Heartbreaking News From Dog

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. — Duane Dog Chapman (@DogBountyHunter) June 26, 2019 Archive.is

With this tweet, Duane Chapman, known widely as Dog the Bounty Hunter, broke untold numbers of American hearts. His beautiful, loving, world changing wife Beth was gone. The woman who once graced our TV sets hunting down criminal bail jumpers (and setting most of them back on a better path) would grace us no more. At 51, Dog’s fabulously well dressed beauty and co-star in TV and in life died in Honolulu of throat and stage four lung cancer.

Beth Chapman, Bounty Hunter.

Alice Elizabeth Smith was born October 29, 1969, in Denver, Colorado. The daughter of Garry Smith, a professional baseball player who played for the Kansas City Athletics, Beth grew to become the youngest bail bondswoman in the history of the State of Colorado. She was 29 when she accomplished that. This feat was only topped by her stepdaughter, Lyssa Chapman, who became a bail bondswoman at the tender age of 19.

You have blessed so many lives with your grace and tough love

Beth chose bounty hunting after a life of waitressing, ice skating, and nightclub performances. Later, she joined her tough as nails (but kind hearted) husband, Duane, The Dog. In 1995, Dog and Beth decided not only to blend their businesses, but to blend their families. America watched as this passionate blonde duo hunted fugitives, often taking the opportunity to speak into their lives. Many times their words have changed the lives of the people they encountered.

On May 20, 2006, Dog and Beth blessed us with the nationwide broadcast of their wedding. It was official! The duo had become one. Beth stunned in a beautiful ivory dress with a delicately embroidered bodice, while her groom shined himself up and dressed all in white, but in typical Dog fashion we all love. Shirtless. Their union was magical as only a tropical wedding could be.

In The Midst of Tragedy

The moments were made all the more endearing by the fact that the night before their wedding, Dog’s daughter Barbara died in a car accident. Her death was a reminder not only to her Daddy, but to America, that life is short, and that these moments should be cherished. Despite the ups and downs, the highs and lows of their relationship, Dog and Beth grabbed that reminder and ran with it, dedicating themselves not only to their shared success, but to each other.

Beth not only starred in, but produced several bounty hunting shows with Dog. Her shows include “Dog the Bounty Hunter,” “Dog and Beth: On the Hunt,” and a new one just in production at the time of her death; it is titled “Dog’s Most Wanted.” It is uncertain whether this latest will continue, but when it started, Beth’s health problems featured prominently in it.

Just like the old days, she was supposed to ride shotgun alongside Dog as he hunts the worst of the worst. During this time, Beth sought out many different forms of treatment, unwilling to put pharmaceuticals in her body. One such was medical marijuana. Beth told her loving fans that we have to be willing to try new treatments. Eventually she tried chemotherapy, but stopped treatment, saying it just wasn’t for her.

Loved Ones Gone Before, and Those Left Behind

Alice Elizabeth Chapman is preceded in death by her father, Garry Smith, who sometimes appeared on Dog The Bounty Hunter and became a bondsman late in life, and her stepdaughter Barbara, who was struggling to get her life back together and doing well by all accounts. She leaves her husband, Duane “Dog” Chapman, 4 children: Bonnie Chapman, Cecily Chapman, Garry Chapman, Dominic Davis, her stepchildren: Duane Lee Chapman II, Leland Chapman, Lyssa “Baby” Chapman, Tucker Chapman, Christopher Chapman, and Wesley Chapman, along with 14 grandchildren and 1 great grandchild.

Goodbye, for now, Beth. You have blessed so many lives with your grace and tough love, and America mourns you along with your family. Your wit, strength, and love of all people regardless of their problems will be forever cherished. And if you would please, say hello for us to all our loved ones who have suffered the scourge of cancer and won the ultimate eternal bounty. Well done, good and faithful servant. We will see you again soon.