Tamara Dunstan was strangled inside her mother's Augusta home Thursday moments after encountering the man charged in her slaying, an investigator connected to the case said Monday.
Edgefield County Sheriff's Lt. Randy Doran also said authorities do not believe Mrs. Dunstan was sexually assaulted. Lt. Doran, who was present when authorities unearthed Mrs. Dunstan's body from a shallow grave Sunday, said she was found fully clothed.
The new details surfaced Monday as the Dunstan family completed funeral plans and Ronald Burke made his first court appearance.
Mr. Burke, 25, an acquaintance of Mrs. Dunstan's family who once escorted her younger sister to a cotillion, was formally charged Monday with felony murder, burglary and kidnapping during a hearing at the Augusta Law Enforcement Center.
Warrants describe a "violent assault" and "violent struggle" that occurred when Mrs. Dunstan stumbled upon a burglary in the 2700 block of Kipling Drive. Court records accuse Mr. Burke of removing paintings and figurines worth more than $1,000. Police say Mr. Burke planned to give at least one painting to his girlfriend, with whom he was staying at a home on Bourne Place.
Mr. Burke, dressed in an orange jumpsuit and jail-issued tennis shoes, seemed tiny Monday next to five bulky bailiffs who hovered around him. A jail record indicates the Augusta State University student stands 5 feet 8 inches tall and weighs 140 pounds.
He told Magistrate Judge John Baxter he understood the charges. He requested a court-appointed attorney and expressed an interest in getting out of jail.
"When will I be able to appear before a judge on bond?" he asked.
Judge Baxter said a Superior Court judge would have to set a date and address bond because of the felony charges. No date was set.
A grand jury could issue indictments as early as today.
Across town, the victim's family spent Monday at Platt's Funeral Home.
A vigil service is to take place at 7 p.m. today at St. Mary on the Hill Catholic Church. Funeral services are scheduled for noon Wednesday at the church, with burial in Westover Memorial Park.
Richmond County Sheriff Ronnie Strength said he informed the family Monday afternoon about the cause of death. He declined to release much more.
According to Lt. Doran in Edgefield County, Mr. Burke was breaking into the house from underneath when Mrs. Dunstan arrived to drop off a birthday present for her mother. Mr. Burke came out from under the house and spoke with Mrs. Dunstan outside, Lt. Doran said.
"I guess she wasn't too surprised to see him there," Lt. Doran said.
When Mrs. Dunstan went into the home, Mr. Burke, apparently worried that she would see evidence of a burglary, "followed her back in and strangled her," Lt. Doran said.
On Monday, Edgefield County sheriff's authorities and law enforcement officers of the South Carolina Department of Natural Resources combed the grassy shoulders of South Carolina Highway 230, also known as Martintown Road, searching for evidence.
Lt. Doran said Mr. Burke told Richmond County investigators he had thrown a pair of Mrs. Dunstan's tennis shoes from his truck while driving to Quail Run, a remote dead-end road in western Edgefield County. Mrs. Dunstan was buried in a sandy grave less than a quarter of a mile from where a narrow dirt track leading into Sumter National Forest intersects with the pavement of Quail Run.
Authorities said they also were looking for a pair of Mr. Burke's boots and a hammer investigators suspect was used during the burglary and to dig the shallow grave.
Court documents and police reports reveal that Mr. Burke had been in trouble before. He was on probation for driving under the influence of alcohol, according to a search of the Richmond County Superior Court docket.
Mr. Burke pleaded guilty in January to that charge, which stemmed from a Dec. 12 arrest, the docket record states. He was placed on 11 months, 16 days' probation, fined $850, given 30 days community service and served 14 days in jail because it was his second DUI offense since November 2002.
In May 2001, he said he was the victim of a bar fight at Surrey Tavern. He told police another customer struck him on the head with a beer bottle. He agreed to seek a warrant once he was sober, a report states.
In 2000, he was thrown out of a restaurant on the Eighth Street Plaza at Riverwalk Augusta, a report shows. He complained to police that an employee grabbed him by the throat and slammed him against the wall before forcing him to leave. He had been drinking, a report states.
Those who know him say "Ron" seemed to have his life in order, nearing graduation at Augusta State University and developing a solid relationship with his girlfriend. He was apparently doing odd jobs such as grass-cutting.
ASU assistant professor Robert Smalley taught Mr. Burke in a management accounting class in 2001. He said Mr. Burke transferred to Georgia State University in Atlanta but returned to ASU.
Mr. Smalley ran into his former student last month at the ASU athletic complex.
"I asked him about graduation. He said, 'Yes, sir, I don't have much longer to go.' I would have to say it's a complete surprise that he would do this," Mr. Smalley said. "My personal feeling is that it was a poor, quick decision."
Staff Writer Preston Sparks contributed to this article.
Reach Stephen Gurr and Greg Rickabaugh at (706) 724-0851.
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