We take a closer look at some of the difficulties that Dog – real name Duane Chapman – has faced over the course of his life, from sudden deaths to his own conviction for murder
The stepson of Duane ‘Dog the Bounty Hunter‘ Chapman has been arrested six months after shooting and killing his teenage child. Gregory Anthony Zecca, 39, has been charged with aggravated manslaughter after he allegedly mistakenly shot and killed his 13-year-old son, Anthony, at a party at a friend’s apartment in Florida in July.
Zecca accidentally shot and killed his teenage son while under the influence of alcohol and marijuana, police said. Shortly after the tragedy occurred, Dog and his wife Francie Frane – who is Zecca’s mother – released a statement which read: “We are grieving as a family over this incomprehensible tragic accident and would ask for continued prayers as we grieve the loss of our beloved grandson, Anthony.”
READ MORE: Tragic new details emerge about Dog the Bounty Hunter’s step-grandson’s deathREAD MORE: Dog the Bounty Hunter wedding drama as bride’s dress nearly destroyed and tyres slashed
It’s by no means this first tragedy Dog has had to endure. We take a look at the heartbreak and drama that has filled the 73-year-old’s eventful life, which has included six marriages and seen him father a whopping 14 children.
Childhood abuse
Dog was raised with his three siblings by their church minister mother and their father, who was a US Army officer in Denver, Colorado. In his 2017 memoir, You Can Run But You Can’t Hide, he claimed his dad regularly beat him – but said he believed he was trying to toughen him up and that it was a normal way to be treated.
“Because of my religious upbringing, I thought my dad was punishing me for being a terrible sinner,” he wrote, according to the Express. “Until very recently, I never understood that none of his abuse was my fault. I just thought that was how all dads treated their sons.” He said he was expected to take the beatings like a man: “But I wasn’t a man. I was a young boy looking for love and approval from my father. I was desperate for his affection, so I ignored the pain,” he wrote.
Murder sentence
Back in 1976, when he was 23, Dog was convicted of first-degree murder in relation to the death of Jerry Oliver in Pampa, Texas. Dog had been waiting in a car when his friend shot and killed an alleged drug dealer while trying to buy cannabis. And while Dog was not directly involved in the murder, Texas law states that anyone indirectly involved can be charged. He was found guilty of first-degree murder and sentenced to five years in prison – eventually serving 18 months.
Commenting on the conviction he said: “It’s something that follows you the rest of your life, no matter who you become or who you are. I’m not proud of it.”
Interestingly, Dog later chose to pursue a career upholding the law through bounty hunting. He shot to fame starring in the reality show Dog The Bounty Hunter, which followed him as he tried to catch bail jumpers and ran for eight seasons from 2004. However, because of his conviction, he is forbidden from using firearms, which is why he uses a taser instead.
Daughter’s tragic death
On the morning of his wedding to fifth wife Beth Smith, Dog received the devastating news that his 23-year-old daughter, Barbara Katie Chapman, had died the day before in Alaska.
She was a passenger in a stolen SUV that crashed into a tree after leaving the road. The driver also died in the accident and authorities suspected drugs or alcohol may have been a factor.
The family decided to go ahead with the wedding to honour Barbara’s memory. She left behind a nine year old son Travis Drake Lee.
Grandson’s ‘abuse’
Dog was temporarily given custody of Travis after a tape was handed to court which allegedly contained evidence that the little boy was being physically abused by his father, Travis Mimms. The TV star previously said: “To hear the audiotape of my grandson being abused was torture.”
Dog and wife Beth took care of the child but insisted they didn’t want to take him away from his dad: “I want him [Mimms Sr.] to take parenting classes. We had to get Travis [Jr.] out of that situation,” he said.
Long-lost sons
In 1994, Dog discovered he had a son he knew nothing about with ex-girlfriend Debbie White. Christopher Hecht was born in 1972, while the TV star was in prison, and after Debbie died by suicide in 1978, Christopher was adopted by Keith and Gloria Hecht.
Gloria said she initially told Dog to keep away – but that he contacted his son anyway. “He then reached out to Christopher for the first time when he was 19,” she told The Sun. “When he learned Duane was his father, he was ecstatic. They started a relationship.”
Christopher has had his own share of struggles and scrapes with the law. In 2021, he was sentenced to three years in jail in Colorado for a menacing charge. Dog vowed to help his son when he was released from prison.
Then, in June 2023, the TV star revealed he had another secret child, whose birthday falls on the anniversary of Dog’s late wife Beth’s death. Alongside a photo of his son and his wife, he wrote: “For the last four years, this day was a terrible reminder of one of the greatest losses of my life. But God redeemed this day when I discovered my son Jon, who I just met recently, was born on this day.” He continued: “So now instead of sorrow, this day has a new meaning. This is my son Jon and his wife Jodi.”
Death of beloved wife Beth Chapman
In 2017, Beth was diagnosed with stage two throat cancer. Her journey with the disease was documented in A&E special Dog & Beth: Fight of Their Lives. After initial treatment she was given the all-clear, but the cancer returned in 2018.
On June 26 2019, Beth was put into a medically induced coma and died aged 51 at The Queen’s Medical Centre in Honolulu. Dog announced her death on Twitter. He wrote: “It’s 5:32 in Hawaii, this is the time she would wake up to go hike Koko Head mountain. Only today, she hiked the stairway to heaven. We all love you, Beth. See you on the other side.”
Although he vowed to never marry again, less than a year after Beth passed, Dog had proposed to his new girlfriend, Francie Frane. The couple connected through their shared grief – Francie’s husband Bob had died not long before Beth.
“We understood the pain that the other one was feeling and [in] those tough days and moments, we helped each other stand up,” Francie told Entertainment Tonight.
“We could cry with each other and talk about what we were feeling. We were able to walk alongside each other through the pain and heartbreak and it brought us together in this amazing way.” They married in 2021.
Death of colleague
David Robinson was a member of Dog’s crew. He died suddenly aged 50 in 2022 while on a Zoom call.
His ex wife later confirmed the cause of death was critical coronary artery disease. Dog said he was “shocked and saddened” by his co-star and “right-hand man’s” passing.
Disclaimer : This story is auto aggregated by a computer programme and has not been created or edited by DOWNTHENEWS. Publisher: mirror.co.uk
