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Hi, Crime Junkies. I'm your host, Britt, and today I'm writing solo. The story I have for you today is one of a young woman whose disappearance leads to a nationwide search and a critical look into the shortcomings of the justice system. This is the story of Carolyn Killeby.
As Daniel Killeby gets home the morning of Sunday, November 12th, 1995, he is kind of expecting his wife Carolyn to be inside waiting for him, a little pissed. You see, they'd gotten into a fight recently, and instead of making it up to her by treating her to a nice romantic evening, he instead accepted an invite from his brother to go out, drink, and play some pool. And he is just getting home, so he was literally out all night. But when he walks in, she's not there anymore.
she's not anywhere. No one is, apparently, not even their two young daughters from previous marriages. And honestly, he isn't totally surprised. He's probably thinking, the girls are out. Maybe Carolyn's giving him, you know, a taste of his own medicine for a little bit. But what really drives this idea home is when he looks around and notices that the message he left for Carolyn at 1am on the answering machine hasn't been listened to yet.
He had called her to let her know that he'd be staying at his brother's house because he'd had a few beers and thought it'd probably be better if he stayed over. He was like, you know what, I'll see you in the morning, kind of leaves it at that. So either Carolyn ignored it while she was home or she just wasn't home to hear it. But when Carolyn still isn't home by Sunday night, he starts to actually worry.
According to an Unsolved Mysteries episode, Daniel decides to do his due diligence before taking any drastic measures and takes a look at Carolyn's personal phone book so he can dial up each of the numbers asking if anyone has seen her. But after hearing person after person on the other end of the phone say no, they have no idea where Carolyn could be, Daniel reports her missing around 11 p.m. that night.
Now, it seems like they at least take the report, but there's no record of exactly how soon law enforcement started looking for her. But I know that Daniel wastes zero time getting out there. The next morning, Monday, November 13th, he and his brother get in the car and start driving around, hoping to find any sign of Carolyn. She has her own car, so they're just kind of driving around Vancouver, Washington. It's a city just north of Portland, Oregon. And they're stopping by places that they know she goes to.
Eventually, they do find her car. It's in the parking lot of a nightclub called Omar's Steakhouse and Lounge. Now, they end up going in and asking around about her. And I know they get some info then and there, but I don't know what they get versus what's ultimately given to detectives who jump in once they hear about the car being found.
But what's soon learned is that Carolyn had been there Saturday night. And according to people who worked there and maybe even some patrons they tracked down later, they say she looked like she'd been crying, but she kept to herself. And they also say that she was drinking heavily, which is concerning for Carolyn's family. Because they tell investigators that she started struggling with substance use when she was prescribed pain medications after a car wreck sometime back. And obviously, prescription meds and alcohol do not always mix well.
Now, even though she'd been solo most of the night, that changed later in the evening. A witness tells detectives that they saw one of their regulars, a guy named Dennis Smith, with her at one point. They said Carolyn seemed so intoxicated she couldn't really walk, so this Dennis guy had helped her walk outside. ♪
The bouncer even encountered the two outside because Carolyn had forgot her purse, and when the bouncer ran it out to them, they said she seemed heavily intoxicated and still couldn't really walk on her own. And as soon as the word starts spreading about her being missing, one of the employees said they called Dennis up and was like, dude, you need to find police and talk to them because they're looking for the woman you were with the other night.
Now, I don't know if Dennis is the one who ends up calling detectives or if they, like, go find him, but either way, they get with him pretty quick. And it seems like Dennis tells them that the only reason he was seen with Carolyn was because she was super intoxicated and he was helping her out to her car. She was bad enough that she couldn't stand up on her own, so he practically carried her out to the parking lot. Now, Dennis tells them that he was seen with Carolyn
I don't know why he's walking her to her own car to drive if she can't even stand on her own, but that's just what he's telling detectives. But what's even more weird is that he also tells detectives that as he was helping Carolyn, apparently some random guy came up to them and quite literally hit him with a stick, called Carolyn a bitch, and ran off with her.
And if you're thinking, what the f- why didn't he call police then? Dude, same. I have no idea.
Dennis just flat out left after that, maybe because he had no idea what was going on or with not knowing whether this was some kind of domestic dispute or not. Maybe he just didn't want to get involved. But you'd think that if she left with someone, forcibly or not, and she was okay, she would have come back for her car. But when investigators look at it, there doesn't appear to be any signs that it's been touched by her or anyone else since she drove it there Saturday night.
Detectives seem to be keeping their options open, apparently not ready to go full force on this dentist story. And throughout all this, Daniel is just trying to stay positive. He tells the press that he's holding out hope that Carolyn may have just had a come-to-Jesus moment and decided to check herself into rehab, and maybe that's the reason she hasn't called. But with each day that passes, both detectives and Daniel think this theory is less and less likely.
Now, thankfully, their daughters, who weren't home when Daniel got back Sunday, they're safe and sound. There's no reporting about who had them when Carolyn went out, but the important part is that they're home now. Just probably scared because their mom is gone and no one seems to have a clue as to where she could be.
On Thursday, five days after Carolyn was last seen, detectives set out on a massive search of the area where she went missing from. Reporting from John Branton says there's over 50 people helping, including volunteers, family members, co-workers, and sheriff's deputies. They also work in part with Silver Star Search and Rescue and Mountain Wilderness Search Dogs to investigate around Omar's and in the general area that Carolyn and Daniel lived in.
But they find nothing. Not in the area, not at her and Daniel's house. And after the search, detectives aren't sure if Carolyn went missing on her own free will or if she's actually a victim of foul play. In hopes of generating some kind of tip or lead, Carolyn's sister and her husband offer a $10,000 reward for anyone with information about Carolyn's whereabouts or who could have hurt her.
Now, what they do next, I've seen agencies do when a crime happens and there's no immediate resolution. They'll pull up crime reports from around the same time, same, like, general area-ish to see what else was going on.
Well, in doing this, they find not one, but two reports from people who claim that before midnight on November 11th, a woman's screams were heard coming from a field in five corners, like five minutes from Omar's. And specifically, they were screams for help. Both reports said the screams were loud and distinct, and whoever it was sounded panicked.
Reports by Bruce Westfall state that one caller said he heard the woman scream, quote, And while police did respond to the area, they unfortunately didn't find anything and decided to leave.
Around this same time, detectives have also been canvassing the Five Corners slash Orchards neighborhoods in Vancouver, and they find a convenience store clerk who remembered that sometime in the early morning of November 12th, a man came into the store and had what looked like blood smears on his shirt, and his hand was wrapped in a bloody rack. And even better, the clerk knew exactly who it was. Dennis freaking Smith.
It's clear that Carolyn didn't disappear on her own free will. And Dennis is clearly hiding something because he didn't mention anything to them about being bloody or going to that convenience store when they talked to him. But it turns out there was a lot he didn't tell them.
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Now, as investigators are learning about Dennis' little trip to that convenience store, they get a call from Daniel who tells them that he just spoke to someone who saw an article about Carolyn's disappearance. And the article mentioned her being with a Dennis. No last name, just Dennis. But this person was afraid they knew exactly which Dennis it was. Because his uncle Dennis Smith was bad news.
His uncle Dennis Smith had murdered his mom. And thank God for that person who called Daniel because up to that point, it seems like police still hadn't looked into Dennis's background. But when they do, what they find is shocking. Dennis is a convicted murderer.
In 1982, he murdered his sister because he didn't want her to accuse him of doing something bad that'd get his parole revoked. But he'd been found out, convicted, and sentenced to life in prison for that crime. However, I know what you're thinking. I just said life in prison. The most outlandish part of this is that he actually got out on parole.
Twice, it seems. Because he was let out in June of 1993, but went back to prison in December of 1994 for violating parole. Then was let out again in March of 1995. And apparently he's been living in Vancouver ever since. So they bring Dennis in and ask him to tell them about his version of events from the night Carolyn went missing one more time. And he changes his story a little.
He tells detectives that he was concerned because that night, Carolyn was dancing with multiple men, and apparently, that would rile the guys up and could cause a fight. So he told the bouncer around 11 p.m. to keep an eye on Carolyn, just in case. Now, this time around, he says when she was on her way out, he didn't just help her to her car. He actually offered to give her a ride home since she seemed so intoxicated.
She agreed and got in his truck and, oh, by the way, left this out the first time around. We also had sex in my truck, which, I'm sorry, no. Oh, and the mystery guy is still in this version. He says that 45 minutes later is when that mysterious man came up to the truck, grabbed Carolyn out of the cab by the hair, but this time he says that while the guy tried to hit him, he may have blocked it somehow, but the dude still called Carolyn a bitch and ran away with her.
Then Dennis got in his truck and drove away. And all of this was happening in the parking lot of a nightclub. Or at least, I'm pretty sure. A few sources say he told them that he was leaving the parking lot when she leaned over and kissed him, and that's when he stopped the truck. But in this version, he's still like, you know, I just had sex with her. I don't want to get involved in whatever it was with that other guy. It's not my problem.
But then Dennis says something interesting. He says on Sunday afternoon, he went back to Omar's for some kind of party with the employees, which was where and when he learned about Carolyn's disappearance. But remember, her husband doesn't even think she's missing at that point yet. He doesn't start to get worried until later that night. So detectives questioned Dennis at the station. And first and foremost, they're obviously trying to figure out who this alleged guy from both of Dennis's versions of his story was.
So they ask Dennis if he's able to identify the man who took Carolyn away, and he said, yeah, I can do that. And when they show him a photo lineup of men, Dennis immediately points to Daniel, Carolyn's husband.
And while this could come as a huge shock, detectives take it, honestly, with like a grain of salt. Because this is about five days after Carolyn disappeared, and Daniel's face had been in the news since she went missing. And it seemed like they ruled out Daniel pretty quickly, like pretty early on, but it's not entirely clear as to how from the reporting on this case. So next, investigators take a look at Dennis' truck, and one of the first things they notice is a big burn hole in the middle of the bench seat.
And he tries to play it off like it's some kind of like cigarette burn. But you guys, it's legitimately a basketball sized hole. You can see a photo of it in the Crime Junkie fan club app if you're listening there. Or you can check it out on our blog online for this episode.
So investigators schedule a time the next day for Dennis to bring in his truck to be examined by crime technicians, and Dennis agrees. I'm not sure why they don't just check it out right then and there, but it's possible that, like, they didn't have a warrant, so their only option was to let him walk and hope he comes back voluntarily. But this is all pretty risky, especially knowing that detectives have already talked to the bouncer at Omar's, someone who is familiar with Dennis.
And they paint the picture a bit differently than Dennis. They say Dennis came up to them Sunday and said, I told you that woman was going to be in trouble. And another acquaintance of Dennis said, when they looked in his truck on Sunday, they remember it looking untouched. No, quote unquote, cigarette burn and certainly no burn hole the size of a basketball. They said it looked fine. And the people at Omar's weren't the only ones to comment on the state of Dennis's truck.
Two other acquaintances of his noticed that a few days after Carolyn's disappearance, his truck had suddenly looked different. The inside had been fully wiped down with Pine Sol, and Dennis had told a friend that he needed to wash the outside of his truck before turning it into the police because it was covered in mud and didn't want investigators aware that, quote, he'd been off-road with the truck. But surprise, surprise, the next day when Dennis is supposed to show up with his truck, he is a no-show.
But they find him when Dennis ends up getting stopped by officials for failing to come in for the inspection.
And when they bring the truck in, it looks drastically different from what they saw the day before. Like, all the carpeting and upholstery looks like it had been torn out and removed, which Dennis defends by saying that the smell of the burnt seat bothered him so much that he had to rip everything out and he just threw it in a dumpster somewhere in Portland. When they ask him about how the hole really happened, he tells Detective the burn started with the tip of a cigarette, which, like, again, lies. This burn is massive.
So they impound Dennis' truck to buy them some time, but before they let him leave, they also take a blood sample from him, and they take his watch to see if they can collect any DNA from it, which they do. And they're able to find a small trace of blood on the band, and everyone is hoping it will be helpful to have down the lines.
Once forensics gets a better look at Dennis' truck, they find a small spot of blood on the steering wheel that they collect, as well as bloodstains on the passenger door panel, the driver door's handle, the dash, and the lining at the top of the cabin, all of which they send off for analysis. But they do have to let him walk, at least until they have something more concrete.
As they wait for the forensic results, they keep looking into Dennis' past. And they keep trying to bring him back for more interviews. And every time, they learn something new. Which, there's a lot to learn about this guy. Dude was a little notorious for going to prison, getting out on parole, and then committing more crimes while out on parole. In some cases, violent crimes. I mean, he was already on parole at the time he murdered his sister. And on parole when Carolyn goes missing. But here's the thing.
Even though they want to have some more chats with him, they can't pin this guy down. They can't even get him to come in anymore. In my mind, I'm like, oh, dude saw the writing on the wall, he bolted. But reporting for the Columbian says that lead detective Buckner thinks he's still in the area. They're just, quote, playing phone tag with him. And none of the reporting at this point has them publicly calling Dennis a suspect or even a person of interest yet. They just want to talk to him some more. So pick up your phone, Dennis.
But months go by without them being able to make contact, and detectives start to fear that Dennis... Dennis is in the wind. He's not checking in with his parole officer either, and by December of 1995, there's an arrest warrant issued for him for investigation of parole violation. But those responsible for Carolyn's case can't go all bounty hunter on this guy. They have to keep their focus on Carolyn and the search for her, and specifically her remains.
It's been over two months since Carolyn was last seen, and more reporting from John Branton states searchers and dogs have been out to Clark County at least 10 times looking for Carolyn's body. But they aren't finding anything. And it's in these months of searching that investigators finally get the results on that quote-unquote cigarette burn from Dennis' truck.
And drumroll, please. According to a Forensic Files episode on the case, arson experts find hydrocarbons in the remaining burnt foam from the bench seat. Because remember, dude tore everything out. But since hydrocarbons are typically found in accelerants, they conclude that the fire was intentionally set. And in July of 1996, the DNA results come back for the bloodstains from Dennis' truck and watch. And those small samples of blood are consistent with Carolyn's.
Even without a body, eight months after Carolyn goes missing, they charge Dennis Smith with Carolyn's murder. And finally, they go get him. Or at least they try to. They activate a full-throttle search for Dennis that lasts throughout the rest of 1996. We're talking a nationwide hunt. According to The Columbian, they've been contacting every police agency in the U.S., and the FBI gets involved, issuing a federal warrant for his arrest since he's considered a fugitive.
But then, on February 4th, 1997, Washington investigators learn about an almost deadly encounter in New Smyrna, Florida, with none other than Dennis Smith.
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Investigators on Carolyn's case learned that Dennis had gotten pulled over for car theft, but resisted arrest and grabbed one of the cop's flashlights to hit the officer with it. And then, as he tried to grab for their gun, a second officer shot him. So, right now, Dennis is in critical condition. And Florida PD only learned Dennis was a fugitive when they transported him to the hospital, put his fingerprints into Florida's automated finger identification system, and boop, there he was. So,
They notify Washington police, but this is what's wild. The reason he even got pulled over or was in that position at all was because of that Unsolved Mysteries episode I mentioned at the top that was airing. Dennis was quite literally watching the segment with his friends when it aired. The episode actually named him as a suspect and blatantly displayed his photo saying he'd been charged with Carolyn's murder.
So, you know, as one in hiding may do, Dennis becomes completely distraught. Dude loses it. At this time, he's going by David Sanborn, and when he saw this episode, he told the couple he was hanging out with that he was only wanted out of state for not paying child support in Michigan. And then he immediately left their house and stole their car. The couple reports him, and that's what led New Smyrna Police Department to track him down.
Later, an article published in The Columbian credits Unsolved Mysteries for Dennis' capture, but police kind of dispute it and say they hadn't even had time to look into the tips from the show before their arrest. But regardless, this episode really set things in motion. Now, after getting shot, Dennis is in the hospital. The Columbian reports he's in serious but stable condition and at least conscious enough to be served with the arrest warrant.
In Washington, he's facing charges for murder, suspicion of parole violation, and unlawful flight to avoid arrest in Clark County. And then back in Florida, he's facing charges for auto theft, resisting arrest with and without violence, eluding police, and battery on an officer.
The newly detective on Carolyn's case, Joel LeBeau, flies to Florida from Washington to interview Dennis in person. And he's hopeful that Dennis will finally reveal where Carolyn's remains are. But dude's lips are sealed. Because Dennis is still very much waving the innocence flag. Yet, while they're waiting for Dennis to face charges back in Washington, Carolyn's family does get a little bit of a version of closure.
In late February, they finally get Carolyn's death certificate issued, which is actually really hard to do with no body cases like hers. But once detectives had enough information to charge Dennis with murder and serve the warrant, the judge finally had enough reason to believe that Carolyn was murdered on November 11th or 12th of 1995.
Dennis is extradited back to Washington in March 97 and pleads not guilty of his charges of first-degree murder. And by April of 1998, his defense is, there's no body and no proof he killed Carolyn. And his defense team wants to point the finger back at Daniel, even though detectives ruled him out super early on.
While waiting for trial, the prosecution tries to cut Dennis a deal and lighten his sentence if he tells them where he left Carolyn. He refuses, and his trial begins April 29th, 1998.
But this trial, it's not without its own twists. According to the Columbian, right before the trial starts, the judge rules that the defense can't name Daniel as a suspect because there isn't enough tying him to the crime. And the prosecution can't bring up Dennis' prior murder conviction of his sister because it will be, quote, too prejudicial to the defendant. And for the first time in a criminal trial in the state of Washington, prosecutors submit evidence of mitochondrial DNA.
This is only the sixth time this type of DNA has been used in cases in the U.S. like total.
Prosecutors used the mitochondrial DNA to support the claims that the very small amounts of blood on Dennis' watch and in his truck do in fact match Carolyn's DNA. And although in 98 this type of DNA testing is incredibly new and less exact than it is now, it's still a great piece of additional evidence. Because in addition to the samples they got from Carolyn's mom and daughter,
They also discovered letters that had allegedly been sealed and mailed by Carolyn prior to her disappearance, but still had DNA on it from her saliva residue. So they sent that mail off to a California DNA testing lab, and it was found that her DNA genotypes only appear in one of every 195,000 Caucasians. And that made them confident that it was Carolyn's DNA.
Now, the defense claims the consensual sex Carolyn and Dennis allegedly had could have been the reason for her blood to be on the watch and in the trucks, since it was such a small amount. But of course, the prosecution isn't buying that.
During the trial, prosecutors also introduced statements from a former inmate that Dennis talked to in either 94 or 95. Most sources claim January of 95, but regardless, they were discussing Dennis's sister's murder. And he brought up what he would do if he ever killed again. He told this guy that he would hide the body by planting a tree over top it to make sure the ground isn't obviously disturbed.
And he said he'd get rid of any remaining evidence with a fire. So, Q looking for every newly planted tree in all the areas they were searching before. And I also have to assume they followed this lead, but even today, Carolyn's remains have never been found. And then, as I'm sure you'd expect, the defense still leans into the whole the husband did it angle and blames Daniel for Carolyn's murder.
Even though the judge tells them not to bring it up, the defense still mentions the fight that Daniel and Carolyn had before she disappeared, and that Carolyn was allegedly talking about divorce with her friends. And when the defense brings up Daniel, the prosecution tries to claim mistrial. But the judge has a change of mind at some point and lets the defense argument stand.
But in turn, the prosecution is allowed to lay out Dennis's prior conviction, to which later on the defense will also try to claim mistrial. But again, it gets overturned. So both sides actually get to lay every single bit of info that they have out there.
Now, to back up the defense's Daniel point, they say search and rescue dogs tracked Carolyn's scent from Omar's to her house and hit on a death scent in the back of Daniel's truck. And to top it all off, they say he was going to pay his brother $10,000 for being his alibi once Carolyn's life insurance money came through.
But as far as I can tell, no evidence was ever presented in court that he did, just that he was going to. But full disclosure, I don't have the actual court transcript, so I honestly don't even know how all of that gets introduced. ♪
And it turns out the prosecution has some more details on how Daniel was cleared at the beginning. Initially, Daniel offered to take a polygraph test and passed. Then his alibi, going out for a night of drinking with his brother, was verified with the bartender who worked that night. And even though Dennis claimed Daniel was the person who attacked him and took Carolyn that night, acquaintances of Dennis say he initially told them the attack happened so fast that he didn't know who was responsible.
and he only identified Daniel after likely seeing his face on the news. The jury must have found it not to be credible either, because in the end, Dennis is convicted of aggravated first-degree murder on May 12, 1998. They also find him guilty of attempting to conceal the crime, kidnapping, and rape in connection with Carolyn's murder, and he's sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole.
And speaking of parole, this man should not have been allowed on parole after murdering his sister while on parole.
And what even further proves this, in case anyone is on the fence for whatever reason, during his second parole, Dennis actually failed one of his drug tests. And so he went back in front of a parole board and his parole officer legit told the board that Dennis needed to be back in prison because his predisposition to murder made him an extreme risk to society.
But for, honestly, unknown reasons, the parole board sentenced him to just 51 days in jail and then let him out, which was only nine months before Carolyn went missing.
Carolyn's death might have been prevented if they'd done their due diligence. Each time Dennis violated his parole, he was just given another chance to do it again. So in 1999, Carolyn's family files a lawsuit against the state for their gross negligence in their supervision of Dennis.
In a prison legal news article, the person representing Carolyn's family in the lawsuit claims Dennis was on an unassigned caseload during the three months of his supposed parole supervision before he murdered Carolyn. And the Department of Corrections was even notified by Dennis' wife that he was dangerous and had violated his parole at least 25 times before Carolyn's murder. And they did nothing.
So yeah, they really dropped the ball on this one. And it shows the importance of the sole purpose of the parole board, to know when and if someone would positively contribute to society. And if they meet certain criteria, only then can they serve part of their sentence out in the public with supervision and certain conditions, all that.
Now, after some time in prison, Dennis tries to strike a deal. He tells detectives that he'll tell them where Carolyn's body is if they give him $10,000 in cash and some Taco Bell burritos. Listen, Ashley and I love us some Taco Bell, but every time I think I've heard it all, something else comes up. This is bonkers.
Obviously, they don't agree to his terms. And without a deal, without those burritos, he's not going to tell them where her remains are. At least, not then. In June of 2004, Dennis says, all right, I'll take you. No Taco Bell required. Just give me a ride. I'll show you. And he leads the detectives to a spot where he thinks he left her body. And it's over on Large Mountain, about an hour northeast of Vancouver. But they don't find anything.
Though it is worth noting that a couple of years before this, in 2001, a human skull was found in a neighboring county, and Carolyn was one of three potential victims. The other two were Heather Guy, a 29-year-old who disappeared in 1983, and Kimberly Kersey, a high school student from 1987. ♪
Kimberly was ruled out first, and while Carolyn wasn't ruled out at the time, or any time that I can find, her sister doesn't think it belongs to Carolyn. She claims a detective told her he didn't think the skull was Carolyn's because there wasn't any of the extensive dental work present that Carolyn had had. And that was the last time Dennis would offer to help locate Carolyn's remains because in November of 2004, Dennis died by suicide in his prison cell.
Interestingly, it's reported that he died shortly after police came to talk to him about an unsolved murder in Texas, though there's no additional details about who that victim could be. At this time, Dennis' mom also maintains his innocence, and Carolyn's remains have still never been found. Even with justice served against Dennis, there's still the pain for her family of not knowing where she is.
In 2004, Daniel moved to Lindale, Texas to get closer to family, including his two daughters. Reporting by Stephanie Rice says her family has chosen to honor Carolyn by putting up a memorial marker for her in the Lincoln Memorial Park and Funeral Home in Portland. And Daniel makes a white cross on a tree at Larch Mountain. You can find all the source material for this episode on our website, CrimeJunkiePodcast.com. And you can follow us on Instagram at Crime Junkie Podcast. We'll be back next week with a brand new episode.
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