.

STATE OF ARKANSAS

APPELLEE

Opinion Delivered: December 8, 2016

APPEAL FROM THE LITTLE RIVER

COUNTY CIRCUIT COURT

[CR1997-105]

HONORABLE CHARLES A. 

YEARGAN, JUDGE

AFFIRMED.

COURTNEY HUDSON GOODSON, Associate Justice

A jury in the Little River County Circuit Court found appellant Timothy Lamont 

Howard guilty of two counts of second-degree murder and one count of attempted seconddegree murder for which he received consecutive sentences totaling thirty-eight years in 

prison. For reversal, he contends that the circuit court erred by failing to grant his motions 

for directed verdict. We affirm.

This case involves the homicides of Brian Day and his wife, Shannon, and the 

attempted murder of their seven-month-old son, Trevor, which occurred in December 

1997. The prosecuting attorney initially charged Howard with capital murder for the deaths 

of Brian and Shannon and with the attempted capital murder of Trevor. A jury found 

Howard guilty as charged, and he received two death sentences for the capital murders and 

a thirty-year sentence and a $15,000 fine for the offense of attempted capital-murder. This 

court affirmed his convictions and sentences. Howard v. State, 348 Ark. 471, 79 S.W.3d 273 
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(2002).1 We also upheld the denial of postconviction relief. Howard v. State, 367 Ark. 18, 

238 S.W.3d 241 (2006). In 2012, this court granted Howard permission to pursue a petition 

for writ of error coram nobis in the circuit court. Howard v. State, 2012 Ark. 177, 403 

S.W.3d 38. The circuit court subsequently found merit in Howard’s petition and ordered 

a new trial. The following facts are adduced from the record of this trial.

On Saturday, December 13, 1997, Danny Russell, the Sheriff of Little River County,

received a dispatch at 10:00 a.m. about a U-Haul truck that was parked in a field and backed 

up to a wooded area. This field was located off a county road and on a farm owned by the 

Howard family near Ogden, Arkansas, approximately three miles from the intersection of 

Highway 71 and East Ogden Road. The report, which was made by persons searching for 

their escaped horses, was that blood was dripping out of the back of the U-Haul. After he 

arrived, Russell saw what appeared to be blood on the left side of the bumper, and he used 

bolt cutters to remove the padlock on the U-Haul’s cargo area. Inside, he discovered the 

body of a deceased male.

Although the lease agreement found inside the U-Haul stated that the vehicle had 

been rented by Brian, the identity of the body was not immediately known. Once the 

authorities confirmed that it was Brian’s body, they went to the Days’ home near Ashdown 

to notify Shannon of his death. The officers received no answer at the door, but they later 

returned and gained entry into the home with the aid of Brian’s brother, David Day. After 

hearing muffled cries coming from a bedroom, they found Trevor alive stuffed inside a 

closed Marlboro bag underneath clothing. He had a lamp cord wrapped tightly around his 

 

1

It was a 4–3 decision.
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3

neck. The officers also found Shannon’s body, who was naked below the waist, in the 

bedroom on the floor of a closet with clothing and other items stacked on top of her. 

According to the medical examiner, Brian had sustained a hinge-type injury to the 

skull, caused by a massive delivery of force and which accounted for the high volume of 

blood found in the U-Haul. He also had been shot in the back of the head. The medical 

examiner offered the opinion that the hinge fracture occurred while Brian lay on the ground 

after being incapacitated by the gunshot wound. He stated that the hinge fracture was 

consistent with Brian’s having been run over by the U-Haul while his head was wrapped 

in a piece of carpet found at the scene. The physical evidence at the site indicated that the 

assault on Brian had begun at an old cook shed in the field. The medical examiner estimated 

that Brian’s death occurred between the hours of midnight and 8:00 a.m. Expert testimony 

also established that the projectile recovered from Brian’s head was a .38-caliber bullet that 

had most likely been fired from a .38 Special or a .357 revolver. Vickie Howard, who was 

then Howard’s ex-wife,2testified that Howard was in possession of a .38-caliber revolver 

on Friday, December 12, 1997, the day before Brian’s body was found. Howard’s 

fingerprints were on the outside of the driver’s door of the U-Haul.

That Saturday morning, Herbert Jones was walking home from his aunt’s house. At 

8:30 a.m., he found a pair of work boots sitting sixty feet off the roadway at the corner of 

Highways 71 and 380, a distance of three miles from the Howard field. Blood on the left 

boot matched Brian’s DNA. In her testimony, Vickie stated that the boots were the same 

 

2 Vickie and Howard remarried in October 2010, while he was in prison.
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size and style of boots she had purchased for Howard. Hairs found inside the boots were a 

match to Howard’s DNA. 

The medical examiner also testified that Shannon died as a result of strangulation and 

blunt-force trauma. When her body was discovered, she had a ligature tied around her 

neck and her wrists were bound in handcuffs behind her back. The handcuffs had black fur 

on them. Jennifer Stanley, one of Howard’s girlfriends, testified that the handcuffs were 

similar to those Howard had purchased at an adult novelty store.3 At the Days’ house, officers 

collected a Mountain Dew bottle with Howard’s fingerprint on it.

By all accounts, Howard and Brian were long-time, close friends. One witness stated 

that “when I saw one, I saw the other. If one was into something, the other was into 

something.” The testimony established that they used and sold drugs together. According 

to Vickie, Brian and Howard’s friendship had cooled until two weeks before the murders. 

Lloyd Day testified that Brian suspected that Howard had stolen a rifle from him that Brian 

had borrowed from his brother and that Howard owed Brian a lot of money.4 There was 

also testimony suggesting that Howard and Shannon were having an affair or that Brian 

suspected they were. Witnesses also testified that Shannon believed she was pregnant with 

Howard’s child. Nonetheless, Howard accompanied Brian to rent the U-Haul on 

Thursday, December 11, 1997. The testimony of several witnesses indicates that the two 

had deals arranged for Thursday and Friday that either involved drugs or stolen merchandise. 

 

3 At the time of the murders and the first trial, Jennifer’s last name was Qualls.

4 Art Lamon testified that he purchased this rifle from Howard for $200 in October 

1997.
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On Friday, Shannon confided in David that she and Brian were afraid of Howard because 

“he found out something.”

Howard’s whereabouts that weekend were established primarily through the 

testimony of Vickie and Jennifer. Before her shift ended on Friday morning, December 12, 

1997, Vickie left work and drove to Ashdown because she was worried about Brian and 

Shannon. At around 4:00 a.m., she stopped at a café to eat breakfast while waiting for them 

to wake up. Howard also arrived at the restaurant. Howard told her that he had just left 

the Days’ house, and he discouraged her from visiting them because, he said, they were 

fighting. Instead, Vickie and Howard made plans to meet at the Motel 6 in Texarkana. 

Howard was driving a U-Haul truck, and at the motel, Howard told her not to tell anyone 

about the U-Haul because it would get her killed. Howard asked her to drive him to the 

family farm, and they arrived there before daylight. He told her to shine the headlights of 

her vehicle on the cook shed. Howard informed her that this was where Brian and Shannon 

were hiding their drugs, and Vickie testified that Howard went inside the shed and that she 

saw him bend down. Vickie then dropped off Howard at the apartment of Jennifer’s sister, 

Kimberly Jones, whom Howard was living with at the time.5 When Vickie returned to the 

motel, the U-Haul was still there. 

At approximately 5:00 p.m. on Friday, Vickie picked up Howard at a friend’s 

residence near Kimberly’s apartment. They returned to the motel. Vickie stated that 

Howard was carrying a black nylon camera bag. She asked him what was inside the bag, 

 

5 Kimberly married Howard following his arrest and before the first trial. She died 

sometime after the first trial, and her testimony from that trial was presented by the defense.
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and Howard replied that the bag contained “kinky stuff.” He did not allow her to look 

inside the bag, and he said that its contents included handcuffs, rope, and tape. Vickie 

testified that Howard went to Walmart and that when he returned, she saw a .38 revolver 

sticking out of his pants. She stated that he left the motel driving the U-Haul at 9:30 p.m.,

wearing a black sweatshirt, jeans, and his work boots.

At approximately 11:00 p.m. that night, Howard called Jennifer and asked her to 

pick him up at a rest area on Highway 71 near the Red River Bridge. When she arrived, 

Howard emerged from her sister Kimberly’s car and got into her vehicle. He told Jennifer 

he needed to rest. She testified that Howard was lying in her backseat and that his “body 

was just jerking and shaking and his eyes were all bugged out.” Jennifer believed that he 

had been awake too many days doing drugs and that she had never seen him in that

condition. They went to bed when they arrived at her duplex, and she said that Howard 

continued to shake as he lay beside her. He woke up sometime between 1:00 and 1:30 a.m. 

and told Jennifer that he had to go “take care of some business” and to get his money. She 

saw him put on his clothes and his work boots. Howard left in her silver 1997 Honda Civic, 

and he returned between 3:00 and 3:30 a.m. He awoke Jennifer to tell her that Shannon 

and Trevor would be staying with her while he and Brian “took care of some business.” 

Jennifer saw Shannon, while she only heard Brian and Trevor. Jennifer went back to sleep, 

and she was alone when she awoke. Dale Fields testified that he was driving by the Days’ 

home at 5:45 a.m. that morning and saw a small silver car sitting in the driveway.

Jennifer got up sometime between 6:30 a.m. and 7:00 a.m. that Saturday morning, 

and she proceeded to get ready for work. Howard came into the bathroom while she was 
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bathing and told her that Brian and Shannon were “in hiding” and that he was the only 

person who knew where they were. Jennifer noticed that her purse and wallet had been 

disturbed, and she asked Howard about her money. She testified that Howard removed 

two $100 bills from his pocket and laid them on the counter, saying that the money “should 

cover it.” Jennifer further testified that Howard said he needed a truck and that he wanted 

her to ask her boss, Robin Jones, if he could borrow Jones’s truck, a black Ford Splash. 

Howard told her that he needed to move furniture for Brian. After this conversation, 

Jennifer agreed to drive Howard back to the rest area. When she got into her car, she saw 

in the backseat Howard’s black bag, some luggage, a jacket, and a purse. Upon inquiry, 

Howard stated that the luggage, the jacket, and the purse belonged to Shannon. When they 

arrived at the rest area, Howard left the black bag in Jennifer’s vehicle, but he placed the 

other items in Kimberly’s car, which was still at the rest area. Witnesses who were friends 

of Shannon’s testified that she did not go anywhere without her purse.

Jennifer returned home to finish preparing for work. Howard came in fifteen 

minutes later. Jennifer stated that during this time frame, Howard had stopped by 

Kimberly’s apartment and had given her $700. Jennifer said that Howard was angry at her 

because she would not call her boss about borrowing the truck. She testified that he said, 

“I need a God damn truck, and I gotta go.” Shortly after Jennifer arrived at work, Howard 

appeared there and asked whether she had contacted Jones about the truck. Jennifer 

arranged for Howard to borrow the truck, and Howard picked it up from Jones between 

9:30 and 10:00 a.m. 
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Howard went to Pro-Truck Outfitters in Texarkana between 9:00 and 10:00 a.m. 

There, he paid $140 in cash for the largest tool box the store had in stock. Testimony 

established that the tool box was large enough to hold an adult human body. Howard told 

the salesman, Eddie Scroggin, that he was driving a car and would have to return later in a 

truck to retrieve the tool box. Scroggin testified that Howard turned his back to Scroggin 

as he retrieved the cash to make the purchase. Scroggin said that Howard returned about 

an hour and a half later to pick up the tool box.

Also in her testimony, Vickie stated that Howard had called her at 11:00 a.m. on 

Saturday and asked her to pick him up at Miller Bowie in Texarkana. She said that Howard 

was driving a black truck she had never seen before. Vickie testified that Howard was 

nervous and afraid that the police would see him in the truck, and she said that he wanted 

to leave the truck and get rid of the keys. Howard explained to her that he was on his way 

to the farm to meet Brian when he saw the police and an ambulance heading in that 

direction and that he turned around because he thought something had gone wrong. 

Howard told her that his part of the deal was $4,000. She also said that Howard was worried 

because his fingerprints would be on a .38 he had given to Brian. Vickie testified that 

Howard was wearing the same clothes she had last seen him in except that he had on tennis 

shoes. She also said that when he got into her car, he pulled his coat up around his neck. 

Howard asked her to take him to the Motel 6, and he gave her $120 for a $30 room, telling 

her she could use the excess money to buy a Christmas present for her son.

Vickie contacted Jones and facilitated the return of the truck to him. Next, she took 

Howard to Kimberly’s apartment. Howard called Jennifer that afternoon and told her that 
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a body had been found in a U-Haul near Ogden and that the dead person might be his best 

friend. He told Jennifer to clean out her car because it had been in the area of the U-Haul. 

Howard also asked her if she was going to “turn him in.” When Jennifer arrived home 

from work, the tool box Howard had purchased was sitting in her front yard. The box was 

filled with cleaning supplies, which she discovered had been taken from her home. She also 

recalled that Howard had asked her to leave a key underneath her doormat.

Meanwhile, Howard and Kimberly checked into a motel room upon learning that a 

body had been found in the U-Haul. According to Kimberly, Vickie called her and Howard 

at approximately 4:00 p.m. and told them that Brian and Shannon were dead. Howard and 

Kimberly appeared at Jennifer’s duplex at 5:00 p.m. They informed Jennifer of Brian’s and 

Shannon’s deaths. Jennifer said that she walked with Howard while he retrieved his black 

bag from her car. She asked him where he was going, and she said that Howard replied, “I 

don’t know” and that he said, “I’m getting out of here because I’m gonna be accused of 

killing Brian and Shannon.” The three left together in Jennifer’s Honda, and Jennifer stated 

that Howard returned the black bag to her car. Jennifer said that Howard was quiet and did 

not appear to be upset about the deaths of his best friend and his wife.

Jennifer further testified that she, Howard, and Kimberly drove to Shreveport. On 

the way, Howard called Vickie, and she informed him that the police wanted to talk to him, 

but he told her that he did not want to speak to them right then. Jennifer said she asked 

Howard what had become of Shannon’s belongings that had been in her car earlier that day. 

He told her he had “gotten rid of” her things. Jennifer also overheard Howard asking 

Kimberly what she had done with the key to the padlock of the U-Haul, and Kimberly told 
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him she had thrown it away. In further conversations, Howard told Jennifer he had 

purchased the tool box for Brian. Jennifer was not aware that Brian owned a truck. Howard

also told her that he and Brian were going to use the supplies she found in the box to clean 

something. In addition, Howard advised Jennifer that he had been at the Days’ house early 

that Saturday morning in her vehicle. He said that he had been waiting for Brian to come 

home and that Shannon wrote Christmas cards while he drank a Mountain Dew. 

The trio went to a Walmart in Shreveport, and Howard gave them $50 to buy 

toiletries because they had not had time to pack before they left. They did not stay the 

night in Shreveport because there were no hotel rooms available. The three then drove to 

New Boston, Texas, and rented a motel room there. Sunday, that next morning, Kimberly 

and Jennifer purchased a newspaper, and they read about the bloody boots being found. 

Howard commented that his boots had been in the U-Haul and that someone was “setting 

him up.”

Sunday afternoon, Howard, Kimberly, and Jennifer went to the sheriff’s office to 

give statements. Howard instructed the sisters “not to say anything about the money.” 

After Jennifer had given her statement, Howard asked her if she had mentioned the tool 

box, and she told him she had not. Jennifer stated that she and Howard returned to her 

duplex after giving their statements. She said that she made a comment about calling the 

police and that Howard slung her across the room. On Wednesday, Jennifer decided to 

meet again with the officer who was investigating the murders. She met him at a lake 

because she was too frightened to be seen at the sheriff’s office. Jennifer gave the officers 
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permission to search her car, and they found Howard’s black nylon bag. It contained rope

and a roll of tape, but no handcuffs.

Based on the evidence, the jury adjudged Howard guilty of second-degree murder 

in connection with the deaths of Brian and Shannon and of attempted second-degree 

murder with regard to Trevor. As mentioned, he received a combined term of thirty-eight 

years’ imprisonment for these convictions. This appeal followed.

As his sole issue on appeal, Howard contends that the circuit court erred by denying 

his motions for directed verdict because the evidence does not demonstrate that he was the 

perpetrator of the offenses. He argues that the State’s theories of the murders are not 

supported by the evidence. Howard points to testimony demonstrating that Shannon was 

not pregnant at the time of her death. He also maintains that there was no evidence as to 

how much money Howard owed Brian and that there was testimony that Brian owed other 

people money. Howard asserts that Brian did not name Howard as a suspect when he 

reported to the police that the rifle had been stolen, and he suggests that Brian knew what 

had happened to the gun and reported it as stolen when his brother pressed for its return. 

He also takes issue with the notion that Brian engaged in a drug deal on Thursday because 

witnesses stated that Brian had no drugs for sale on Friday. He also contests the State’s 

theory of how the blood got on the boots and how they came to be placed where they were 

found. Howard also disputes whether Brian was dragged across the field on a piece of carpet, 

and he posits that the hinge fracture Brian sustained might have been caused by his being 

stomped on with a boot. He notes that the boots that were found had no blood on the 

bottom of them and that unidentified Caucasian hairs were inside the boots. Howard also 
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points to evidence that unidentified fingerprints were discovered on the picture frames 

found on top of Shannon’s body. In addition, he notes that no fibers, blood, or DNA of 

his were on anything tested from Brian and Shannon. Howard asserts that none of his 

clothes had blood on them and that he had no scratches or injuries on his hands or face. He 

is also critical of the investigation conducted by the police. Finally, he relies on evidence 

suggesting that others had a motive to kill Brian and Shannon.

On appeal, we treat a motion for directed verdict as a challenge to the sufficiency of 

the evidence. Brooks v. State, 2016 Ark. 305, 498 S.W.3d 292. The test for determining 

the sufficiency of the evidence is whether the verdict is supported by substantial evidence. 

Wells v. State, 2013 Ark. 389, 430 S.W.3d 65. Substantial evidence is evidence that is of 

sufficient force and character that it will, with reasonable certainty, compel a conclusion one 

way or the other, without resorting to speculation or conjecture. Sylvester v. State, 2016 

Ark. 136, 489 S.W.3d 146. In reviewing a sufficiency challenge, we view the evidence in 

the light most favorable to the State, considering only evidence that supports the verdict. 

Mercouri v. State, 2016 Ark. 37, 480 S.W.3d 864.

Evidence of guilt is not less because it is circumstantial. Chatmon v. State, 2015 Ark. 

28, 467 S.W.3d 731. Circumstantial evidence may provide the basis to support a conviction, 

but it must be consistent with the defendant’s guilt and inconsistent with any other 

reasonable conclusion. Airsman v. State, 2014 Ark. 500, 451 S.W.3d 565. Whether 

circumstantial evidence excludes every other reasonable hypothesis consistent with 

innocence is for the jury to decide. Dixon v. State, 2011 Ark. 450, 385 S.W.3d 164. Finally, 

the credibility of the witnesses is an issue for the jury and not the court. Green v. State, 2013 
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Ark. 497, 430 S.W.3d 729. The trier of fact is free to believe all or part of any witness’s 

testimony and may resolve questions of conflicting testimony and inconsistent evidence. 

Conte v. State, 2015 Ark. 220, 463 S.W.3d 686.

Also, efforts to conceal a crime and evade detection can be considered as evidence 

of consciousness of guilt. Barrett v. State, 354 Ark. 187, 119 S.W.3d 483 (2003). False, 

improbable, and contradictory statements to explain suspicious circumstances may be 

considered by the jury in determining guilt. Hill v. State, 299 Ark. 327, 773 S.W.2d 424 

(1989).

Howard’s arguments challenging the sufficiency of the evidence overlook the fact 

that our standard of review requires us to consider the evidence in the light most favorable 

to the State and to only consider evidence that supports the verdicts. Mercouri, supra. When 

the evidence is viewed in that fashion, there is substantial evidence to support the jury’s 

findings of guilt. Brian was found in a remote field on property owned by the Howard 

family. His body was locked inside a U-Haul truck rented by Brian but driven by Howard 

before the murder. Howard’s fingerprints were on this truck. According to the testimony, 

his girlfriend Kimberly disposed of the key to the lock on the U-Haul. Boots like those 

worn by Howard were found a short distance from the field. Brian’s blood was found on 

one boot, and Howard’s hair was found inside the boots. Although Howard was wearing 

boots in the hours before Brian’s body was discovered, he was wearing tennis shoes 

afterward. In addition, Howard essentially admitted that the boots were his when he 

proclaimed to Kimberly and Jennifer that he was being set up when they read about the 

boots in the newspaper. Howard purchased a large tool box that morning, and the 
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testimony indicated that he was on his way to the field in a truck that he insisted on 

borrowing with a tool box filled with cleaning supplies. Upon seeing the police, Howard 

avoided detection and returned to Texarkana. Although Howard said he believed that 

something had gone wrong with Brian, he left rather than check on his friend. Howard 

was also afraid that the police had seen him in the truck, and he distanced himself from that 

vehicle. Howard had also been in possession of a .38-caliber revolver the day before Brian 

was shot with a weapon of that kind.

The testimony also reveals that Howard was with Brian, Shannon, and Trevor in the 

wee hours of that Saturday morning. At that time, he was traveling in Jennifer’s vehicle, 

which contained Shannon’s purse, jacket, and luggage. Howard later told Jennifer he had 

disposed of Shannon’s belongings. He also advised Jennifer to clean out her car because it 

had been located near the U-Haul. A vehicle of this description was also seen at the Days’ 

home that morning. Shannon’s hands were bound with handcuffs identical to those that 

Howard was known to possess. Although he had told Vickie that his black bag contained 

handcuffs, no handcuffs were found inside the bag when it was recovered from Jennifer’s 

car and searched. 

Howard’s actions and other statements also support the jury’s verdict. When he left 

Jennifer’s house at 1:30 a.m. on Saturday, he told her that he was going to get his money. 

Despite not having a job, he spent and dispensed a fair amount of cash that day. Howard 

instructed Kimberly and Jennifer not to mention the money when they gave their statements 

to the police. It is also telling that Howard left town Saturday night and did not wish to 

speak to the police. In addition, he made inconsistent statements to Jennifer. At first, he 
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told her that the Days were in hiding, but he later said that he had been at the Days’ home 

drinking a Mountain Dew with Shannon while she wrote Christmas cards. A Mountain 

Dew bottle with Howard’s fingerprint on it was found in the Days’ living room. Howard 

also told Jennifer that he needed Jones’s truck to help Brian move furniture, although the 

U-Haul had been rented. 

Citing Roderick v. State, 288 Ark. 360, 705 S.W.2d 433 (1986), Howard maintains 

that evidence demonstrating that he was last seen with the victims is not sufficient to support 

a conviction. However, the evidence in this case demonstrates much more than that. It is 

our conclusion that the jury’s verdicts are supported by substantial evidence. Therefore, we 

affirm his convictions and sentences.

Affirmed.

Janice W. Vaughn, Arkansas Public Defender Commission, for appellant.

Leslie Rutledge, Att’y Gen., by: Vada Berger, Ass’t Att’y Gen., for appellee