Police continue to seek clues in Davidson woman’s death

Police renewed their call this week for information into the shooting death of 41-year-old Sarah Long in her Davidson townhome two summers ago.

“We know there are people out there that have knowledge about what happened to Sarah,” Davidson police Lt. Steve Ingram said Friday. “We are moving forward with the investigation, but we are still seeking information.”

Police have never publicly identified a suspect in Long’s death, which was initially ruled a suicide. Within months, police were treating the July 2014 shooting as a homicide.

Police Chief Jeanne Miller said later that year detectives had narrowed their investigation to one person.

On Friday, Ingram said Long’s estranged husband, Christopher Daarmond Reeves, “has been excluded as a person of interest.”

Ingram declined to say whether police have a person of interest.

Long left a will instructing that all of her assets – nearly $1 million – go to her boyfriend, William Drew Becker.

But Becker and Reeves later signed a consent order allowing Reeves to receive an undisclosed share of Long’s estate, court records show.

Becker declined to say Friday whether he is a person of interest in Long’s death. He said that would have to come from police.

He referred further questions to his lawyer, David Rudolph of Charlotte. “I have not spoken to anyone from the Davidson police regarding this matter,” Rudolph said in an email reply to the Observer.

Long was found dead in the bedroom of her home at 611 Old Meeting Way. She was clutching a .357 Taurus revolver in her left hand, records show. Police said Long was right-handed.

Long died of a single gunshot wound to the left side of her head, Dr. Michael Sullivan, Mecklenburg County’s chief medical examiner at the time, wrote in an autopsy report.

In an affidavit, Long’s brother, John Long, said he didn’t believe his sister “would have freely and voluntarily left her assets to Mr. Becker.”

John Long said it’s more likely his sister would have left her assets to their father, given her “expressed desire” to buy the family’s farm in Kentucky.

She intended to buy the farm so their father would no longer have to worry about its upkeep, Long said in the affidavit.

John Long said in court records that his sister struggled with drug addiction for years.

“She would start to get better, then relapse again,” John Long said in his affidavit. “At the time of her death, I believe she was still struggling with addiction.”

Sarah Long had a trial pending on a charge of misdemeanor possession of drug paraphernalia, records show. Her autopsy report showed no presence of illegal substances.

The mystery surrounding her death drew national attention, including on the true-crime “Nancy Grace” show on the HLN cable network.

Staff researcher Maria David contributed.

This story was originally published January 29, 2016 at 12:32 PM with the headline "Police continue to seek clues in Davidson woman’s death."