LA LA - Sharon Hensley, 24, Sulphur, February 1973

Authorities are testing DNA from a woman's skull found in a Florida orange grove four decades ago to see if the unidentified remains may be that of Sharon Hensley, whom serial killer suspect Felix Vail called his wife.

Vail, a 74-year-old Mississippi native, is the last known person to be with Hensley, who disappeared in 1973 and is presumed dead.

In his March 20, 1973, letter, Vail wrote his mother that days earlier he had sent Hensley and an unnamed man "off to the ocean and each other with my good wishes and blessings."

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An attorney for serial killer suspect Felix Vail told a three-judge panel for the Louisiana Court of Appeal on Wednesday that two other women's disappearances should be barred from evidence...

Assistant District Attorney Carla Sigler responded that it does not, explaining that the doctrine of chances applies in this case because the two women disappeared under similar circumstances and were last known to be in Vail's presence...

The Mississippi native is charged with the murder of Mary Horton Vail, whose 1962 death in Lake Charles, La., was originally ruled an accidental drowning.

He is the last known person to be with her and two other women: his common-law wife, Sharon Hensley, who disappeared in 1973; and his wife, Annette, who disappeared in 1984...

The murder trial is expected to take place some time next year.

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An appeals court ruled Wednesday that families are able to testify about the disappearances of two women that alleged serial killer Felix Vail considered his wives.

Louisiana's 3rd Circuit Court of Appeals ruled Wednesday that the trial court "did not abuse its vast discretion" when it ruled in March that prosecutors could introduce evidence of the disappearances of Sharon Hensley and Vail's wife, Annette.

Vail, a 75-year-old native of Montpelier in Clay County, is expected to go on trial next year for murder in the 1962 death of his first wife, Mary. Experts say it is the oldest prosecution of an alleged serial killer case in U.S. history.

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Prosecutors expect the murder trial of Felix Vail to be delayed until next year because his lawyer has stepped down.

The trial of the Mississippi native had been set for Nov. 16 in Lake Charles, but Vail’s lawyer, Ben Cormier, moved to withdraw from the case.

The judge has granted his request, and Vail will now be represented by the public defender’s office.

With the change in lawyers coming so close to the start of the trial, prosecutors expect the trial to be delayed.

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Cormier recently approached prosecutors, seeing if there were any possibility of a plea bargain in the case.

The families balked at the request for such a deal in which Vail would tell what he did with both Sharon Hensley and Annette Vail.

Mary Horton Vail’s brother, Will, told authorities in an email, “We want you to prosecute and convict the *advertiser censored*! No exception!!!”

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Brian Hensley, Sharon's brother, still lives in Bismarck but will soon travel to Louisiana to provide testimony in the trial of Felix Vail, a man charged with murdering his first wife, and suspected of involvement in the disappearances of Sharon and another woman.

Brian hopes his testimony will help put Vail behind bars. But, more importantly, provide closure for his family after so many years of not knowing.

Brian has been looking for answers for more than 40 years.

"It's a long time, but justice will be served," said Brian.

Hensley says after the trial, he will have a memorial service for his sister, and he invites those who knew her and his family to attend.

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