What happened to Lance Herndon? Details explored ahead of Dateline on NBC

The upcoming episode of Dateline on NBC is all set to cover the murder of Lance Herndon, a renowned entrepreneur who became the victim of a jilted lover. Though the case dates back to 1996, this murder and its aftermath remain fresh in the minds of Atlanta residents, who were around during this brutal incident.

NBC's Dateline will cover this case in detail in its upcoming episode, titled The Killer Among Them. The episode airs at 9.00 PM EST on NBC on Friday, November 22, 2024. The synopsis for the episode reads:

"After millionaire businessman Lance Herndon is bludgeoned to death in his suburban Atlanta home, the search for his killer reveals no shortage of suspects - or secrets."

Lance Herndon was bludgeoned to death with a heavy object inside his own home. It was seemingly a murder with no signs of self-defense, hinting that whoever killed him caught him off-guard and was possibly someone he knew well.

After shuffling through a long list of suspects, the police could ultimately reach the murderer, Dionne Baugh, a former lover of Lance's who sought vengeance on him.

Ahead of the upcoming episode of Dateline, let us go over the circumstances surrounding Lance Herndon's death.

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Who was Lance Herndon and what happened to him?

A self-made millionaire and tech mogul, Lance Herndon was a 41-year-old entrepreneur residing in Atlanta, Georgia. He was the founder and CEO of Access Inc., a booming computer firm that also earned him a mention as the small business entrepreneur of the year.

With a reputation that had others calling him a "Black Jay Gatsby," he was known for his exuberant lifestyle and social presence. He was considered to be one of the most eligible bachelors in the town.

Things were seemingly perfect for the entrepreneur till a Jamaican immigrant, Dionne Baugh, who was married to a pilot at the time, schemed her way into Lance Herndon's 41st birthday party. There, the two got to know each other, and before long, Herndon started seeing her.

However, things did not go very smoothly for long as Dionne Baugh soon found out that Herndon had at least two other girlfriends whom he saw regularly. On the night of July 10, 1996, Dionne made an unannounced visit to Lance's place only to catch him with another woman.

Dionne's violent reaction after seeing this prompted Lance to call 911. He soon told friends that he wanted to end things with Diane Baugh. On August 8, 1996, Dionne's trespassing case was slated to go to court. However, neither Lance nor Dionne turned up.

It was later discovered that on the morning of August 8, Lance, who usually sets three alarm clocks and is never late for work, failed to turn up. When his mother went to check in his room, she found Lance bludgeoned to death and lying naked.

With no signs of struggle, the authorities alleged that the murderer had either struck Lance when he was sleeping or when he was completely unaware of any danger. He was hit over 10 times, which indicated that someone with a vendetta against him had done this.

Herndon’s maid subsequently revealed that a large crescent wrench was missing from the house. All the alarm clocks were also unplugged, which once again affirmed that the person who killed Lance knew the house and his habits well. As one of the clocks was frozen at 4:10, the authorities figured that he died between midnight and 4:10 AM.

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It was quite a long time before Baugh was finally arrested and charged with the murder. She was sentenced to life in her first trial, but with a bit of luck, a technical discrepancy overturned the decision. In her third trial, she pleaded guilty to voluntary manslaughter and was only sentenced to 10 years in prison.

The upcoming episode of Dateline on NBC will cover the murder of Lance Herndon in detail.