THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1994, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Saturday, November 19, 1994 TAG: 9411190477
SECTION: LOCAL PAGE: B2 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: ASSOCIATED PRESS
DATELINE: LEWISBURG, W.VA. LENGTH: Medium: 57 lines
A former Virginia beauty queen accused of attempted murder testified Friday she had wanted to confront verbally an ex-boyfriend from North Carolina who betrayed her, and wound up grappling with a family she never intended to harm.
Prosecutors say Tracy Lippard crowned her successor as Miss Williamsburg Feb. 26, then armed herself with a pistol, hammer and butcher knife and drove 250 miles the next day to kill Todd Scott's lover and her rival's parents.
The 6-foot Lippard, poised on the witness stand in a light blue two-piece suit, said Scott had promised to attend the pageant, where she sang Celine Dion's ``The Power of Love'' and dedicated it to Scott. But he failed to appear.
Lippard, 23, said she got home from the pageant late, tired and upset, and tried to call Scott, who was not at his High Point, N.C., home.
``I was sick of it because he had being lying to me,'' she said.
Lippard said she got two hours sleep.
``I kept lying there thinking `Where is Todd?' This was the last lie,'' she said.
She drove the next day to Lewisburg because Scott had told her in December about Melissa Scott, who was eight months pregnant by Scott at the time. The Scotts were married in August.
Scott testified Thursday he broke up with Melissa Scott in July 1993, got engaged to another woman last fall, then started dating Lippard in December. He said he was never serious with Lippard.
Lippard said she thought Scott might be in West Virginia. She said she wanted to determine which woman he wanted.
``I planned to confront him to ask him questions to find out the truth,'' she said.
She told the Greenbrier County Circuit Court jury she brought a 9mm pistol, a 6-inch butcher knife and a bottle of charcoal lighter fluid.
One of the charges against Lippard is that she brought a stolen gun across the state line.
Lewis testified Friday she attended a party with Lippard at the Griffin home on Dec. 28, 1993. The defense said Chesapeake police were notified by Griffin five days earlier that the gun was missing.
Detch has said Lippard bought the gun at a store in Virginia for $400 for self-defense.
Lobban rejected a defense motion earlier Friday to dismiss the charges, saying there was sufficient circumstantial evidence for the jury to determine each count.
Lippard, of Newport News, Va., is charged with three counts of attempted murder as well as malicious wounding and weapons violations. She faces up to 39 years in prison if convicted. by CNB