Former Spalding football coach pleads guilty to murder in Maryland

“She is a loss to her family, her community and the world,” Braveboy said Friday. “We lost someone who was committed to healing others.”

Kearney will be sentenced in June and could receive up to 30 years in prison. Braveboy said no sentence would be justice in the case.

“This plea does bring closure to the family,” she said.

The night before she was killed, Best and Kearney had gone to dinner and had a fun evening, according to investigators. But the two later got into an argument, Kearney said.

On the morning of Feb. 17, authorities said Kearney walked into the Prince George’s County police station to report he had assaulted Best. Officers found her unresponsive in her Accokeek home and she died at the scene.

“During an interview with homicide unit detectives, Kearney confessed to strangling the victim during an argument,” police said in a news release after the woman’s death.

Credit: File

Credit: File

When she lost consciousness, Kearney said he smacked her face to “bring her back,” according to court documents. But when Best didn’t respond, Kearney said he left the home in her car and drove to Virginia.

He later returned to Maryland and drove to the police department to report what he had done and was arrested.

Kearney referred to Best as his girlfriend, but her sister denied that in an email to The Atlanta Journal-Constitution after Kearney’s arrest and said she was not in a relationship when she died. Kearney was someone Best had trusted to help her move from Georgia to Maryland before her next work assignment, her family said.

Kearney’s arrest shocked the Spalding community, where he was a successful coach and had served as a mentor to young athletes.

A graduate of Griffin High, he was a standout wide receiver at Georgia Southern and worked as the receivers coach at Griffin before he was hired by crosstown rival Spalding. He took over a team that went 1-9 the previous season and advanced to the playoffs in 2021, 2022 and 2023, an unprecedented streak in school history. In 2023, the Jaguars posted a 12-1 record and won the region title, the team’s first in 20 years.

In March 2024, Kearney was indicted in the case. He pleaded guilty to second-degree murder because investigators did not have evidence Kearney planned the murder ahead of time, attorney Jessica Garth said.

Prosecutors said Best’s close-knit family had played a vital role in the case. Best had followed in relatives’ footsteps when she chose the medical profession.

“We know that healing will take a lifetime,” Braveboy said. “To the Best family, just know we are here for you, whatever you need.”