AR AR - Nona Dirksmeyer, 19, Russellville, 15 Dec 2005 *Arrest*

[Pharlap]

I still think he did it. The other guy's DNA on the condom wrapper doesn't prove the guy killed her. Kevin Jones may have found the wrapper and that is what triggered his rage and caused the fight in which Nona was killed in my opinion.

Such a sad case.
Can't retry him, Double Jeopardy.

 

[KansasCutie]

For some reason, i dont think he did it.

 

[sherryggg]

The 48 hours episode is on now on the west coast.

 

[mysteriew]

I'm with you on that. Especially after I saw his behavior while in the interrogation room by himself. He definitely has some anger issues.

I saw that, but to be honest I question whether it meant what the sherrif thought it meant. The first stage of grief is denial, shock. The second stage is anger.
Now I didn't follow all of this. But according to what was on "48 Hours" Jones, his mother and his friend found the body. Right away they call LE. Jones alleges that he handled her body. LE remarked on his calmness during the report. I think that was shock.

After calling LE the ones at the scene would wait and let LE into the home. There would be basic questions to answer from LE. Things like name, her family info. basics on how she was found. So he was busy.

They put him into an interrogation room by himself. I think about that time that it hit him that it wasn't a bad dream. He tried to open the door and couldn't, and I think that was an attempt to have some reason not to think about it, but without a distraction that was all he could think about. I think it was at that moment that he hit the wall. Looking for a physical pain to match the emotional pain. Jones isn't the first guy I have heard of who reacted to that grief/anger by hitting a wall.

The DNA on the condom (or wasn't it just a wrapper? so where was the condom?) it was interesting to me. You would think that if she had been with someone willingly they would have stepped forward and told LE I saw her alive at such and such a time. You would think they would want to do what they could to help solve her murder. But they didn't for some reason. Whoever it was used a condom. That doesn't seem to have been common with at least some of the others she had been with. I think whoever did it brought the condom, to hide the DNA evidence. Then in a hurry after the murder, they forgot to take the wrapper with them. Otherwise if the wrapper was there....why wasn't the condom found?

The chief reportedly said this statement:

But Bacon says the killer couldn't bring himself to cut Nona. "And again, that's consistent with a crime of passion. Because that's a difficult thing for some people to do," the police chief says

And that is bull. Cutting happens all the time in crimes of passion. With beating, cutting and stabbing, and strangulation it is close up and personal and a sign of great rage. And knives are cheaper and usually easier to get to than a gun. So it happens often. So that is at least twice where the Chief used his own interpetation of the evidence to fit his own theory IMO.

 

[NewMom2003]

I'm with you on that. Especially after I saw his behavior while in the interrogation room by himself. He definitely has some anger issues.

I didn't take it that way at all. I took his actions in the interrogation room as that of someone who just lost their long-time girlfriend to a vicious murder. I didn't agree with LE's assessment of the video at all. I thought they were stretching on that.

I don't have a strong gut feeling on this case, but I am leaning towards Kevin being innocent.

 

[Soonerbabie]

Were all of the weapons found? I know they have the lamp. I thought I seen on the 48 hours that the knife was from the home and found there. So that would mean, whoever killed her, didnt bring a weapon. Something provoked this person while with Nona. And snapped. I read somewhere.. I'll go find it if I need to, that there was a text message at 11:04 am from Trey? Trey said that he sent a message during that time. That text message was During the time frame Nona was killed. Could her boyfriend have been there during that time and seen the text message. I am curious as to what it said.
He was with her the night before. Then they talked till around 1:30 a.m. even though she had exams.. I think he went to her apartment during the time in between the exams too.

 

[legallee]

I watched this and caught this:

All of her bf's (or lovers) said they never used condoms. So whose condom was it?

 

[mysteriew]

I watched this and caught this:

All of her bf's (or lovers) said they never used condoms. So whose condom was it?

I heard that too Legallee and have the same question. If the boyfriends she had been with didn't use condoms, then I believe that they wouldn't have brought them with them to the home. Which makes me believe that it most probably wasn't one of the bf's.

 

[PigTails]

Dateline news will be featuring a story on the murder of Nona Dirksmeyer, the beauty queen from Russellville, AR, who was murdered in her apartment on December 15, 2005.

Kenny Johnson, of Monticello, practiced in this area for many years was the lead attorney for Kevin Jones, of Dover, AR, who was charged with Ms. Dirksmeyer’s murder.

The trial took place July 9-20, 2007 and Kevin Jones was acquitted of the murder charge.

This case was known state wide and Dateline will be featuring the story on Friday night, May 2nd on KARK, Channel Four out of Little Rock, Arkansas.

http://www.monticellolive.com/local-...d-on-dateline/

 

[STEADFAST]

http://nwanews.com/adg/News/235043

New man charged in death of student

Gary Dunn of Dover was arrested by the Arkansas State Police and charged with capital murder, according to a statement from the special prosecutor, Jack McQuary. Dunn, who will turn 29 on Tuesday, was arrested without incident in Conway County.

“I’m just going to say that I’m happy for Nona, that the person who did this to her is finally going to be brought to justice,” her boyfriend, Kevin Jones of Dover, who was acquitted in her killing in July 2007, said in a brief telephone interview.
more at link . . .
http://nwanews.com/adg/News/235043

New prosecutor says boyfriend rightly cleared

In July 2007, a circuit-court jury acquitted Jones of firstdegree murder in the death of Dirksmeyer, 19. Even after the trial, Jones’ defense attorneys continued to work to prove his innocence and later turned over to authorities new DNA evidence they helped uncover on a condom wrapper found in Dirksmeyer’s apartment after the killing.
Previously, authorities have said there was no sign of a sexual assault on the Arkansas Tech University student, found lying in a pool of blood on her living-room floor. However, court documents showed Monday that authorities now believe Dirksmeyer may have been sexually assaulted.
http://nwanews.com/adg/News/235428

 

[legallee]

Wow! what a mess up they did! I felt they didn't handle this investigation correctly when I seen the documentary. I'm glad they got the right man.

 

[STEADFAST]

Nona's case is being featured on 48 Hours right now. I assume they'll include the new developments.

 

[SteveHuff]

Wow! what a mess up they did! I felt they didn't handle this investigation correctly when I seen the documentary. I'm glad they got the right man.

This is easily one of the biggest police screw-ups I've seen in ages. I'm still trying to get my head around it. Just amazing.

Steve

 

[PigTails]

This is easily one of the biggest police screw-ups I've seen in ages. I'm still trying to get my head around it. Just amazing.

Steve

Will you be writing a follow-up piece?

 

[wanttohelp]

I just saw this and my opinion is I can't say if I think the bf did it or not, but imo there was not enough evidence to charge him. If he was so cunning to make sure others (mom, friend) were with him when he discovered the body, I think he would have had enough thought in protecting himself as to get lawyered up, not do the flipping out thing in the inter. room.

 

[STEADFAST]

I just saw this and my opinion is I can't say if I think the bf did it or not, but imo there was not enough evidence to charge him. If he was so cunning to make sure others (mom, friend) were with him when he discovered the body, I think he would have had enough thought in protecting himself as to get lawyered up, not do the flipping out thing in the inter. room.

They have DNA evidence that someone else did it. In addition to the DNA evidence, Gary Dunn lived in her apartment complex and had a previous conviction for battery. The boyfriend, KJ, has been acquitted at a trial where the lack of evidence against him was obvious.

 

[PigTails]

They have DNA evidence that someone else did it. In addition to the DNA evidence, Gary Dunn lived in her apartment complex and had a previous conviction for battery. The boyfriend, KJ, has been acquitted at a trial where the lack of evidence against him was obvious.

So, the dna on the wrapper is enough for you to believe Dunn is guilty? Huh. I'm still waiting for more.

 

[gaia227]

I watched this too. I really, really don't think the boyfriend is guilty. The fact that LE was showing the tapes of him in the interrogation room hitting the chair as some sort of indication he was violent was ridiculous and grasping. Anger is a very natural emotion to have when something like that happens. He walked in and found is girlfriend dead, violated by someone, her life beaten out of her and before he can even begin to process this he is being treated like a suspect. I completely understand his anger.

I think Dunn is probably guilty. When we were watching I actually told my fiance that LE should be investigating her neighbors to see if any of them had a background. It scares me living in an apt because it is so easy for someone to be monitoring your movements.
It is a little unlikely that a condom wrapper with his DNA on it would be found in her apt although I would not go as far to say that alone proves his guilt.

 

[SewingDeb]

Trial in Dirksmeyer Slaying Set for September

Russellville - A judge has set a Sept. 28 trial for a Dover man charged in the 2005 slaying of an Arkansas beauty queen. Gary W. Dunn, 29, faces a capital murder charge over the December 2005 slaying of Arkanas Tech student Nona Dirksmeyer. Prosecutors have said they will seek the death penalty.



http://www.katv.com/news/stories/0309/607901.html

 

[tezi]

Thanks Sewing Deb! This is one I will be following!