TX - Hailey Dunn, 13, murdered, Scurry County, Dec 2010 *Arrest in 2021, released in 2023* #4

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www.conchovalleyhomepage.com

Trial date set for Hailey Dunn killing

A trial date has been set for the man accused of the murder of Hailey Dunn.
www.conchovalleyhomepage.com www.conchovalleyhomepage.com

Adkins and attorneys from both sides of the case attended a pretrial hearing Thursday morning, where the Defense made it known that they will be seeking a change of venue for the trial, which is currently scheduled for April 11.
 
NOLAN COUNTY, Texas — Shawn Adkins' trial for the murder of Colorado City teen Hailey Dunn has been pushed back. The trial was set to start on June 28 but is now postponed until April 11, 2023 due to new discovery from the State.

The State handed over two terabytes worth of new discovery to the Defense during the pretrial hearing. This includes never-before-seen video interviews.
www.google.com

Shawn Adkins trial pushed back to April of 2023

The new trial date was tentatively set due to new evidence provided by the State.
www.google.com www.google.com
 
Knox said:
NOLAN COUNTY, Texas — Shawn Adkins' trial for the murder of Colorado City teen Hailey Dunn has been pushed back. The trial was set to start on June 28 but is now postponed until April 11, 2023 due to new discovery from the State.

The State handed over two terabytes worth of new discovery to the Defense during the pretrial hearing. This includes never-before-seen video interviews.
www.google.com

Shawn Adkins trial pushed back to April of 2023

The new trial date was tentatively set due to new evidence provided by the State.
www.google.com www.google.com
Click to expand...
Any guess what the new discovery could be? They've had a decade of gathering information.
I'm with you about the PI on the find Hailey page. More evidence sounds better towards justice for Hailey not to be upset like its a bad thing if that makes sense.
 
Well they said "never before seen video interviews". Beyond that who knows what all they scanned into the record.

He was arrested after they took his DNA, so I assume they have forensic evidence as well. Adding- they charged him with hitting her on the head. Maybe all those axes and other crap he filmed himself with, had blood evidence on it?

I'm glad the AG's Office is involved with the prosecution, it's been far too long. Adkins is a danger to society and needs to spend the rest of his life in prison. I am surprised about one thing - not a peep from a certain someone. Is that meaningful, or is she finally coming to the realization that Hailey's death was related to the choices she made? The field was literally covered with red flags ...
 
TobyWong* said:
Any guess what the new discovery could be? They've had a decade of gathering information.
I'm with you about the PI on the find Hailey page. More evidence sounds better towards justice for Hailey not to be upset like its a bad thing if that makes sense.
Click to expand...
Discovery is all the documents they have acquired in the course of the investigation, which they are supposed to turn over to the defense. I presume they have been doing that in tranches, with the last data packet being the "new" data. It is not really new, it is just material that had not yet been turned over to the defense.

I doubt there is anything more much beyond what was collected when HD's remains were found. That is probably the last significant evidence collected in the case. They may have reinterviewed various people, but after a decade one would think that any changes in their accounts would be suspect. The decision to prosecute was unlikely due to anything new, but rather the lack of any further progress prompted the DA who reviewed the case to just go with what they had. Presumably he felt he could make an argument based on that. Possibly some or all of those who might support SA's account or otherwise have created weaknesses in the DA's case have passed away, so he would not be able to call on them for the defense. That could be a strategy for getting a conviction.

So, we shall see. If there was not enough compelling evidence to charge SA years ago it is likely that has not changed significantly in the interim, so the case is probably going to be pretty weak and based largely on suggestion rather than physical evidence. And like I said, it has been a long time, memories have faded/alterted and witnesses are potentially no longer with us. But, you don't need a strong case to convict someone, or even that they be guilty, you just need to be able to get people emotionally invested enough.
 
Tugela said:
Discovery is all the documents they have acquired in the course of the investigation, which they are supposed to turn over to the defense. I presume they have been doing that in tranches, with the last data packet being the "new" data. It is not really new, it is just material that had not yet been turned over to the defense.

I doubt there is anything more much beyond what was collected when HD's remains were found. That is probably the last significant evidence collected in the case. They may have reinterviewed various people, but after a decade one would think that any changes in their accounts would be suspect. The decision to prosecute was unlikely due to anything new, but rather the lack of any further progress prompted the DA who reviewed the case to just go with what they had. Presumably he felt he could make an argument based on that. Possibly some or all of those who might support SA's account or otherwise have created weaknesses in the DA's case have passed away, so he would not be able to call on them for the defense. That could be a strategy for getting a conviction.

So, we shall see. If there was not enough compelling evidence to charge SA years ago it is likely that has not changed significantly in the interim, so the case is probably going to be pretty weak and based largely on suggestion rather than physical evidence. And like I said, it has been a long time, memories have faded/alterted and witnesses are potentially no longer with us. But, you don't need a strong case to convict someone, or even that they be guilty, you just need to be able to get people emotionally invested enough.
Click to expand...
I forget your here sometimes but yes and ty. Yea and hopefully shawn spilled (or investigators found)some good info that lead investigators to serious credible information. This case will prove you right? Or me or all the others that believe egg donor and her boyfriend at the time will be found culpable. We'll see. Ty for your lengthy input as always.
 
TobyWong* said:
I forget your here sometimes but yes and ty. Yea and hopefully shawn spilled (or investigators found)some good info that lead investigators to serious credible information. This case will prove you right? Or me or all the others that believe egg donor and her boyfriend at the time will be found culpable. We'll see. Ty for your lengthy input as always.
Click to expand...
Never uaed the ignore button til now after a decade. But here we are. Ty
 
Knox said:
NOLAN COUNTY, Texas — Shawn Adkins' trial for the murder of Colorado City teen Hailey Dunn has been pushed back. The trial was set to start on June 28 but is now postponed until April 11, 2023 due to new discovery from the State.

The State handed over two terabytes worth of new discovery to the Defense during the pretrial hearing. This includes never-before-seen video interviews.
www.google.com

Shawn Adkins trial pushed back to April of 2023

The new trial date was tentatively set due to new evidence provided by the State.
www.google.com www.google.com
Click to expand...

"In June of 2021, Adkins was taken into custody by the Texas Rangers in Big Spring after they said DNA samples linked him to the murder.
Adkins was indicted in December of 2021, and waived his right to an arraignment in January of 2022."

I wonder where the DNA was found and what kind it was, that 'linked him to the murder' ? If it was Touch DNA found on her clothing, it could be easily explained because they lived together. But could it be bodily fluids he left behind instead? That would be much more damning evidence.
 
Last edited:
Katydid, I feel like it was more than just touch DNA. Remember when Billie lied to LE about Shawn being at her house when they came to collect DNA? Did they ever collect that DNA? I am assuming they did, so I feel it has to be something that was found with Hailey's remains that linked him. Maybe there was DNA they sent off forever ago that just now was returned and they were able to arrest him. I wish we could see a trial soon, but I know it isn't going to happen.
 
I am not sure how DNA would be relevant in this case since HDs remains were skeletal while being exposed to the elements for a few years, and, since SA and HD lived in the same house, both of their DNA would contaminate everything.

How do you think DNA would link him to her murder?
 
katydid23 said:
"In June of 2021, Adkins was taken into custody by the Texas Rangers in Big Spring after they said DNA samples linked him to the murder.
Adkins was indicted in December of 2021, and waived his right to an arraignment in January of 2022."

I wonder where the DNA was found and what kind it was, that 'linked him to the murder' ? If it was Touch DNA found on her clothing, it could be easily explained because they lived together. But could it be bodily fluids he left behind instead? That would be much more damning evidence.
Click to expand...
Gross but maybe something in her underwear?
 
As long as her remains were exposed to the elements - I think DNA had to have been found at the crime scene (her home or his vehicle) under circumstances that led to him as the killer. UNLESS the remains had some type of binding (duct tape?) where trace DNA might have been protected from.the elements.
 
meanmaryjean said:
As long as her remains were exposed to the elements - I think DNA had to have been found at the crime scene (her home or his vehicle) under circumstances that led to him as the killer. UNLESS the remains had some type of binding (duct tape?) where trace DNA might have been protected from.the elements.
Click to expand...
The problem with that is because they lived together, any such DNA could come from incidental contamination. Plus, any such evidence would have been collected up to a decade ago, and they would have had plenty of time to analyze it if they had it. They almost certainly already had samples of SA's DNA prior to that since it would have been collected incidentally during their initial investigations. If it was not sufficient then, why would be be sufficient now? Because of that, any DNA evidence would be of limited use other than to show they were physically associated with each other, but we already know that since they lived in the same house.

The arrest, according to news reports, appeared to be due to the current DA reexamining the evidence as a cold case, and was based primarily on recent interviews. So, I doubt there is anything actually new, other than perhaps certain people changing their account of events from a decade ago.

www.cbs7.com

DPS: DNA samples led to arrest in Hailey Dunn case

New details have been released on the arrest of Shawn Adkins in connection with Hailey Dunn’s murder.
www.cbs7.com www.cbs7.com

The sequence of events apparently was:
1) The DA looking at the cold case in 2020 and talking to the Texas Rangers (TR)
2) The TR reexamining the evidence and talking to several people
3) The TR identifying SA as a suspect
4) The TR getting a warrant to collect a sample of SA's DNA
5) The TR getting a warrant for arrest a few days later

I think there is a pretty good chance that the DNA is irrelevant, and that it was just collected so it could be on hand if needed. If that is the case then the arrest would be based on these additional interviews they carried out.

We can likely rule sexual assault out. If the DNA evidence was in the form of semen for example, then SA would probably have been charged with sexual assault as well, but he has been charged with homicide and disposal of a body only. Plus, they would have definitely looked for that sort of thing when they found the remains, not only now, and apparently did not find anything of that nature, otherwise they definitely would have got a search warrant to collect his DNA at the time since he was a publicly announced person of interest.
 
www.newswest9.com

Shawn Adkins trial moved from Mitchell County to Nolan County

A hearing was held on July 21, 2022, which led to the court transferring the trial from one county to another county within the 32nd Judicial Court
www.newswest9.com www.newswest9.com

The Shawn Adkins trial has been moved within the 32nd Judicial District from Mitchell County to Nolan County.

The trial was initially set to take place in June of 2022, but was pushed back to April of 2023 after new discovery was submitted by the State.
 
Knox said:
Well they said "never before seen video interviews". Beyond that who knows what all they scanned into the record.

He was arrested after they took his DNA, so I assume they have forensic evidence as well. Adding- they charged him with hitting her on the head. Maybe all those axes and other crap he filmed himself with, had blood evidence on it?

I'm glad the AG's Office is involved with the prosecution, it's been far too long. Adkins is a danger to society and needs to spend the rest of his life in prison. I am surprised about one thing - not a peep from a certain someone. Is that meaningful, or is she finally coming to the realization that Hailey's death was related to the choices she made? The field was literally covered with red flags ...
Click to expand...
Still pisses me off that she was never arrested!!!! There are charges they could have gotten her on for sure. so called mom!!!
 
Tugela said:
The problem with that is because they lived together, any such DNA could come from incidental contamination. Plus, any such evidence would have been collected up to a decade ago, and they would have had plenty of time to analyze it if they had it. They almost certainly already had samples of SA's DNA prior to that since it would have been collected incidentally during their initial investigations. If it was not sufficient then, why would be be sufficient now? Because of that, any DNA evidence would be of limited use other than to show they were physically associated with each other, but we already know that since they lived in the same house.

The arrest, according to news reports, appeared to be due to the current DA reexamining the evidence as a cold case, and was based primarily on recent interviews. So, I doubt there is anything actually new, other than perhaps certain people changing their account of events from a decade ago.

www.cbs7.com

DPS: DNA samples led to arrest in Hailey Dunn case

New details have been released on the arrest of Shawn Adkins in connection with Hailey Dunn’s murder.
www.cbs7.com www.cbs7.com

The sequence of events apparently was:
1) The DA looking at the cold case in 2020 and talking to the Texas Rangers (TR)
2) The TR reexamining the evidence and talking to several people
3) The TR identifying SA as a suspect
4) The TR getting a warrant to collect a sample of SA's DNA
5) The TR getting a warrant for arrest a few days later

I think there is a pretty good chance that the DNA is irrelevant, and that it was just collected so it could be on hand if needed. If that is the case then the arrest would be based on these additional interviews they carried out.

We can likely rule sexual assault out. If the DNA evidence was in the form of semen for example, then SA would probably have been charged with sexual assault as well, but he has been charged with homicide and disposal of a body only. Plus, they would have definitely looked for that sort of thing when they found the remains, not only now, and apparently did not find anything of that nature, otherwise they definitely would have got a search warrant to collect his DNA at the time since he was a publicly announced person of interest.
Click to expand...
Bbm, not a chance that should be ruled out imo. Seriously.
 
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