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A Georgia man, Donald Everett Beck, was arrested on April 2nd, 2024, accused of
murdering his girlfriend and her 6-year-old son. WSBTV News Staff, Ga. Man accused of
murdering girlfriend, her 6-year-old son and setting fire to cover it up, WSB-TV 2 Atlanta,
(accessed April 7th, 2024, at 8:44 AM), https://www.wsbtv.com/news/local/ga-man-accused-
murdering-girlfriend-her-6-year-old-son-setting-fire-cover-it-up/
KMBXPCW3XNFCHL7KFGIUIPKR7M/. On April 1st, firefighters responded to a call for a
home ablaze. They rescued Donald Beck, who was still inside the house. Id. After putting out the
fire, the bodies of Karen Boswell and her son Ethan were found inside. Id. The coroner
determined that both had been stabbed to death. Id. Donal Beck has been charged with two
counts of murder and arson in the first degree. Id.
Donald Beck has been charged with two counts of murder—one for Karen Boswell and
her son Ethan. According to common law, Donald Beck could be charged with murder because it
falls under the definition of what murder is under common law. “(1) the unlawful killing of a (2)
human being with (3) malice aforethought.” Daniel E. Hall, J.D., Ed.D., Criminal Law and
Procedure 99 (7th ed. 2015). The murders here are covered under the requirements of malice
aforethought because of the type of homicide they were. Donald Beck intended to cause the
death of both victims, which is recognized under common law as murder and malice
aforethought. Id. According to another article, Beck stabbed Boswell in the back and stabbed
Ethan in the neck. Alexandra Koch, Sister of slain grovetown woman, 6-year-old son recounts
emotional manipulation prior to murders, The Augusta Chronicle, (accessed April 7th, 2024, at
5:23 PM), https://www.augustachronicle.com/story/news/crime/2024/04/04/sister-of-grovetown-
woman-killed-with-child-in-arson-speaks-out-augusta-georgia/73203576007/. Firefighters found
that the fire had been set on the couch where the bodies were and that all the entryways and exits
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in the home were barricaded. Id. The statutory approach that can be used in these homicides due
to the evidence collected thus far is first-degree murder. The barricading of the exits shows
premeditation. The murders were committed with a knife, and the victims were killed willfully
and deliberately. “To be willful, the defendant must have specifically intended to cause the death.
Deliberate is usually defined as “a cool mind, not acting out of an immediate passion, fear, or
rage.” The term premeditated means “to think beforehand.”’ Daniel E. Hall, J.D., Ed.D.,
Criminal Law and Procedure 104 (7th ed. 2015). With the information provided in the news
articles, Beck intended to cause the deaths of Boswell and her son. It can be concluded that he
deliberately did so as he stabbed them both and barricaded the exits in the home, showing
premeditation to keep them from escaping.
The other crime Donald Beck has been charged with is first-degree arson. Arson is not a
crime against a person but a crime against property. Id. at 144. Arson is defined narrowly as the
“(1) malicious (2) burning of a (3) dwelling house of (4) another.” Id. Every state has different
laws regarding arson. In Georgia, Beck can be charged with first-degree arson if he commits the
offense while in the commission of a felony. GA Code § 16-7-60 (2022). Beck started a fire in
the home of Boswell while committing a felony. The charges that have been filed against him, by
the law and the textbook, are appropriate.
This article was challenging to read, emotionally speaking. Ethically, people know
murder is wrong. Boswell and her son trusted Beck, and he betrayed that trust through his
actions. Biblically speaking, his actions go against everything that God says. “Whoever takes a
human life shall surely be put to death.” Leviticus 24:17. From a Christian worldview, human life
is valuable. God values it. While I believe the killing of another person can be justifiable, what
Beck did, in my opinion, was premeditated murder and should be punished as such.
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