The case centers on the death of 49-year-old Charles Pierce in New Albany, Indiana, on the night of May 6, 2013. Police were initially summoned by a 911 call reporting a home invasion; officers found Pierce on the floor of a Wabash Avenue residence with multiple gunshot wounds. He was taken to a hospital and later died of his injuries.

Investigators found inconsistencies in the caller’s account. Text messages between the caller, 32-year-old Lisa Shuler, and Pierce showed the meeting had been arranged and that the two were romantically involved. Shuler ultimately admitted she had invited Pierce to act out a simulated rape fantasy. She told police Pierce threatened to send explicit photos to her estranged husband, and she then shot Pierce multiple times at close range with a .40-caliber handgun. She also attempted to delete messages from his phone before calling 911 and giving a false story.

Shuler was arrested and charged with Pierce’s murder; she initially pled not guilty and later entered a guilty plea, and the court sentenced her to 45 years in prison. Does anyone have information about Pierce’s life in New Albany or about contacts who might help clarify the events that led to that night?