Lynn Orrand's murder: A complete timeline of events

Lynn Orrand, a 32-year-old man from Murfreesboro, Tennessee, was killed on January 16, 1982, while hunting on his in-laws' land. The case was initially thought to be a senseless accident and went unsolved for years until new clues came forth in 2007.

The investigation showed that Lynn's wife, Candace Orrand, and her boyfriend, Gary W. Bush, had planned his murder. This case will be featured on Oxygen’s Fatal Family Feuds, which examines deadly family conflicts. The episode will explore the details of Lynn Orrand’s tragic murder and the legal proceedings that brought Candance and Gary to justice.

The episode is set to air on Oxygen on April 13, 2025.

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Prominent events involving the death of Lynn Orrand

Early life and initial investigation (1981-1982)

As per the records from the Court of Criminal Justice of Tennessee's February 8, 2011 session, Lynn Orrand married Candance in 1981, and the two resided with their children in Murfreesboro. Candance and Gary W. Bush, her co-worker, started having an affair during this period.

On November 18, 1981, Lynn was attacked by an unidentified person in his garage with a tire tool. The attack was not serious, but represented a turning point in the lead-up to his murder.

On January 16, 1982, Lynn had gone hunting on his in-laws' land. His body was found hours later by relatives, who tracked footprints from his truck into the woods. The death was initially treated as a potential hunting accident because there were no immediate suspects or obvious motives.

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Cold case reopening and new evidence (2007)

As per WGNS Radio, the case went unsolved for more than two decades before being reopened in 2007 as a cold case by the Rutherford County Sheriff's Office. Detectives were given new evidence that led to the involvement of Candance Orrand Bush and Gary W. Bush in Lynn's murder.

Kevin Patterson, Candance's younger brother, admitted to having shot Lynn and accused Candance and Gary of the crime. As per the same records from the Court of Criminal Justice of Tennessee, Kevin testified that Candace promised him $5,000 and shelter for his family in return for murdering her husband. He also testified that Gary gave him a shotgun and other equipments to use for the kill.

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Trial and Convictions (2011)

As per the Tennessee Administrative Office of Courts, Candance Orrand Bush and Gary W. Bush were found guilty of first-degree murder in 2011 by a jury. The trial hinged heavily on the testimony of Kevin Patterson and other incriminating evidence that connected the defendants to the offense. They were both given life imprisonment sentences for their part in Lynn's demise.

As per the records from the Court of Criminal Justice of Tennessee, challenges to the evidence against them at the trial included Candance and Gary contesting that Kevin's testimony was inadequate and uncorroborated to uphold their convictions.

However, their conviction was upheld, and the court asserted that the presented evidence was competent enough to convince them of guilt beyond a reasonableness limit.

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Appeals and current status

As per the Tennessee Administrative Office of Courts, Candance and Gary appealed their convictions on the grounds of the admissibility of some evidence and the evidence being insufficient on the part of the prosecution.

The appeals notwithstanding, their convictions were not overturned by appellate courts. Both are serving life imprisonment terms in Tennessee prisons for their involvement in the murder of Lynn Orrand.

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Lynn Orrand's death was first considered a senseless accident, but came to be the result of a premeditated act by his wife, Candance Orrand, and her boyfriend, Gary W. Bush. It was a tangled web of time frames, consisting of a previous attack on Lynn, the murder itself, and a cold case investigation that found the perpetrators.