NC NC - Asha Degree, 9, Shelby, 14 Feb 2000 #2

[MesquiteO21]

At this point, I think it has to go on the books as a possible reason for her leaving the house. While I have my doubts, I still think it is a viable possibility. I was a sleep walker as a teen and I know that I did some wild stuff and my sister-in-law was a sleep walker as a younger child. Her parents woke up one morning to her asleep in their living room and when they went outside to get the paper (can you tell how old we are? lol) They found the neighbor kids bike parked on their front porch! They figure she went over and got the bike in her sleep! She was about 9 years old at the time.

agreed. i'm leaning towards her sleepwalking, because nothing else really makes sense. if lured, she had to have either set an alarm to wake up at 2am or kept herself up until that time. and then, afraid of the dark and storms, still left the house? i don't think it's impossible, but seems a bit unlikely. kids can do a lot of things in their sleep, including packing a bag and using a key to lock/unlock a door.

 

[scottishwildcat]

agreed. i'm leaning towards her sleepwalking, because nothing else really makes sense. if lured, she had to have either set an alarm to wake up at 2am or kept herself up until that time. and then, afraid of the dark and storms, still left the house? i don't think it's impossible, but seems a bit unlikely. kids can do a lot of things in their sleep, including packing a bag and using a key to lock/unlock a door.

In the documentary where her parents were interviewed, the power had been out, so the adults had been sitting in the lounge with candles and an oil heater. It came back on at 11 i think, and Mom went to bed. Dad stayed up to wait for the oil heater to cool down (I guess for safety) and then went into the kids room to blow their candles out. That's how they know she was in bed at 2.30am. Her dad saw her.

I'm wondering if him coming in disturbed her and she half woke up (sleepwalking theory)

OR

Maybe she was waiting for her parents to go to bed to leave and her dad just went to bed especially late that night meaning she had to leave especially late.

 

[Pimlipo]

Someone mentioned up thread that Asha kept her keys in her bag. So maybe she didn’t ‘pack’ a bag to take as such, just took it because she needed the key to get out the house. All that can definitely be done while sleep walking.
I once sleepwalked out of a friends house, navigating my way out of a door I was unfamiliar with and even negotiating a set of traffic lights on a busy road. (Scary as hell when I woke up mid-stride)

 

[OptimusLime]

Update:

https://www.charlotteobserver.com/news/local/crime/article292626279.html

 

[Mysteries1974]

A look back: Asha Degree case from the beginning

Investigator talks about Asha Degree case from the beginning

www.shelbystar.com

According to this recent article, Roy Dedmon’s name came up early on in the investigation into Asha’s disappearance.

“Despite the challenges, Steen said initially he had "very strong leads" coming in, including a name that has been the recent focal point of search warrants.

"Roy Dedmon’s name came up in my investigation, but with things going on right now with his family, I will not feel comfortable making any statements on my involvement," he said.”

 

[Mysteries1974]

Charley Project Case File has been updated

Asha Jaquilla Degree – The Charley Project

“Unconfirmed reports state the bag contained Asha's name on a piece of paper, as well as clothing and a pencil case. DNA found on it was linked it to two people: Annalee Victoria Dedmon Ramirez, who was 13 years old at the time of Asha's disappearance, and a man named Russell Bradley Underhill.

In September 2024, police searched multiple properties owned by a married couple, Roy Lee Dedmon and Connie Elliott Dedmon, including two houses and an assisted living facility they operated. Annalee Dedmon Ramirez is the Dedmons' daughter, and her home was searched also. Underhill lived in at last two facilities operated by the Dedmons at around the time of Asha's disappearance, and he "knew and associated with" Roy. Underhill died in Lincoln County, North Carolina in 2004.

Investigators took away multiple pieces of potential evidence, including an old green AMC Rambler similar to the one Asha may have gotten into, but they emphasized they did not find any human remains. They stated they believe Asha was the victim of a homicide and her body concealed.

According to the search warrants, Roy would regularly send one of his teenage daughters to transport patients to and from the hospital in Morganton, North Carolina and the vehicle used was unreliable. The route to the hospital would have been on Highway 18, where Asha was seen walking. Police theorize the Dedmons' children (Annalee has two sisters who were 15 and 16-17 years old in 2000) were involved and that their parents helped execute and/or cover up the crime.

A number of persons of interest have been investigated in Asha's case over the years, but until 2024 no suspects were named in her case. It remains unsolved.”

 

[EphemerallyAya]

Police theorize the Dedmons' children (Annalee has two sisters who were 15 and 16-17 years old in 2000) were involved and that their parents helped execute and/or cover up the crime.

RSBM. But what motive would any of the 13-17yo girls transporting patients in the middle of the night have to pull a child into a car and then do something to cause her to never be seen again? If witnesses saw her being pulled into a vehicle that would mean the easiest answer of an “accident” isn’t what happened. I just don’t get their logic.They’ve gotta have a good reason to search the youngest child’s house, but I don’t really believe she was driving the car that night, or any night in 2000.

Edit: clarified a sentence

All Moo ofc.

 

[Mysteries1974]

RSBM. But what motive would any of the 13-17yo girls transporting patients in the middle of the night have to pull a child into a car and then do something to cause her to never be seen again? If witnesses saw her being pulled into a vehicle that would mean the easiest answer of an “accident” isn’t what happened. I just don’t get their logic.They’ve gotta have a good reason to search the youngest child’s house, but I don’t really believe she was driving the car that night, or any night in 2000.

Edit: clarified a sentence

All Moo ofc.

It’s because in the warrant, it’s been specifically stated that investigators believe the older two Dedmon girls were involved but needed adult assistance to execute/cover up the crime. They searched the youngest daughter’s home since it was her hair they found on Asha’s undershirt.

The oldest daughter was known to transport the patients that Roy and Connie had in the green 1960s era AMC Rambler that was towed in the recent search. She would do these drives as early as 3:00 am or 4:00 am. It’s also been stated the daughter took Highway 18 when she did these late night/early morning drives.

This coupled with the obvious damage to the front of the car has led many to believe the teens might’ve accidentally hit Asha and they pulled her into the car afterwards. I honestly don’t believe this scenario to be true.

One of the only other possible cases where this might’ve happened would be Erica Baker, a nine year old who disappeared in Kettering, Ohio on 02/07/1999. The prime suspect in that case admitted to hitting Erica while she was walking her dog that afternoon. The suspect said that he and the other people in the car panicked and abducted Baker before burying her body in an unknown location. It’s generally believed this was a lie and that something more sinister happened to Erica which is why the suspects haven’t led authorities to her body yet. That’s mainly speculation though and Baker is still considered missing.

There’s also the case of Tammy Maciulis, an eleven year old girl who vanished from Marinette, Wisconsin on 07/10/1987. She was abducted and murdered. Her killer tried to claim he had accidentally ran her over with his car and that he buried her remains to avoid trouble. As it turned out, she died from a blow to the head and her death was ultimately a murder. He had killed Tammy and drove her all the way from Wisconsin to his home state Georgia where he buried her in a shallow grave in Murray County. The suspect led authorities to her remains in exchange for pleading guilty to only the abduction charges in the Maciulis case.

I really doubt a hit and abduction happened in this case imo. I believe it’s possible one of the Dedmon daughters might’ve been an occupant in the car on the night of Asha’s disappearance but who knows.

I’ve wondered if it’s possible that Asha wandered onto the Dedmon property while she was alone and was caught by someone. Maybe she ran away from the property and they pursued her in their car before abducting her? I still wonder about the possibility that someone living in the Dedmon household might’ve heard the BOLO call about Asha on the CB Radio and went out looking for her. Their property was not far from where she was spotted by Blanton when he made that call so someone would’ve likely heard it if they were listening.

Again, this is all speculation and none of it is factual besides the information about the Baker and Maciulis cases. The information I mentioned from the warrant in the Degree case is also fact and it’s the main reason many people jump to hit and run as a leading theory. I just can’t see that happening imo

 

[dms]

This coupled with the obvious damage to the front of the car has led many to believe the teens might’ve accidentally hit Asha and they pulled her into the car afterwards. I honestly don’t believe this scenario to be true.

Again, this is all speculation and none of it is factual besides the information about the Baker and Maciulis cases. The information I mentioned from the warrant in the Degree case is also fact and it’s the main reason many people jump to hit and run as a leading theory. I just can’t see that happening imo

Why not? Seems like the simplest explanation to me.

 

[Cedars]

It’s because in the warrant, it’s been specifically stated that investigators believe the older two Dedmon girls were involved but needed adult assistance to execute/cover up the crime.

I have seen that interpretation of the meaning of the search warrant before, but I don't agree that is what it means.

I believe that language has a legal purpose, to explain in a nueutral/legal/universal fashion why evidence pointing to involvement of a child or children, is a still a legally proper basis for police to search and seize evidence from their parents.

IMO, police just write a search warrant to cover all their bases, in case it leads, eventually, to a court case where the relevance/validity of the search warrant could be challenged by some future defense attorney.

In particular, a defense attorney might challenge the search warrant, and try to get it thrown out of court, on the basis that the hair of a then 13 year old girl, was not justification to search her parents homes. So the police/lawyer who wrote up the search warrant threw in the comment that, even IF a child/children was involved, that still justifies the search warrant.

The purpose of the search warrant is to convince a judge it's lawful to seize private property, not to spell out any current theories or 'beliefs' of police. Just because police 'believe' something, is not justification for a warrant. They have to have evidence.

There's no evidence except the hair, the other DNA, and a witness statement about a (potentially quite different model) green car.

How could those thing possibly cause police to go off on a wild theory about what actually happened, involving the daughters?

My understanding of modern police methods is that they avoid developing any theory, since that just leads to tunnel vision and missing/ignoring key evidence because it doesn't match the fixed belief of what happened.

JMO

 

[justinkjones1993]

All of this is only my opinion, but

I'm starting to think Asha was sleepwalking, bumbled into the road because she's out of it, and one of the teenage Dedmon girls grazes or hits her with the green car. They panic, realizing what happened and load Asha in the car. Not knowing what else to do, they drive her to Dad. By this time Asha has died from internal injuries. The Dad realizes he's culpable for letting his possibly underage daughters drive on that road at 3 AM, and decides to dispose of Asha's body and her belongings. They never speak about it again.

The abduction/grooming thing just doesn't make sense anymore with the wording of the warrant and the fact that they seem to believe the teen girls were involved. The key term here "conceal". If you're a groomer and predator, are you going to count on your teenage daughters and your wife to conceal something you've done to a little girl, or is it more likely that teeangers screwed up and mom and dad concealed their fatal mistake?

This is sad, but it looks like an accident. Vehicular homicide/manslaughter.

 

[justinkjones1993]

And adding to my last comment, the only objection I've seen to Asha being hit by a car is that there were no skid marks, blood, or physical evidence from someone being hit by a vehicle.

But I've personally witnessed a case of somebody hit by a car in my town, a man in his mid-50s who was much larger than Asha, and you would have never known such a thing happened unless you were there. The only reason I knew about it was because it was on the route to my job and the police had the road blocked. But there was no skidding, blood, broken glass, or anything. They simply knocked the poor guy down and from what I understand he wound up paralyzed.

Somebody much smaller like Asha could absolutely have been struck without leaving behind wreckage or evidence of impact.

 

[ChatteringBirds]

All of this is only my opinion, but

I'm starting to think Asha was sleepwalking...

Agree that all could have happened, but I am not sure she was sleep-walking, unless she had a history of sleep-walking.

I imagine there would either have been a confession from someone at some point (not necessarily made to LE), or maybe it was written about in a diary (found by LE), for LE to have developed their theory and made the statement they made.

Could three people keep such an awful secret forever? If so, how deeply it must have affected them. All JMO.

 

[Queena]

I agree. Don't throw in the towel yet. Look at the Laci Peterson case they had lots of circumstantial evidence against Scott they just didn't have Laci or Conner's body yet.
If overwhelming evidence is found (direct or circumstantial) they can still try this case without a body.

Poor Asha. I am hoping she gets Justice and her family gets answers.

I don't think that there will be charges filed. It's a bit too murky for charges based on what we know. I think that at this point her parents may just want a proper burial for their child.

Imo

 

[Queena]

It’s because in the warrant, it’s been specifically stated that investigators believe the older two Dedmon girls were involved but needed adult assistance to execute/cover up the crime. They searched the youngest daughter’s home since it was her hair they found on Asha’s undershirt.

The oldest daughter was known to transport the patients that Roy and Connie had in the green 1960s era AMC Rambler that was towed in the recent search. She would do these drives as early as 3:00 am or 4:00 am. It’s also been stated the daughter took Highway 18 when she did these late night/early morning drives.

This coupled with the obvious damage to the front of the car has led many to believe the teens might’ve accidentally hit Asha and they pulled her into the car afterwards. I honestly don’t believe this scenario to be true.

One of the only other possible cases where this might’ve happened would be Erica Baker, a nine year old who disappeared in Kettering, Ohio on 02/07/1999. The prime suspect in that case admitted to hitting Erica while she was walking her dog that afternoon. The suspect said that he and the other people in the car panicked and abducted Baker before burying her body in an unknown location. It’s generally believed this was a lie and that something more sinister happened to Erica which is why the suspects haven’t led authorities to her body yet. That’s mainly speculation though and Baker is still considered missing.

There’s also the case of Tammy Maciulis, an eleven year old girl who vanished from Marinette, Wisconsin on 07/10/1987. She was abducted and murdered. Her killer tried to claim he had accidentally ran her over with his car and that he buried her remains to avoid trouble. As it turned out, she died from a blow to the head and her death was ultimately a murder. He had killed Tammy and drove her all the way from Wisconsin to his home state Georgia where he buried her in a shallow grave in Murray County. The suspect led authorities to her remains in exchange for pleading guilty to only the abduction charges in the Maciulis case.

I really doubt a hit and abduction happened in this case imo. I believe it’s possible one of the Dedmon daughters might’ve been an occupant in the car on the night of Asha’s disappearance but who knows.

I’ve wondered if it’s possible that Asha wandered onto the Dedmon property while she was alone and was caught by someone. Maybe she ran away from the property and they pursued her in their car before abducting her? I still wonder about the possibility that someone living in the Dedmon household might’ve heard the BOLO call about Asha on the CB Radio and went out looking for her. Their property was not far from where she was spotted by Blanton when he made that call so someone would’ve likely heard it if they were listening.

Again, this is all speculation and none of it is factual besides the information about the Baker and Maciulis cases. The information I mentioned from the warrant in the Degree case is also fact and it’s the main reason many people jump to hit and run as a leading theory. I just can’t see that happening imo

You're on to something. That sounds very reasonable.


I was wondering why they named the daughters, they're full names... Is there a reason for that? Is this normally done in cases like this?

Everything I state is my opinion and my opinion only.

 

[Soulmagent]

T

And adding to my last comment, the only objection I've seen to Asha being hit by a car is that there were no skid marks, blood, or physical evidence from someone being hit by a vehicle.

But I've personally witnessed a case of somebody hit by a car in my town, a man in his mid-50s who was much larger than Asha, and you would have never known such a thing happened unless you were there. The only reason I knew about it was because it was on the route to my job and the police had the road blocked. But there was no skidding, blood, broken glass, or anything. They simply knocked the poor guy down and from what I understand he wound up paralyzed.

Somebody much smaller like Asha could absolutely have been struck without leaving behind wreckage or evidence of impact.

I have seen it to ,I saw when the rambler was being pulled away in a video the the front was pretty smacked and those cars were solid back them. Heavy sleds but that front end damage could not be from Asha getting hit. The theory got them the car however .

 

[Mysteries1974]

You're on to something. That sounds very reasonable.


I was wondering why they named the daughters, they're full names... Is there a reason for that? Is this normally done in cases like this?

Everything I state is my opinion and my opinion only.

I believe the main reason they stated they suspected the daughters was due to the youngest daughter’s hair being found on Asha’s undershirt. I don’t really believe the daughters are involved but I could always be wrong. Besides the hair, they had no direct connection to Roy and Connie. They did have Underhill but that’s still not a direct link to Roy or Connie even though they cared for him. That’swhy they listed so many items such as computers and photos on the warrant, they knew they had one chance to get everything during this one search before the Dedmon’s could potentially destroy or dispose of further evidence linking them to Asha’s disappearance. The main reason they used the wording they did was because unfortunately they can’t say right off the bat that Connie and Roy are fully involved since their DNA was not found directly on the evidence. They did state they had a third unidentified source of DNA on the backpack, garbage bag, or its contents thar they suspect belongs to either Dedmon adult which is why investigators also ordered a sample from both.

 

[Soulmagent]

Quick question let say the DNA did match the daughter , but they only have so many markers for the match/ They could claim the match to get a warrant for the dads car based on the match and not have to reveal more on the search warrant to tip off the suspects ?
Or am I thinking to hard about it ?

 

[Mysteries1974]

Quick question let say the DNA did match the daughter , but they only have so many markers for the match/ They could claim the match to get a warrant for the dads car based on the match and not have to reveal more on the search warrant to tip off the suspects ?
Or am I thinking to hard about it ?

For the possessions to have both Underhill and the youngest daughter’s DNA means she had contact with the Dedmon family. It’s way too coincidental that two people who were extremely close to Connie and Roy ended up leaving evidence on Asha’s belongings. I believe the hair came from Asha either being in the car, at the Dedmon family residence, etc

I’ve heard mention that Underhill’s DNA was found on the garbage bag. That leads me to believe he was the one to dispose of Asha’s book bag imo. Perhaps he threw it from a car while he was traveling to Broughton Hospital or somewhere in Morganton, NC. This is speculation

 

[SAMS]

Just adding my two cents, regarding the accident theory, the weather definitely plays into this being a possibility as well… I just wonder what made her leave the house in the first place. I just don’t buy into the sleepwalking theory, especially in the rain.IMO MOO