John Byrd: Ex-MCAO detective pleads guilty to murder

PHOENIX - A man who once worked as a detective with the Maricopa County Attorney's Office has pleaded guilty to murder.

What we know:

On April 14, John C. Byrd III changed his plea to guilty. Byrd was accused of second-degree murder in connection with the death of his wife.

The backstory:

According to our initial report on Byrd's arrest on Aug. 2, 2024, officers responded to a home in the area of Baseline and Crismon on July 31 for a report of a possible missing person.

"The Reporting Party (RP) stated that [the victim] had not been seen or heard from for most of the day, and the victim had failed to show up to a gym class that they always attend together," read a portion of the court documents. "The RP contacted [the victim's son] via text and was informed that the son and [his two sibling] had not seen the victim all day, and her bedroom door was locked."

The victim was eventually found dead on the bedroom floor.

"The defendant stated he has had some mental issues lately and has been very stressed about his home and work life," investigators wrote. "The defendant stated he and the victim were in a heated argument on [July 31] at about 6:00 a.m. The defendant stated that during that argument ‘a switch just flipped’ in him and he put his hands around the victim's neck and strangled her to death."

At the time Byrd was arrested, officials with MCAO said that the Pinal County Sheriff's Office will handle Byrd's prosecution.

What's next:

Byrd is set to be sentenced on June 13. He is facing between 10 and 25 years in prison.