Helen Ruth Stewart was 70 and lived in Meridian, Mississippi. She was described by family as a devoted wife, mother, grandmother and great-grandmother and a person of deep faith. She and her husband, Joseph Stewart, had been married 50 years.

On the afternoon of Tuesday, August 13, 2024, dispatch received a call at 12:34 p.m. from the couple’s home on the 9000 block of Blizzard Road reporting a woman had been shot. Deputies and paramedics found Helen Stewart with a gunshot wound; she was taken to a local hospital and died shortly after arrival. Joseph Stewart was taken into custody at the scene and initially charged with aggravated assault; after Helen Stewart died the charge was upgraded to murder. He was held at the Lauderdale County Detention Facility, bond was set at $50,000, and records show he posted bond and was released on August 15, 2024. The investigation was ongoing and evidence was to be presented to a grand jury.

Did anyone in the Meridian area see or hear anything on Blizzard Road around midday on August 13 that could help investigators?