Duane Chapman’s Marital Life

As any fan of Dog the Bounty Hunter would know Duane Chapman, the man known as Dog the Bounty Hunter, is lovingly married to Beth Smith. The marriage between Chapman and Smith was even covered in a special episode of the series that is available on DVD right now. However, Duane Chapman’s marital life hasn’t been completely strong. Much of his marital life occurred before his reformation and transition to working as a bounty hunter though.

Chapman’s first marriage was in 1972 when he was nineteen years old. He married La Fonda Sue Honeycutt that year. The couple had two sons, Duane Lee and Leland, but in 1977 Chapman was convicted of murder and sentenced to jail where he would stay until 1979. The couple divorced, presumably due to the conviction, in 1977.

Not long after Chapman was released from jail he married again, this time to Anne Tegnell. The couple had three sons – Zebediah, who died prematurely, Wesley and James. The couple divorced in August 1982.

Just a few months prior to the divorce becoming official Chapman married his third wife, Lyssa Rae Brittain, in June 1982. The couple had three children together. Barbara Katie, Chapman’s first daughter, was born in 1982 not long before the marriage. She died in 2006 a day before Chapman’s marriage to his most recent wife, Beth Smith. Tucker and Lyssa, who is also known as “Baby Lyssa,” were the other children in the marriage. The couple divorced in 1991.

Not much is known about Chapman’s fourth wife. Identified as Tawny Marie, Chapman married her at some point in the early 1990s. The couple separated in 1994 and officially divorced in 2003. There is no information on any children fathered in the Marriage.

Beth Smith is Chapman’s fifth wife and the woman who many know from Dog the Bounty Hunter. The couple were married in 2006 in a ceremony that was covered in an episode of Dog the Bounty Hunter. The episode was released on DVD with bonus features from A&E Home Video. Chapman has had two children with Smith, Bonnie Jo, who was born around 1999, and Gary, who was born around 2000. Exact birth dates for the two have not been made available.

Chapman has also adopted Cecily Barmore, who is the daughter of Smith and whose father was Keith Marmore, Smith’s previous husband.

According to general reports the relationship between Chapman and Smith is especially strong. Reports have even stated that the marriage has been able to weather the house arrest that Chapman was in for a period of time in 2006 due to illegal acts in his 2003 capture of famed fugitive Andrew Luster.

As it can be seen, Duane Chapman’s marital life has been anything but perfect. However, with the work that he has put into his current marriage it is looking to be especially strong. In fact, with his series Dog the Bounty Hunter millions can see Chapman and Smith working together to find and capture fugitives and bring them to justice.