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HAILEY OWENS, 10 - MURDERED, MO.
#1
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RIP Hailey Owens

Police say the body of a missing 10-year-old girl has been found in southwest Missouri.

Police Chief Springfield Police Chief Paul Williams says search crews found a body they believe is Hailey Owens inside a suspect's Springfield home on Wednesday.

Witnesses told investigators that a man in a gold-colored 2008 Ford Ranger drove down the street several times before approaching Hailey and pulling her into his truck around 5 p.m. Tuesday.

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Craig Michael Wood, suspected kidnapper / child murderer

Forty-five-year-old grade school coach Craig Michael Wood is jailed on suspicion of first-degree murder in Hailey's disappearance. Wood was arrested late Tuesday inside a vehicle parked outside his house. Formal charges have not been filed.

The Springfield School District says Wood is a coach and teacher's aide at a school for students in kindergarten through eighth grade. Hailey did not attend that school, and Williams says the two apparently didn't know each other. Amber Alerts were issued in Missouri, Kansas and Oklahoma.

Wood has previous criminal history. He pleaded guilty to possession of a controlled substance in 1990 and was given a suspended execution of his sentence after completing court-ordered drug counseling programs, according to online court records.


Sources:
http://abclocal.go.com/wls/story?section...id=9437285
http://www.cbsnews.com/news/suspect-arre...d-mo-girl/
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#2


That's horrible :(

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#3
It is horrible; her family's shock and grief must be palpable.

It's a huge jump from a drug possession arrest almost 25 years ago to kidnapping and murdering a child.

If Wood is the guy (and it sure seems like it), what was this asshole doing all of those years? How many other kids did he victimize in some form? Did he get a job within the school system to have easy access to potential victims?

I won't be surprised if the investigation uncovers more crimes previously undetected in Woods' past.
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#4


Sometimes I think that people raising kids must be scared everyday but I guess if that were the case they wouldn't continue to have them. The world isn't a safe place, not at school or at the movies or the malls.
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#5
(02-19-2014, 03:16 PM)Duchess Wrote: The world isn't a safe place, not at school or at the movies or the malls.

Hailey had just started walking home from her little friend's house.

Wood was in his truck watching her and neighbors saw the whole thing go down.

The fucker snatched Hailey right off the street in front of everyone. The neighbors tried to stop him but it happened too fast. One of the neighbors chased after Wood's truck, but couldn't keep up with him. Other neighbors had called police.

By the time police tracked Wood to his home, Hailey was dead. Wood was holding duct tape in his hand when police arrived and there was bleach all around. Hailey had been shot in the head and her body stuffed into two garbage bags.

Police say there was no apparent connection between Hailey and Wood. The middle school where he substitute taught and coached boys' football issued a statement that they'd suspended him after his arrest (well gee, I hope so).

Updated story: http://www.cbsnews.com/news/coach-charge...ouri-girl/
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#6
(02-20-2014, 12:17 AM)HairOfTheDog Wrote: By the time police tracked Wood to his home, Hailey was dead. Wood was holding duct tape in his hand when police arrived and there was bleach all around. Hailey had been shot in the head and her body stuffed into two garbage bags.


She must have been so afraid. 21
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#7
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Hailey's mom, Stacey Barfield, at the memorial site set up by well-wishers near where Hailey was abducted.

There will be a public candlelight vigil tomorrow.

Meanwhile, Wood is scheduled to appear in court this morning; he was assigned a public defender.

Prosecutors are considering whether or not to seek the death penalty.

Those in Hailey's community are obviously irate and saddened that she could be taken off the street, in daylight, in the presence of witnesses, and killed within hours.

"I'm furious," said Jerry Tiffany, a retired construction worker who stood outside the Greene County courthouse on Thursday holding a handmade sign that read, "Child killer. Hang 'em."

"I've been up all night, with tears in my eyes," he added. "Kids can't even go out and play anymore."

Story: http://www.cbsnews.com/news/slain-missou...gel-wings/
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#8


I wonder why there would be any consideration given on whether or not to seek the death penalty. This would seem like a very good case for it.
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#9
(02-21-2014, 12:59 PM)Duchess Wrote:

I wonder why there would be any consideration given on whether or not to seek the death penalty. This would seem like a very good case for it.

I think you're right that the death penalty would be justified in this case.

The prosecutors often consider the family's wishes when making that call. Some families don't support the death penalty or don't want to face years and years of appeals. It's also very costly and time-consuming for the tax payers and the courts.

If Wood is put away for life without the possibility of parole, that's fine with me. If the family wants him executed, I won't bat an eye when the state rids the planet of him.
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#10


I tend not to take those things into consideration when I'm being opinionated. Dramaqueen

...but I understand why they are.
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#11
My little one is 10 years old. This is why I am a hysterical hypervigilant helicopter parent. When it is someone close to or around the same age you understand what the child is able to understand and yes the fear she must have experienced. These type of stories strike fear into the hearts of parents, this is why they can't just get on a bike and ride down the street like I used to.
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#12
Child murdering asshole

http://www.sun-sentinel.com/news/nationw...3865.story

Coach to plead not guilty in Missouri girl's kidnap, murder: defense

- A seventh-grade football coach was ordered held without bail on Friday and will plead not guilty to the kidnap and murder of a 10-year-old girl snatched off a Springfield, Missouri, street and later found dead in his basement, his lawyer said.

Craig Michael Wood, 45, accused of abducting Hailey Owens from a neighborhood in Springfield, made his first court appearance on Friday over a video monitor from the Greene County Jail.

Witnesses said Hailey was walking along a street shortly before 5 p.m. on Tuesday when a man driving a pickup truck pulled alongside her. She ignored him at first but then began talking to him, at which point he pulled her into his vehicle and sped off, witnesses told police.

Some people gave chase on foot and a motorist followed the pickup, but lost it in traffic, Williams said. Witness calls to police about the abduction triggered multiple Amber Alerts in Missouri and neighboring states.

Police said they found Hailey's body the following day in a plastic storage tote in Wood's basement with a bullet wound to her head. There was evidence he had attempted to clean up the basement area with bleach, police said.

Wood was formally charged in Greene County Associate Court on Friday with murder, child abduction and armed criminal action. He was ordered held without bond and a preliminary hearing in the case was set for April 7.

Public defender Christopher Hatley said that Wood would plead not guilty to all charges, although no official plea was received by the court on Friday, according to a clerk and court records. Hatley later said that a formal plea was required at the next hearing.

Wood was a paraprofessional and seventh-grade coach of boys' football and basketball at a Springfield K-8 school, according to a spokeswoman for the public school system. Hailey attended a different school, and there was no evidence she knew Wood, authorities said.

PORNOGRAPHIC IMAGES

Search warrant documents released on Friday showed that police found a three-ring binder in Wood's house containing "pornographic images of young children." Police also found video cameras, DVDs and VHS tapes, but no further details on them were in the report. Wood had more than 20 guns in the house, according to a property list attached to the warrant.

Springfield police officer Chris Barb said in an affidavit for the search warrant that suspects in child killings and abductions often possess or watch child pornography.

Jeff Ward, who played high school football with Wood, said he was stunned by the charges, describing Wood as intelligent and coming from a good home, with parents who treated him well.

"He was the last person I thought would do something like this," said Ward, adding that Wood had a girlfriend in high school but not in recent years, and never had children.

"I think he kept to himself a lot," Ward said.

Ward said they had played in a local rock band after high school, with Wood on the guitar. Wood has since played mandolin with another local band and also liked to hunt deer, Ward said.

Wood's parents, Jim and Genie Wood, live in Ash Grove, Missouri, just outside Springfield. He is a retired teacher and his wife a nurse, according to a statement issued on their behalf on Thursday by a family lawyer, Joseph Passanise.

"This unexpected incident involving their son, Craig, has been a shock and they are grieving," the statement said. "They join the rest of the community in praying as their hearts pour out to the Owens family."

A candlelight vigil and march in Hailey's memory is planned on Saturday, according to Springfield police and a Facebook page set up for the event. There are also several fundraisers for Hailey's family.
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#13


I really loathe that he has the option of pleading not guilty when he is so clearly guilty of exactly what he has been charged with.
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#14
http://www.ozarksfirst.com/story/d/story...njlXNIbs7A

New documents released in the Hailey Owens murder case show investigators with the Department of Social Services believe the 10-year-old was sexually abused after her abduction.

Many of the details in the 37-pages of documents are redacted, including any further information about why investigators believe Owens was sexually assaulted.
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#15
this is my town. my daughter is the same age and went to school with Hailey until two years ago. we were eating dinner as a family when the amber alert came across our phone. we took part in the 10,000 strong candle light vigil. to say this case has hit close to home, and has been devastating, is an understatement. this type of horror can literally happen to anyone, anywhere at any time, for any reason or no reason at all.
so heartbreaking.
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#16
(03-26-2014, 11:20 AM)ScientistsCanvas Wrote: this is my town. my daughter is the same age and went to school with Hailey until two years ago. we were eating dinner as a family when the amber alert came across our phone. we took part in the 10,000 strong candle light vigil. to say this case has hit close to home, and has been devastating, is an understatement. this type of horror can literally happen to anyone, anywhere at any time, for any reason or no reason at all.
so heartbreaking.


Yes, it is heartbreaking & it must be very scary as a parent.

Long time, no see. Smiley_emoticons_smile
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#17
(03-26-2014, 11:28 AM)Duchess Wrote: Long time, no see. Smiley_emoticons_smile

I just hate when life gets in the way of my online time. Smiley_emoticons_wink

The whole time the Owens case was unfolding, I was itching to come to Mock.
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#18
(03-26-2014, 11:20 AM)ScientistsCanvas Wrote: this is my town. my daughter is the same age and went to school with Hailey until two years ago. we were eating dinner as a family when the amber alert came across our phone. we took part in the 10,000 strong candle light vigil. to say this case has hit close to home, and has been devastating, is an understatement. this type of horror can literally happen to anyone, anywhere at any time, for any reason or no reason at all.
so heartbreaking.

It really is heartbreaking and anger-inducing.

Hailey's autopsy is now complete and, on Monday, Greene County prosecutors added charges of rape and sodomy against Wood. It's not surprising, but still terrible to imagine what Hailey went through before she was murdered.

Wood was already facing charges of murder, child kidnapping and armed criminal action.

Last month, Hailey's biological parents filed a wrongful-death lawsuit against Wood as well.

Ref: http://www.cbsnews.com/news/rape-charges...rls-death/
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#19
interestingly, my husband got a summons for jury duty for next month. our first thought was this case. not sure things would be moving that quickly, but it’s the first thing that came to mind. There’s no way my husband would be selected… Smiley_emoticons_wink
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#20
Guilty

Jurors found former middle school coach Craig Wood guilty of kidnapping, raping, and shooting Hailey Owens to death in February 2014.

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^ POS Wood at the time of the crime (left) and during his trial (right).

His Defense attorney did not deny that Wood was guilty of the crimes, but contended that there was no premeditation.

Instead, the attorney said Wood was a meth addict and that combined with Wood's suppressed sexual desires caused him to act spontaneously. Pfft.

The jury disagreed and found him guilty of premeditated murder. The sentencing phase of the trial is next and the death penalty is one of the options.

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I hope the guilty verdict brings some measure of peace to Hailey's family. She was a doll.

Story: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-...-girl.html
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