CO CO - Kelsie Schelling, 21, pregnant, Pueblo, 4 Feb 2013 *Arrest* #2

[Seattle1]

Heartbreaking to hear Laura Saxton offer $50K reward for the remains of her child.

I believe with Lucas convicted and behind bars that recovering Kelsie is finally a possibility -- albeit pay for play-- most likely from a Lucas family member.

MOO

ETA: And I don't know if greed is stronger than waiting out DL to exhaust the appeal process....

 

[Seattle1]

Is colorado going to release court document for public view?

This was 8 years for the family but Lucas was not arrested until 2014. This was not a plea deal verdict so I don't believe much will be revealed/released until post appeal procedures exhausted by the defendant. We know what was in the text messages and what evidence was provided at trial.

Courtroom transcripts are always available for purchase.

 

[Seattle1]

https://www.facebook.com/video.php?v=1100299427105826

Press conference right now...

Thanks for the live link @GoJacks!

I followed Kelsie missing for 8 years.

Maybe it was keeping up and/or following the history of Kelsie's mother and family getting her case to trial but I sensed a defensive posture by the Pueblo DA's office during the presser.

The police chief not part of the old regime so it follows he had limited words here.

I almost expected PI Dan Corsentino to also be present. MOO

 

[susiQ]

Heartbreaking to hear Laura Saxton offer $50K reward for the remains of her child.

I believe with Lucas convicted and behind bars that recovering Kelsie is finally a possibility -- albeit pay for play-- most likely from a Lucas family member.

MOO

ETA: And I don't know if greed is stronger than waiting out DL to exhaust the appeal process....

Good points! I wonder if someone in the hoosegow with him will apply a little pressure to get him to spill? Desperate times call for desperate measures?? Just a thought. As you say, Lucas family may wait until all appeals are exhausted. JMHO.

 

[Seattle1]

My Name is Kelsie Schelling

A short briefing from PE Mike King on Monday --before the GUILTY verdict. He provided that the prosecutor rested their case after their last witness testified -- Cadvar dog handler.

Dog handler testified positive death hit on one car floor mat from Kelsie's vehicle, and also the yard of Lucas' grandmother's residence.

I somehow missed the news about the car floor mat.

It's not clear the date the cadaver hits made but suffice to say this was several years after Kelsie reported missing and presumed deceased.

 

[cujenn81]

i think women do the choosing and they like their bad boys.

WOW!!!!!!!

 

[cujenn81]

Guilty

Taylor Bishop
@Taylor_FOX21
#BREAKING: Jury finds #DontheLucas GUILTY in the murder of #KeslieSchelling.
@BThompsonNews
is working on getting reaction from Laura Saxton - Kelsie's mom.
@FOX21News

!!!!!!!!!!! YEAAAAA!!!
(A day late... but YEAAAA!!!)

 

[MajorHoople]

I can't tell you how delighted I am to see the gold "GUILTY" icon in the thread title.

 

[Topppps]

This was 8 years for the family but Lucas was not arrested until 2014. This was not a plea deal verdict so I don't believe much will be revealed/released until post appeal procedures exhausted by the defendant. We know what was in the text messages and what evidence was provided at trial.

Courtroom transcripts are always available for purchase.

why are court documents in Letecia Stauch (i.e. arrest warrant) case released but not Lucas?

 

[Seattle1]

why are court documents in Letecia Stauch (i.e. arrest warrant) case released but not Lucas?

Perhaps it's the county budget - ask the court clerk.
10th Judicial District (Pueblo) and 4th Judicial District do not compare. El Paso county provides both civil and criminal "cases of interest" whereas Pueblo does not.

Colorado Judicial Branch - 10th Judicial District - Homepage
Colorado Judicial Branch - 4th Judicial District - Homepage

 

[Seattle1]

A case 8 years in the making: The team that solved Kelsie Schelling’s disappearance reacts to the verdict | FOX31 Denver

March 10, 2021

PUEBLO, Colo. — CBI Investigator Kevin Torres remembers it like yesterday. In September 2016, a stressed and worried mother, Laura Saxton, reached out to him, hoping to reinvigorate the case of her missing daughter, Kelsie Schelling.

[..]

“He was the first person who listened to me like I wasn’t a crazy person,” said Laura Saxton, Kelsie’s mother, “He gave me hope when I didn’t have any.”

Saxton’s hope was for answers. Even though Kelsie’s remains have never been found, she’s long since accepted her daughter’s death. She filed a lawsuit against the Pueblo Police Department in the years after 2013 as the frustration grew from a lack of answers.

The lawsuit was dismissed, and shortly after, Torres took the reins of the case, meeting Saxton in September 2016.

“It was just a special bond that we formed. It’s hard to explain,” Torres said, “It’s definitely a person, emotional bond. I’m very grateful that our paths crossed and God took us to this moment.”

In closing arguments, lead prosecutor Michelle Chostner ensured the jury had a clear understanding of the time Kelsie’s killer had to get rid of evidence or to clean things up. The prosecution asserts Kelsie was killed sometime between midnight the night of Feb. 4 and before 3 a.m. the morning of Feb. 5. The first search warrant was executed at the suspect’s home on Feb. 14—a period of 11 days, or 264 hours.

[..]

“Circumstantial evidence is every bit as good as any other kind of evidence,” said Jeff Chostner, the district attorney for Pueblo County, “We were able to put this case together through circumstantial evidence. As difficult as it was, it’s not impossible. Thankfully I had a great team.

[..]

Chostner says there was more evidence to work with in 2017 versus 2013, and enough that gave him the confidence to press charges. Though it was likely frustrating and painful for Kelsie’s family, he believes it led to a successful conviction.

 

[Seattle1]

why are court documents in Letecia Stauch (i.e. arrest warrant) case released but not Lucas?

Pueblo Police Department
December 1, 2017 ·
ARREST MADE IN KELSIE SCHELLING HOMICIDE

On December 1, 2017, detectives from the Pueblo Police Department (PPD) along with agents from the Colorado Bureau of Investigation (CBI) arrested DONTHE ISIAH LUCAS (DOB: 6/30/92) in connection with the 2013 homicide of KELSIE JEAN SCHELLING (DOB: 2/18/91).

LUCAS was already in custody at the Pueblo County Detention Center facing unrelated charges when PPD detectives from the Crimes Against Persons Section and agents with the CBI-Pueblo office served LUCAS with the arrest warrant. LUCAS faces the charge of Murder in the First Degree and is currently being held without bond. LUCAS will be prosecuted by the Tenth Judicial District Attorney’s Office.

The PPD and the CBI have worked tirelessly investigating SCHELLING’s disappearance and murder, interviewing countless individuals and following up on hundreds of leads since February 2013. Resources from across the United States actively participated in the investigation including the Denver Police Department, Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), El Paso County Sheriff’s Office, Mesa County Sheriff’s Office, NecroSearch International, Bloodhound Man Trackers, Inc., Colorado Cold Case Task Force, and the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children.

Because the investigation remains active, details about the investigation and what led to the arrest of LUCAS cannot be released at this time.

If anyone has any information regarding this incident, you are urged to submit a tip. To remain anonymous, contact Pueblo Crime Stoppers at 542-STOP (7867) or www.pueblocrimestoppers.com.
If your Crime Stoppers tip leads to a felony arrest, you could be eligible for a cash reward. ###

______________
While the robbery/assault warrant available on Scribd, I don't recall the murder warrant published in MSM and/or shared.

Given that Donthe was already in custody at the Pueblo County Detention Center, serving him the homicide arrest warrant on the 1st wasn't difficult. But information about the timing of this action is being withheld. The arrest records have been sealed, and the PPD has given no indication when they'll be made public.

What We Know About Donthe Lucas Arrest in Missing Kelsie Schelling Case

https://www.scribd.com/document/364603037/Donthe-Lucas-Arrest-Affidavit

 

[Emi]

Kasia Kerridge @KasiaKerridgeTV 51m
UPDATE: According to the DOC, #DontheLucas has been transferred to a prison in Canon City. Here is his updated mugshot. Lucas was found guilty for the murder of 21-year-old #KelsieSchelling in Pueblo. @KKTV11News

 

[Seattle1]

Bittersweet to know Lucas transported to Canon City --just a stone throw from Pueblo, and Laura Saxton still does not have what she wants most -- her daughter's body. He's a very cruel man. MOO

ETA: Interesting note about Centennial Correctional Facility

Centennial Correctional Facility
The Centennial Correctional Facility is part of the East Canon Complex located in Canon City, Colorado. It has two separate buildings: the South facility, which is Level V maximum-security, and the North facility, which is Level IV maximum security.

The South facility is Administrative Segregation or AdSeg, which is solitary confinement. It has 948 solitary-confinement cells, but no dining room, no gym, no rooms where a group of prisoners can take classes, go to therapy, or get vocational training. It was shut down in 2012 when legislators voted to close it down over their objections to the overuse of solitary confinement. However, the current Governor is lobbying for Centennial South to re-open.

CDOC Offender Search
Centennial Correctional Facility - Prison Insight

 

[leighmarker]

CO DOC - Centennial Correctional Facility - (CCF) & Inmate Search | Visitation - Canon City, CO. He has been free for 8 years, now he is going to a level 5 and 6 prison. Wonder if he had issues while in County?

 

[Seattle1]

https://twitter.com/LenaHowland/status/1374188751010754565



Lena Howland
@LenaHowland

As journalists, these are the stories that keep us up at night. More than six and a half years after I started reporting on this case, I’m thrilled to share that I will be featured as an “expert” on the Kelsie Schelling
@ABC2020
special airing this Friday night at 9/8c.

@ABC10







7:38 PM · Mar 22, 2021

 

[Chocoholic]

Has a date been set for sentencing? Sorry if I missed it.

 

[Seattle1]

Has a date been set for sentencing? Sorry if I missed it.

Kasia Kerridge @KasiaKerridgeTV 51m
UPDATE: According to the DOC, #DontheLucas has been transferred to a prison in Canon City. Here is his updated mugshot. Lucas was found guilty for the murder of 21-year-old #KelsieSchelling in Pueblo. @KKTV11News

Sentenced immediately: life in prison w/o parole. He's already at the penitentiary.

 

[Chocoholic]

Sentenced immediately: life in prison w/o parole. He's already at the penitentiary.

Thanks Seattle, I figured I missed that. So happy for a conviction. Now praying Kelsie will be found and properly laid to rest. I have so much respect for her mom, I really feel that she is responsible for getting justice here.

 

[Seattle1]

Kelsie Schelling Murder: Was Her Body Ever Found? | Heavy.com

3/26/21

Colorado Bureau of Investigation investigators said they believe Schelling was strangled to death by Lucas after he lured her to the town. Cellphone records show that Schelling had just found out she was pregnant and told her family and Donthe and also that Donthe told Schelling to “come to Pueblo when she got off of work that night because he needed to speak with her in person,” her mother said, according to Westword.

During Lucas’ trial, his defense lawyers argued that neither her body nor any DNA had ever been found and it was the “biggest stretch in Colorado history” to charge Lucas with first-degree murder, however, the jury found him guilty after less than three hours’ deliberation, the Denver Channel reported.

[..]

Her mother said Schelling’s body not being recovered from the landfill is “just the worst possibility to me, because he discarded her like garbage. I mean, who wants that for their child to be the final resting place? No one.” Her brother added, “We wanna bring her home with us, her and Cadry both. Cadry — that was the name she was going to give the child.”