Second woman arrested in murder–for–hire case
Published 5:55 pm Thursday, September 17, 2009
Shelby County Sheriff Officers arrested Columbiana resident Barbara Louise Patterson Wednesday on one count of conspiracy to commit murder.
Patterson is accused of assisting Kimberly Dawn McGuffie in a plot to hire someone to kill McGuffie’s ex-husband. Patterson is believed to have supplied McGuffie with the drug Lexapro.
The sheriff’s department arrested McGuffie Sept. 8 on charges of criminal solicitation to commit murder, criminal conspiracy to commit murder, unlawful distribution of a controlled substance and unlawful possession of a controlled substance.
Officials believe McGuffie planned to hire someone to kill her husband by planting a mixture of drugs in his drink. McGuffie is currently in the Shelby County jail on a total bond of $545,000. Patterson’s bail is set at $250,000.