Kirby Carpenter Dateline Episode Airs Friday on NBC
The killing of Ripley businessman Kirby Carpenter is headed to national television. The Kirby Carpenter Dateline episode, a two-hour broadcast titled “The Betrayal of Kirby Carpenter,” is scheduled to air on NBC on Friday, Oct. 16, at 8 p.m. Central, according to the Northeast Mississippi Daily Journal. Dateline correspondent Andrea Canning is reporting.
The episode looks back at the late-2022 death of the 36-year-old Tippah County man and at the two capital murder trials of Jeffrey Spence, the father of Carpenter’s girlfriend, who was ultimately convicted in his death.
What the Kirby Carpenter Dateline Episode Covers
According to the Daily Journal, the program focuses on the killing itself and on both of Spence’s trials, which drew close attention in Ripley and across North Mississippi. The case also gained a national audience when both trials were streamed by Court TV.
Viewers in the Tippah County area can find the episode on their local NBC affiliate. Schedules can change for breaking news or sports, so check local listings before Friday night.
- Episode: “The Betrayal of Kirby Carpenter”
- Network: NBC
- When: Friday, Oct. 16, 8 p.m. Central
- Length: Two hours
- Correspondent: Andrea Canning
Background on the Case
Court TV reported that Carpenter’s girlfriend, Caitlin Spence, called 911 on Dec. 2, 2022, to report finding his body outside his home. Investigators said he had been killed days earlier, on Nov. 30, 2022. Carpenter’s mother told officers that he usually carried a bag holding $200,000 to $300,000 in cash, silver or gold, Court TV reported.
Jeffrey Spence, his wife Karen Spence and their daughter Caitlin were all charged in the case. Court TV reported that Caitlin Spence pleaded guilty to accessory to murder under an agreement requiring her to testify. Karen Spence pleaded guilty to a grand larceny charge as an accessory after the fact just before jury selection and was sentenced to 10 years in prison.
Two Trials and a Life Sentence
Jeffrey Spence’s first trial ended in a mistrial in late September 2025 after jurors deadlocked 6-6, Court TV reported. Prosecutors argued that Spence was driven by money and greed. The defense tried to portray Carpenter as an abusive drug dealer.
At the second trial in March 2026, the jury found Spence, then 67, guilty of first-degree murder and acquitted him of capital murder and manslaughter. Circuit Judge John Kelly Luther immediately imposed the mandatory life sentence, according to Court TV. At both trials, Caitlin Spence testified that her father admitted his involvement to her after she found Carpenter’s body.
For many in Ripley, where Carpenter was known as a local businessman, Friday’s broadcast will revisit a case that played out over nearly three years in the courts.
Read our earlier coverage: Hung Jury Mistrial Declared in Kirby Carpenter Murder Trial and Re-trial for Jeff Spence Set for March.
Source: Northeast Mississippi Daily Journal; additional background: Court TV
