Tracey L. Chandler was 28 when she was found dead on a bed in a Henrico County, Virginia, residence after police responded to a call on February 7, 2000. Authorities opened a homicide investigation into the shooting that ended her life.

The man whose home contained Chandler’s body, identified as Smith, was indicted for first-degree murder and testified at trial. He said an argument about Chandler’s drug use escalated and that she attacked him with a hypodermic needle, prompting him to shoot in self-defense. Prosecutors countered with expert bloodstain pattern testimony that disputed Smith’s account of Chandler standing and lunging when the shots were fired.

The jury convicted Smith of first-degree murder, and the Court of Appeals later refused his appeal, leaving the conviction in place.