Karyn Hearn Slover's parent's testify
Anne Warfield
Victim's parents tell shock: Hearns describe problems trying to
arrange visits with grandson after killing
By STEPHANIE POTTER H&R Staff Writer
DECATUR -- Karyn Hearn Slover's parents on Tuesday recounted the last
day they saw their daughter alive -- and the problems they've had
seeing their grandson ever since.
Larry and Donna Hearn were the first prosecution witnesses in the
trial of Karyn Hearn Slover's alleged killers. Karyn Slover's
ex-husband, Michael Slover Jr., and his parents, Michael Slover Sr.
and Jeannette Slover, face charges of first-degree murder in
connection with her death.
Prosecutors allege the motive for the killing was that the Slover
defendants wanted to stop Karyn Hearn Slover from leaving town with
her and Michael Jr.'s son, Kolten. Kolten was 3 years old at the time
of the murder.
Officers from the Moultrie County Sheriff's Of fice and crime scene
technicians are expected to testify today.
Larry and Donna Hearn testified that the last time they saw their
daughter was the morning of Sept. 27, 1996, when she stopped by their
house on the way to a meeting for the Herald & Review, where she
worked as an advertising sales representative. Donna Hearn last spoke
to her daughter on the telephone late that afternoon. Karyn Hearn
Slover disappeared a short time later. She was shot seven times, and
parts of her dismembered body were found two days later in Lake
Shelbyville.
Both parents remained composed during their testimony, even as they
described their reactions to a call from David Swann, Karyn Slover's
boyfriend, that the car she had been driving was found abandoned along
Interstate 72. Donna Hearn said she called out her husband's name in
shock after talking to Swann. She recalled Larry Hearn crying before
they decided to go to the scene.
"We got in the car and left right away," Donna Hearn said. "I'm not
sure why. We just wanted to be there."
Both parents testified that they had difficulty seeing Kolten
regularly after Karyn Slover's death. They said Michael Slover did not
return their phone calls. Larry and Donna Hearn have been to court
several times since their daughter's death to maintain visitation
rights with their grandson. The boy now lives in Missouri with his
aunt, Mary Slover, who adopted him after Karyn Hearn Slover's death.
The defendants, who occasionally took notes during the testimony,
quietly consulted with their attorneys during cross-examinations.
On cross-examination, defense attorney Joseph Vigneri asked Donna
Hearn if Michael Slover Jr. had been worried about the Hearns sharing
details of Karyn's death with the little boy. Donna Hearn said he had.
She also acknowledged that a later court order in the custody case
forbade the grandparents from discussing details of the murder with
Kolten or making disparaging comments about his father. But Donna
Hearn denied she and her husband ever made such remarks.
"We haven't then or now," Donna Hearn said.
Donna Hearn testified that her daughter had a strained relationship
with Jeannette Slover. On cross-examination, defense attorney Michael
Costello asked Donna Hearn if there had been animosity between herself
and Jeannette Slover. He noted that Donna Hearn asked Karyn Slover to
call and make arrangements for Donna Hearn to pick up Kolten from the
Slovers' house. Hearn said there was no animosity between the
grandmothers.
"I prefer the mother of Kolten do those things," she said. "She's the
mother of Kolten. I'm the grandmother."
Tuesday afternoon, Tracy Seabaugh, the Lake Shelbyville boater who
found the garbage bag containing Karyn Slover's head, testified about
his discovery. Seabaugh said he had gone out Sept. 29, 1996, with his
wife, Sherri, to enjoy a walk a long the sandy shore. In water about 2
inches deep, he found a gray garbage bag. Seabaugh said he picked up
the bag intending to dispose of it, but it was heavier than he thought
it should have been. Seabaugh felt the bag.
"I thought I felt a human head," he testified.
Seabaugh then called the Moultrie County Sheriff's Office, which
dispatched Sgt. Jeff Thomas to the lake. Thomas, now the chief deputy
of the department, testified Tuesday afternoon about finding the head
and his later participation in the task force that investigated Karyn
Slover's death.
Much of Thomas' testimony focused on the March 1998 search at the
Miracle Motors car lot formerly owned by the elder Slovers. The search
amounted to a mini-archeological dig, in which police shoveled 2-inch
deep sections of dirt into buckets, then sifted them.
Because of recent snowfall, Thomas said it was "like trying to sift
mud pie." But on March 11, Thomas testified that investigators found a
metal button in the dirt. Prosecutors will try to link that button to
the clothes Karyn Slover was wearing when she disappeared. Defense
attorneys will continue to cross-examine Thomas today.
Prosecutors will have about two weeks to present their case, then the
defense will have its turn. The trial is expected to last eight weeks.
Stephanie Potter can be reached at 421-7984.
http://www.herald-review.com/current/Local_News/localnews1.php
(temporary URL)
--
Anne Warfield
indigoace at goodsol period com
http://www.goodsol.com/cats/
Anne Warfield
wrote:
>From the Herald & Review [Decatur IL]--
>
>Victim's parents tell shock: Hearns describe problems trying to
>arrange visits with grandson after killing
>
>By STEPHANIE POTTER H&R Staff Writer
Hah! I think I've got this URL thing sussed out. The URL for this
one is
http://www.herald-review.com/rednews/2002/04/17/build/Local_News/localnews1.php
All but the last bit remains the same (with adjustment for the date)
for each story, then the last bit is taken from the URL first posted
(in this case, localnews1.php).
JonesieCat
"Anne Warfield" <indi...@aolxxx.com> wrote in message
news:3ccd45eb...@news.earthlink.net...
You know, the more I hear about this, cinders, a button, and so forth - it
just sounds like such a thin case.
JC
Anne Warfield
<cj_m.rm@thiswontwork> wrote:
>You know, the more I hear about this, cinders, a button, and so forth - it
>just sounds like such a thin case.
>
>JC
Yeah. I think they did it, but I'm not sure the prosecution is going
to be able to prove it. Cinders? Has anyone testified about cinders
before?
tiny dancer
> On Thu, 18 Apr 2002 11:49:10 +1000, "JonesieCat"
> <cj_m.rm@thiswontwork> wrote:
>
> >You know, the more I hear about this, cinders, a button, and so forth -
it
> >just sounds like such a thin case.
> >
> >JC
>
> Yeah. I think they did it, but I'm not sure the prosecution is going
> to be able to prove it. Cinders? Has anyone testified about cinders
> before?
Thanks Anne, hopefully they will be able to put together enough to get these
people. There has been 'cinders' before I think. My brain is tired
tonight......but that 'government guy' who killed his wife and kids, can't
recall his name? They do him on AMW every now and then. Anyway, he hauled
them to North Carolina, dumped them in a heap, and started the bodies on
fire?? Anybody remember that one?? And then there was the 'Dungeons &
Dragons' one here in NC too. They didn't burn the bodies, but they did burn
evidence that was retrieved.
td
Anne Warfield
<tinyda...@hotmail.com> wrote:
>Thanks Anne, hopefully they will be able to put together enough to get these
>people. There has been 'cinders' before I think. My brain is tired
>tonight......but that 'government guy' who killed his wife and kids, can't
>recall his name? They do him on AMW every now and then. Anyway, he hauled
>them to North Carolina, dumped them in a heap, and started the bodies on
>fire?? Anybody remember that one?? And then there was the 'Dungeons &
>Dragons' one here in NC too. They didn't burn the bodies, but they did burn
>evidence that was retrieved.
>
>td
Dang, I don't know those cases. They sound interesting, though,
Nancy Rudins
"JonesieCat" <cj_m.rm@thiswontwork> writes:
>
>You know, the more I hear about this, cinders, a button, and so forth - it
>just sounds like such a thin case.
>
>JC
>
>
I wish I could attend the trial or tape it on Court TV but
it isn't being covered by Court TV.
It took several years to get enough evidence to convene
a grand jury and get an indictment. I truly hope the
evidence is strong enough to convince a jury to convict,
but I have a sinking feeling that it isn't.
Kind regards,
Nancy
--
There's nothing you can post that can't be posted.
Nothing you can mail that can't be mailed.
Nowhere you can ftp that isn't where you're meant to ftp.
It's easy. Nancy Rudins http://www.ncsa.uiuc.edu/People/nrudins/