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In August 2004, Tausha Morton, then 30 years old, became the focus of a chilling murder investigation in Boone County, Missouri. Alongside her fifth husband, Gregory Morton, she was suspected of playing a central role in the death of 39-year-old Mitchell Kemp, her ex-husband.
Set against the backdrop of the county's quiet countryside, the case unfolded as one involving layers of deception, manipulation, and a hidden grave that would remain undiscovered for years.
Tausha Morton, who was convicted of first-degree murder in 2010, received a life sentence without parole, and her ex-husband, who admitted to the shooting, accepted a plea deal. The case, which was motive-driven due to custody concerns and false accusations, engaged the true crime crowd with its intricate web of acquaintance and betrayal.
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Tausha Morton's assertions of innocence, outlined in an interview given in 2024, provide depth to this tale.
Watch the case reairing on July 2, 2025, on Snapped: Behind Bars season 2, episode 3, available on streaming platforms like Peacock and Oxygen.
The story behind the Tausha Morton's case
Tausha Morton, born Tausha Fields, experienced a turbulent personal life, having been married five times by the age of 30. Her first husband’s identity remains publicly undisclosed. She later married Keith Jones, who would go on to testify against her during the murder investigation. Her third and fourth marriages were both to Mitchell Kemp, with whom she had a daughter in 2002.
Their relationship eventually soured, and they divorced in 2003 after Tausha accused Kemp of assault. These claims later came under scrutiny during the investigation, according to Oxygen. Tausha’s fifth husband was Gregory Morton, who ultimately became her co-defendant in the murder of Kemp.
Post-divorce, Tausha married Gregory Morton and moved with him and Lexie to a farm on Deer Park Road near Columbia, Missouri. Mitch, a carpet installer from Mexico, Missouri, maintained contact with Lexie, but the duo's tensions over custody lingered. In 2004, Kemp disappeared, initially thought to be evading warrants for minor theft charges.
As per CBS, it wasn’t until 2008, when Tausha’s new boyfriend in Florida, Dewayne Barrentine, grew suspicious after finding out she had five past marriages, including one to Mitchell Wayne Kemp. His discovery of concerned messages from Kemp’s relatives online led him to alert police, helping reopen Kemp’s missing persons case.
Barrentine’s tip, combined with a prior confession Tausha made to another ex-boyfriend, Keith Jones, led authorities to her. In August 2008, Tausha, then in Texas, guided police to Kemp’s remains buried on the farm, sold by Gregory in 2005. The case revealed a calculated murder rooted in personal conflicts, as per CBS News.
The crime and investigation
Mitch Kemp was murdered at the farm on Deer Park Road on August 24, 2004. According to trial testimony, Tausha Morton lured Kemp to the property, allegedly claiming he would see Lexie. Gregory Morton was influenced by Tausha’s claims that Kemp had r*ped her and molested Lexie, and shot Kemp five or six times with a handgun, as per the Columbia Daily Tribune.
The allegations against Kemp were later deemed false.
Tausha was there and is said to have kicked and spat on Kemp as he passed away. The couple buried the body in a shallow grave on the farm after wrapping it in a tarp and applying lime to it. Kemp's family reported him missing in late 2004, but his disappearance remained unsolved for years.
When Barrentine contacted authorities in 2008, the investigation took off. Tausha's contradictory accounts, which included a 2006 confession to Jones, led to more investigation.
In August 2008, Boone County detectives interviewed Tausha in Texas, where she led them to Kemp’s skeletal remains, confirming homicide. Gregory was arrested in St. Louis, and Tausha Morton was extradited from Texas in January 2009. Both faced charges of first-degree murder and armed criminal action, setting the stage for a high-profile trial, according to the Columbia Daily Tribune.
Trial and aftermath of the case
In June 2009, Gregory Morton pleaded guilty to second-degree murder, receiving a 19-year sentence in exchange for testifying against Tausha Morton. At Tausha’s June 2010 trial in Boone County, prosecutors argued that she orchestrated the murder, motivated by fears of losing custody of Lexie.
Witnesses, including Gregory, Barrentine, and Jones, described Tausha Morton’s manipulative behavior, with evidence showing she fabricated stories to incite Gregory, according to the Columbia Daily Tribune.
The defense countered that Gregory was the primary actor, manipulating Tausha and shifting blame for a lighter sentence. The jury convicted Tausha of first-degree murder and armed criminal action, sentencing her to life without parole plus 20 years on August 16, 2010.
In 2017, Tausha sought post-conviction relief, citing ineffective counsel, but the Missouri Court of Appeals denied her motion in 2021. As for Gregory Morton, he remains incarcerated under his 19-year sentence. Public records indicate no parole has yet been granted. Lexie, who was just a toddler at the time of the murder, has reportedly been raised by extended family and remains out of the public eye.
The impact on Kemp’s family has remained over the years, as the case is remembered as a deeply troubling domestic incident in Missouri.
Stay tuned for more news and updates.
