Prosecutors with the Hillsborough State Attorney’s Office secured a guilty verdict Thursday against 48-year-old Thomas Elmore, Jr. for shooting his girlfriend inside their Riverview home and attempting to cover up the crime by claiming she had committed suicide.
Tamara Naish, a 48-year-old nurse, was found dead on September 22, 2016, after Elmore reported her death to law enforcement and deputies responded to the home.
Based on the condition of her remains, she clearly had been dead for at least 36 hours.
Despite working as a paramedic and understanding the importance of promptly contacting law enforcement, Elmore initially claimed he had found his girlfriend dead on their bathroom floor and then waited 24 hours before contacting the sheriff’s office because he was distraught.
Elmore insisted Naish died by suicide. However, when deputies arrived at the home, they found Naish had been shot not once, but twice. She also had a bullet wound on her hand where she had held her hand up to protect her face.
The gun had been placed in Naish’s left hand, even though she was right-handed. The medical examiner determined it would have been impossible for her to have shot herself, based on the available evidence.
“This delivers justice for Tamara Naish and her family. As a nurse, she dedicated her career to helping others. Her life was taken so heartlessly, and now the man who did it—and lied about it—will pay for it,” Hillsborough State Attorney Andrew Warren said.
Jurors deliberated for eight hours over the course of two days before returning the guilty verdict. Assistant State Attorneys Suzy Lopez and Sean Bevil prosecuted the case. Elmore will be sentenced at a future date.