What did Megan Hargan do? Virginia woman convicted in the murder of mother and sister in second trial

In a verdict on September 22, 2023, 40-year-old Megan Hargan of Virginia was deemed guilty of two counts of first-degree murder in the 2017 shooting deaths of her mother, 63-year-old business executive Pamela Hargan, and her 23-year-old sister, Helen Hargan.

The double homicide occurred on the afternoon of July 14, 2017, inside Pamela Hargan's residence in the 6700 block of Dean Drive, McLean, where all three were residing at the time.

Fairfax County Commonwealth's Attorney's Office claimed that Megan Hargan orchestrated the crime scene to seem like her sister committed a murder-suicide.

---

Megan Hargan's first-degree double murder conviction was vacated in 2022

NBC Washington reported that although Megan Hargan was found guilty last year, a judge had to vacate the conviction as a juror conducted outside research, leading to jury misconduct.

WUSA9 reported that the juror, Tasha Nix, reportedly attempted to re-enact the slayings at home using a rifle and then, during deliberations, informed fellow jurors that the defense's theory of the case was implausible.

The defence motion that prompted the judge to overturn Megan Hargan's conviction was as follows:

"Ms. Nix went home and used her own rifle to see if that was possible. She tried to hold the rifle and maneuver it with one hand. She tried to see if it was possible to hold the rifle without leaving fingerprints. She tried to see if [it] was possible to shoot herself at the angle that the medical examiner explained to the jury. Based on these experiments at home, Ms. Nix concluded that she was unable to figure out a way that Helen Hargan could have committed suicide, due to the weight of the rifle itself and her inability to maneuver it in such a way to match the angles described by the Medical Examiner."

According to the report by WUSA9, following the dismissal of conviction, Fairfax County Commonwealth's Attorney Steve Descano said,

"We are disappointed that a juror's inappropriate actions led to this double murder conviction being vacated, We are still committed to getting justice for the victims of this crime. My office will move forward and prepare for the new trial."

WTOP reported that the evidence presented at the retrial indicated that Megan and her sister Helen were both searching for new houses, and Megan was upset when she found out that her mother, Pamela, was financially assisting Helen and not her.

According to the report by WTOP, the day prior to the incident, Megan attempted to transfer about $400,000 from her mother's bank account to afford a new house. While the initial transaction was flagged as fraud, prosecutors claimed that the following day, Megan shot her mother with a .22 rifle, reattempted the wire transfer, and then carried the rifle upstairs and shot her sister.

On November 9, 2018, Megan Hargan was apprehended near her residence in Monongalia County, West Virginia, and convicted over three years later.

---

Megan Hargan's young daughter was present in the residence at the time of the shootings

NBC Washington reported that according to Fairfax County Commonwealth's Attorney Steve Descano, the second guilty conviction comes after years of anguish for the family. He said,

"When the first conviction was vacated, I promised that my office would continue to fight for justice for the Hargan family and for the community, and today we have obtained that outcome. Today's guilty verdict has been a long time coming, and I hope [that] Pam and Helen's loved ones will be able to take one step closer to healing."

The report by NBC Washington also mentioned that Megan's young daughter was inside the house when the shootings occurred.

Megan Hargan is slated to be sentenced on January 26, 2024, where she faces up to imprisonment for life.