On July 12, 2024, Tabatha Lynn Pebler, a 44-year-old woman from Arkansas, was sentenced to three years in state prison by Sixteenth Circuit Court Judge Tim Weaver. Pebler was convicted for the manslaughter of her 27-year-old son, Brandon Chrisco, following a disagreement over a lawn mower stuck in their yard in Fulton County, Arkansas on May 31, 2023.
Court records reveal that Pebler received an additional seven-year suspended sentence. If she violates the conditions of her release, she may be mandated to serve further years in prison. Originally, Pebler was charged with second-degree murder and use of a firearm in the commission of a felony. However, she accepted a plea deal that led to a manslaughter conviction and dismissal of the other charges.
Pebler made a 911 call on May 31, 2023, stating that she had shot her son. Deputies from the Fulton County Sheriff’s Office arrived at the scene, read her Miranda rights, and interviewed her. Pebler explained that she had been mowing the lawn and the mower had gotten stuck. She asked her son for help, which he gave reluctantly, showing signs of frustration.
After her son had unstuck the mower, it soon became stuck again. When Pebler asked for her son’s help a second time, he allegedly insulted her and pushed her off the mower. Feeling threatened, Pebler went to her car, located about 250 yards away, to retrieve her pistol.
According to Pebler, her intention was to “scare and stop him.” She fired several warning shots as her son approached her. Despite the warning shots, she closed the distance and ultimately fired the fatal shot that hit Chrisco in the upper left side of his chest. The bullet passed through his body, leaving multiple shell casings at the scene.
Investigators found that after obtaining her firearm, Pebler moved 18 feet toward Chrisco before firing one shot. She then moved an additional 42 feet closer and fired the fatal shot while she was less than 20 feet away from him. Pebler’s defense argued that she did not intend to kill her son, but reacted out of fear.
With the decision to impose a three-year prison term followed by a suspended sentence, Judge Weaver recognized the complexity of the case. Pebler is set to begin her sentence immediately. Her post-incarceration behavior will be closely monitored, and any violation could result in her serving additional time.
