Tragic Details Of Dog The Bounty Hunter's Kids

The following article contains references to drug use, domestic violence, and suicide.

Every now and then, a reality star comes along that changes the face of American pop culture forever — and Duane "Dog" Chapman is one of them. Ever since he exploded onto our screens in "Dog the Bounty Hunter" in 2004, fans have been obsessed with the jail bondsman. Not only was the show entertaining, but Dog's life was (and continues to be) fascinating. The TV icon has fathered 13 children over the years, and he's been married six times. Considering Dog's troubled past with drug addiction and his status as a convicted felon, it's not surprising that his relationship with some of his kids has been a little strained. 

Some of Dog's kids, including Leland and Lyssa (affectionately known as Baby Lyssa), joined their dad's business, becoming on-screen stars in their own right. Others were simply too young or, sadly, deceased at the time. While Dog has certainly led a life laced with tragedy, his children haven't escaped heartache either. From teenage pregnancies to prison time, these are the most difficult situations Dog's kids have had to face. 

Duane "Dog" Chapman's relationship with his son, Christopher Hect, is a challenging one that starts with Hect's troubled early childhood. When he was just 5 years old, his mother, Debbie White, died by suicide. Without another parent to rely on, Christopher was adopted by a woman named Gloria Hect. At the time, Dog had no idea he was the child's father and didn't discover the truth until his son was 19. While that could have been the start of something wonderful, Gloria told The Sun in 2021 that Dog's involvement was problematic. 

Gloria candidly admitted that due to his tumultuous early years, Christopher struggled with drug abuse that made things difficult at home. Initially, Christopher was excited to build a relationship with his dad, but according to Gloria, things went off-track when Dog became involved with his future wife, Beth Chapman.

"Beth didn't get along with Chris because he was a few years younger than her," Gloria told the publication. "She did not treat Chris good and they did not like each other at all. He was totally singled out when Beth was alive. [Dog] was not a nice person to Chris after that." Christopher's troubles continued into his adulthood. In 2020, he was arrested and sent to a Colorado prison to serve a 3-year sentence. 

One of the most tragic details about Dog the Bounty Hunter is just how much his family his has lost over the years. In 2006, two years after the debut of the reality show, Duane "Dog" Chapman's daughter Barbara Chapman was killed in a car crash. To make matters even worse, the accident occurred the day before Dog was due to marry his longtime love, Beth Chapman. Barbara was riding in a stolen car with the driver, Scott Standefer II, when the vehicle veered off of the road and plowed into a tree. Standefer was also killed in the accident. 

"There is no clue as to why they left the roadway. There are absolutely no skid marks on the road. They just went off the road, hit an embankment, and launched," a police trooper told 9News. Not only did Dog lose a daughter much too young, but Barbara left behind a son, Travis Drake-Lee, who was just 4 years old at the time of his mother's death. Surprisingly, Dog's wedding still continued the next day with the blessing of his children. The family used the occasion to pay homage to Barbara and celebrate her, instead of calling off the event. 

In 2007, one of the first "Dog the Bounty Hunter" scandals erupted. The show had been on air for a couple of years, with Duane "Dog" Chapman at the helm, working to put criminals back behind bars. Throughout the show's run, Dog and his wife Beth Chapman were often sympathetic toward those they were capturing, with Dog offering advice as a reformed felon himself. That's why it was so surprising to fans when Dog's own son released a secret recording seemingly outing his father's racist behavior. During a telephone call with his son, Tucker Chapman, Dog called Tucker's girlfriend, a Black woman, an offensive term. 

The uproar was so loud that "Dog the Bounty Hunter" was suspended from the air by the network. Dog apologized repeatedly, claiming he was just trying to protect his son from a woman he felt was no good for him. Dog explained on "Larry King Live" that Tucker had spent four years in prison for armed robbery when he was just 18 years old. "I tried to take control of his life [after]," he said (via CNN). "I heard this girl was maybe not being the best for Tucker — and I'll leave it like that — so I tried to intervene." Despite the situation, Dog explained that he still loved his son. In 2022, Dog posted a grainy photograph of Tucker on Instagram, wishing him a happy birthday. 

"Dog the Bounty Hunter" star Baby Lyssa has certainly come a long way since her troubled early years. Though she may be happily married now, that wasn't always the case for this Chapman. In 2013, Lyssa paid a visit to the Center of Hope shelter, an organization that helped victims of domestic abuse, in Columbia, Tennessee. While there, she mentioned snippets of her own story that she wrote more extensively about in her memoir, "Walking on Eggshells: Discovering Strength and Courage Amid Chaos." Sadly, Lyssa's story isn't uncommon. According to Lyssa, she endured domestic violence for several years, including during pregnancy and after her child's birth. 

"It starts out very small, with the grabbing of an arm here, a push there, small things," she wrote (via Columbia Daily Herald). "Then it got a lot worse, and then we had a really, really bad fight to the point where I almost blacked out. I was being held by my neck up against the ground, and I remember thinking to myself, 'This is it, I'm going out, this is gonna be the end of me today.'" Putting an end to the ordeal turned out to be a complex process that took some time, and it was difficult to deal with as she still loved her husband. "[Women] think we can fix everything," she explained. "So it took a lot of time to be able to break away from the mindset that I could just fix him."

When it comes to raising his children, Duane "Dog" Chapman doesn't have the best track record. Some of his older children had really tough younger years, thanks in part to Dog's own struggles with substance abuse. When Wesley Chapman was just a year old, Dog reportedly abandoned him, and Wesley went into the system before living with his maternal grandparents. 

Wesley's story only got more twisted as he grew into adulthood. To help other people, Wesley set up the Human Project, a private member's club aimed at helping men overcome their traumas. The events run by the non-profit, termed Human Gatherings, began to attract high-profile clientele. During one such retreat organized by Wesley, he told participants that he experienced severe abuse as a child, including sleeping in a dog kennel and ending up on so many medications that they impacted his organs.

Later, Wesley was accused of scamming members, as well as falling behind on bills to the tune of $100,000. 

A look at Dog the Bounty Hunter's arrest record will tell you much about how he spent his youth. However, it doesn't tell you about one of the biggest tragedies to befall Duane "Dog" Chapman, which occurred four years after he was booked in Pampa, Texas.

In 1980, Dog was married to his second wife, Anne M. Tengell, when they welcomed a son, Zebediah Chapman. Sadly, Zebediah was born premature and died not long after his birth. His son's death isn't something Dog talks openly about, but Zebediah is reportedly buried in an unmarked grave in Denver, Colorado.

"I remember Colorado General (now the University of Colorado Medical Center) saying that they had never had such a small young preemie live," reads a Find a Grave post from Jolene Chapman. "Everyone cheered Zeb on. Everyone prayed. Everyone believed. He lived far beyond what medical science said he would. Little Zeb went home to be with the Lord before Duane's birthday would roll around on the second of February." 

Fans of the show will remember Duane "Dog" Chapman's son, Leland, who was one of the primary stars of the series alongside his dad. Leland was instrumental in catching a lot of criminals who had skipped out on bond, often using his youth and strength to subdue them. Of course, being a jail bondsman means that you're putting yourself in danger on a regular basis, as you never know how criminals on the run will react. Interestingly, one of Leland's major injuries didn't happen in the original run of the show but when he was filming "Dog's Most Wanted" alongside his dad in 2019. 

Leland found himself in a bit of a predicament when he pushed himself too far while trying to catch criminal Edward Morales. At the time of the chase, Leland was getting back on his feet after surgery on his left knee. "Two minutes before we get [to the manhunt location] they say the guy is gonna run, so we pull up on the guy," Leland told Entertainment Tonight. "I get out of the car. I walked right to the side. I see him. He's running, so I called the runner to try to go catch him, but he slipped and fell." Before long, Leland found himself in a car chasing Morales and felt confident that he would be able to break into a slow run to catch him. However, the plan backfired when Leland attempted to kick a gate open. "It completely severed off my Achilles tendon. ... Snapped it right in half," he told the publication.

Like many of her siblings, Lyssa Chapman didn't have the best start in life. Although she was Duane "Dog" Chapman's ninth child, her father didn't quite have parenting figured out yet. In an interview with Fox News about her memoir "Walking on Eggshells," she was candid about how difficult it was for her growing up. Lyssa's early years were complex and difficult.

When she was 11 years old, she made serious allegations against Dog, claiming he sexually abused her, though she later admitted they were false. Explaining her rationale to Fox News, Lyssa said, "I had been molested by a friend of [Dog's]. It was a horrible life that I never wanted to go back to, living with him and Beth and the fighting and the drugs. When I got to my mother's, although she drank, it was much more peaceful."

However, Lyssa later became pregnant, giving birth to her first child the day after her 15th birthday. This presented a whole new set of challenges for the unstable youngster, who found herself abandoned by her mother and living alone in a trailer with her young baby. "I really didn't have many options. I was also getting with the guys who I knew had the most drugs," she admitted. Thankfully, Lyssa was able to turn her life around as she grew into adulthood. 

Longtime fans of Duane "Dog" Chapman know that for many years, there was only one woman he had eyes for. His wife, Beth Chapman, was the straight-talking, no-nonsense star of "Dog the Bounty Hunter", but most importantly, she was a mom to four children: Bonnie and Garry, whom she shared with Dog; Cecily, her child from a previous marriage who was later adopted by Dog; and her son Dominic, who was taken into state custody when Beth was a teen.

Sadly, Beth died from throat cancer at the age of 51. Understandably, they were all devastated. Speaking to People at the time, Dog explained, "Each [child] copes differently, there [are] a few that [are] really barely making it. We don't know what to do. We haven't read, we weren't prepared." 

The TV star went on to say that his first thought when comforting the kids was to apologize to them for not being the one who died first. "And they were like, 'Yeah dad, why?'" Dog said when speaking about their response. "So I was like, 'Oh my god, I know what that feels like, I should've been the one. The guy goes first.'"

Fans were surprised in 2023 when Duane "Dog" Chapman announced he had recently discovered he had another son. The reality TV star took to Instagram to share a photograph of his child Jon alongside his wife, Jodi. In the caption, Dog explained what it was like to discover the news and the strange coincidence of his son's birthday. "For the last four years, this day [June 26] was a terrible reminder of one of the greatest losses of my life," he wrote, referring to Beth Chapman's death. "But God redeemed this day when I discovered my son Jon, who I just met recently, was born on this day. So now instead of sorrow, this day has a new meaning."

Dog went on to promise fans more details about Jon in his book, "Nine Lives and Counting." It appears that the duo have managed to maintain a relationship since discovering each other, despite Dog coming into his son's life at a much later age. In June 2024, Dog posted another photo of Jon and Jodie to Instagram, wishing his son a happy birthday. 

Dog the Bounty Hunter's feud with his daughter Bonnie and daughter Cecily was a plot twist many didn't see coming after the death of Beth Chapman. Things took a turn for the worse between Duane "Dog" Chapman and his daughters when he allegedly cut them off. Talking to Inside Edition about the strained relationship, Bonnie told her dad, "I'm disappointed in you, and my mom would be, too, and you know it." Cecily went on to elaborate to reporters, "When my mom passed away, my dad pretty much neglected us. He lost his wife. I lost my mother. I lost my life. I lost my house. I lost my job. I lost everything. We lost everything." 

Additionally, the sisters claimed that Dog had been unfaithful to their mother on multiple occasions over the course of their relationship, but because she loved him, she believed Dog would change his ways. The rift was so vast that neither of the two women attended Dog's highly publicized wedding to his new love, Francie Frane. In the same interview with Inside Edition, Bonnie claimed that she believed her father cut them off because of their support of Black Lives Matter, but Dog rebuffed his daughter's opinion.

In late 2024, Dog and Cecily managed to find peace and rebuild their bond, with Cecily taking to Instagram to show their matching tattoos. 

When it comes to love, "Dog the Bounty Hunter" star Baby Lyssa Chapman hasn't had it easy. Domestic abuse and divorce blighted her earlier romances, but Lyssa eventually got her happy ending when she married Leiana Evensen in 2022. The pair tied the knot in a stunning beach ceremony, reciting their vows to each other as they stood in the Pacific Ocean in Hawaii. "With our feet in the water, we connected ourselves to the power and vastness of the ocean," Lyssa wrote on Instagram. "We were hugged by the majestic Ko'olau mountain range, that will continue hugging us as we live and spend the rest of our lives together at Makaalamihi."

While Lyssa said the couple was joined by a few close family members and friends, her father Duane "Dog" Chapman was noticeably absent. Lyssa told People that while she had her father's blessing and support, being in a same-sex relationship had been difficult for Dog, a devout Christian, to navigate. "I think it's really hard for people who are Christian and do have that belief that marriage belongs to a man and a woman," she explained. "But when your daughter falls in love with someone and you love that person, you can't just say you don't believe in it." 

If you or anyone you know needs help with addiction issues, may be the victim of child abuse, or has experienced domestic violence, contact the relevant resources below:

• The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration website or contact SAMHSA's National Helpline at 1-800-662-HELP (4357).

• The Childhelp National Child Abuse Hotline at 1-800-4-A-Child (1-800-422-4453) or contact their live chat services.

• The National Domestic Violence Hotline at 1−800−799−7233. You can also find more information, resources, and support at their website.