Teacher of the Year Shot Dead in Backyard by Man She Was Dating After ‘Argument’ | “She Was Very Young and Vibrant”

Trigger Warning: This article contains themes of domestic abuse that some readers may find distressing.

A 28-year-old Texas woman was found dead in her backyard on January 7, and the police suspect she was a victim of domestic violence. According to ABC 13, at about 9.50 p.m., on January 7, while responding to calls about a shooting, police found Wendy Duan dead in her Sugar Land backyard with multiple gunshot wounds. Duan's neighbor Tony Thomas said that he heard "four very distinct gunshots." Thomas said, "It was quite scary at the moment, so I dropped everything I was doing and came outside." 

Duan was a third-grade reading and language arts teacher at Boone Elementary School in Houston. In December 2021, she was named the school's Teacher of the Year, according to PEOPLE. At that time she also posted on Facebook, "I still can't believe that I won ESL teacher of the year"

Many people remembered Duan fondly. "It's very sad … she was very young and vibrant and … we're all very sad about it," neighbor Saly Thomas said, according to KHOU. Another neighbor Sandy Thomas added, "We'd talk to each other, and she told me she's a teacher, so not much too much conversation, but she seemed like a nice girl. We would see each other on and off sometimes."

Her Twitter account had photos praising her students and fellow teachers, with appreciation and enthusiasm for her job. One 2021 tweet read, "Great things that happened last week! My students referred back to their MyBooks to help them with their plot structure assignment! #duallanguage #2ndgrade #hmh #readingisfun #ela". 

Crisis counseling teams are now placed at Boone Elementary to help students and staff to recover from Daun's death. The Alief Independent School District has also issued a statement that Duan had been employed with the district since 2017. It added, "We are deeply saddened to learn about the tragic passing of Alief ISD employee Wendy Duan." 

In a recent update, police said that they have arrested Charvas Thompson, 26, of Houston for the murder of Wendy Duan. According to a statement posted by Sugar Land Police Department on Facebook, "An arrest warrant was issued early Sunday morning charging Thompson with murder" adding that his bond was set at $500,000. The statement further explained that Duan had allegedly been dating the accused Thompson only for a week and that witnesses told police that "an argument led to the shooting."

According to New York Post, Duan met him on a dating app. She never imagined that her daughter would end up dead. “It’s unbelievable,” she said. Police further said that the investigation was ongoing and Thompson is likely to be transported to the Fort Bend County jail soon.

If you are being subjected to domestic abuse or know of anyone else who is, please visit The National Domestic Violence Hotline website, call 1-800-799-7233 or text LOVEIS to 22522.

References:

https://people.com/crime/texas-teacher-found-slain-in-yard-police-suspect-domestic-violence/

https://abc13.com/alief-isd-teacher-killed-elementary-school-staff-member-found-dead-domestic-violence-sugar-land-shooting/12681676/

https://www.khou.com/article/news/crime/houston-shooting-teacher-killed-alief/285-d3a27a47-ed06-47e1-8a05-dbd3350d509b

https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100070109731591

https://twitter.com/AliefDuan

https://www.facebook.com/SugarLandPD

https://nypost.com/2023/01/13/wendy-duan-met-alleged-murderer-on-dating-app-mom-says/

Representative Cover Image Source: Getty Images | Joos Mind