HEATHER CATTERTON - 17 yo -(2009) Clover/Gastonia NC

Police have identified the body found near Clover last week as that of a 17-year-old girl from Gastonia, N.C.The
body, found Thursday on Robinson Road, has been identified as that of
Heather Marie Catterton, York County Sheriff's Office Capt. Jerry
Hoffman said Monday.

The cause of death has not been released, pending
final autopsy results. Police Friday released photos of
clothing found on and around Catterton's body in an effort to identify
her. A family member from Clover notified police that the body might be
Catterton, Hoffman said. She had not been reported missing.

Authorities confirmed Catterton's identity using fingerprints.Police
would not say whether she died on Robinson Road. However, they said the
body was probably there more than 24 hours but less than 72 hours
before it was discovered.“We haven't determined if she was
killed where the body was found,” Hoffman said. “… Part of the reason
we need to speak to anyone who has any information to piece together
these questions.”York County sheriff's deputies are investigating the case as a homicide.The
body was found off a dirt road that connects with Crowders Creek Road
in Gaston County, Hoffman said. She was found between two large culvert
pipes – not in the water or inside the pipes. Police are asking
for more information about Catterton, whose last known address is 2402
South York Road in Gastonia. She lived with her father, but was not
living there all the time, Hoffman said. She was not in school. “Now
we're reaching out to the public for anyone who can tell us the
whereabouts of Heather between Oct. 18 and 28,” Hoffman said. “We want
any information about her, period. Friends. People she came in contact
with. Places she would frequent…”Investigators also are looking
for information on two suspicious vehicles. One was a red, Ford F-150
pickup with tinted windows and a flat liner bed cover. It was seen in
the area of Robinson Road between noon and 1 p.m. Oct. 27. The
second vehicle is a two-tone Chevy S-10 pickup with a blue top and tan
bottom, possibly a 1987 to 1990 model. It was seen in the Robinson Road
area on Oct. 25 or Oct. 26 between 9 and 10 p.m.About five
houses are located on the mile and a half dirt road where the body was
found. A woman who lives along the road said that her neighbor spotted the body while out riding his
four-wheeler and called police.Catterton was wearing only socks,
a sweatshirt and a necklace when officers found her body, Hoffman said.
The other clothing items were found about a mile and a half away, over
the South Crowder's Creek Bridge on Crowder's Creek Road. Investigators
are also interested in any suspicious activity seen in that area.Police would not comment on whether she was a victim of sexual assault.Catterton
was released from jail Oct. 8, North Carolina records show. She has
been charged with possession of cocaine with intent to distribute,
possession of marijuana and drug paraphernalia and identity theft,
background checks show. Some of those charges were still pending at the
time of her death. She does not have a criminal record in York County, Hoffman said.Anyone
with any information is asked to contact the York County Sheriff's
Office at 803-628-3059, or CrimeStoppers at 877-409-4321.

A female body found last week in York County, S.C., was that of a
17-year-old from Gastonia, the York County Sheriff's Office said Monday.
The victim was Heather Marie Catterton, the Sheriff's Office said, adding that a tip had helped in the identification.
Catterton was released from prison on a drug conviction less than three weeks before she died, according to N.C. court records.
The
Sheriff's Office released photos over the weekend of clothing found
near the body, which was discovered Thursday off Robinson Yelton Road,
near the state line. Investigators said Monday that someone who saw the
photos supplied information that helped them make the identification.
Deputies
said the teen's body was at the site for 24 to 72 hours. They did not
give the cause of death but said the case is being investigated as a
homicide.
Catterton was not enrolled in school, authorities said.
Court
records showed she had been arrested a number of times, mostly on
drug-related charges. She was convicted in February of possession of
drug paraphernalia. She served about three months of a six-month jail
sentence, according to court records.
The Sheriff's Office
said it also has received tips about two vehicles seen last week in the
area near where the teen's body was found. Both were trucks - a red
Ford F-150 pickup with tinted windows, and a blue and tan Chevrolet
S-10 pickup. The S-10 was an older model, dating back to the late 1980s.
The
(Rock Hill) Herald reported that the Ford truck was seen in the area
between noon and 1 p.m. Oct. 27. The S-10 was seen in the area between
9 and 10 p.m. Oct. 25 or 26, the Herald reported.
Anyone
with information in the case is asked to contact Crime Stoppers,
877-409-4321, or the York County Sheriff's office, 803-628-3059.

Nick Catterton is convinced that someday, he’ll know who killed his daughter. He’s not sure he’ll ever know why.
“She didn’t deserve to die the way she did,” said Catterton.
“Whoever done this couldn’t have been in their right state of mind.
They had to be some kind of monster, a maniac.”

Sheriff’s deputies in York County, S.C., announced Monday that a
young woman’s body found on a dirt road last week was that of
17-year-old Heather Marie Catterton. The teen lived with her family in
Gastonia but frequently stayed with friends for weeks at a time.
Heather’s death is being investigated as a homicide, but authorities
have not released the cause of her death. She was found wearing only a
hooded sweatshirt, a necklace and a pair of toe socks. Deputies
wouldn’t say whether she had been sexually assaulted.
Catterton said his daughter was not attending school, and he was
encouraging her to study for a GED. Heather had several drug arrests in
Gaston County — her dad said she had befriended the wrong people, but
she was trying to move past her mistakes.
“She’s always been a good girl,” Catterton said. “She just got those
teenage genes in her. Teenagers nowadays think they can do anything and
they’re all grown up.”
Heather spent much of her young life in Cleveland County. She was a
popular girl with dozens of friends and a permanent smile, said her
brother, Barry Holland.
“She was a joyful person,” Holland said. “She was high-spirited. She
got along with everyone, and everyone liked her. She always had a smile
on her face.”
Heather’s body was found between culverts on Robinson Yelton Road
outside Clover, S.C. Some of her clothing was discovered on Crowders
Creek Road in Gaston County.
Catterton said his sister recognized Heather’s Hollister sweatshirt
from a television newscast. Deputies had released photos of clothing
and jewelry found on the body in order to identify the victim.
Self-aware and strong, Heather would have likely tried to fight off her attacker and escape, Catterton said.
“She was a very smart girl — she was street smart,” he said. “That’s
what made me think that couldn’t be her, because at the first sign of
trouble, as soon as the opportunity hit, she would have run like a
rabbit. She would have done something.”
Catterton believes the York County Sheriff’s Office will uncover the
truth about what happened to his daughter. Sheriff’s investigators
interviewed his family and spoke to about 35 others on Monday, he said.
Deputies are looking for anyone who knows where Catterton was
between Oct. 18 — the last day family and friends reported seeing her —
and Oct. 28 — the day before her body was found.
“We need to know who she was with, who she was talking to, where she
was going,” said York County Sheriff’s Capt. Jerry Hoffman. “The closer
we can get to her time of death, that’s going to be crucial to us.”
Hoffman told The Gazette Heather’s body had been on Robinson
Yelton Road for one to three days, but he wouldn’t say whether
investigators believe she was killed there or her body had been dumped.
The Sheriff’s Office is also seeking information about two pickup
trucks spotted near the crime scene. The first, a red Ford F-150 with
tinted windows and a flat bed cover, was seen in the area of Robinson
Yelton Road between noon and 1 p.m. Oct. 27. The driver was a white
man, and a white woman was reported in the passenger seat.
The other truck is a Chevrolet S-10 with a two-tone custom paint job
— blue on top and tan on the bottom. It’s believed to be a 1987 to 1990
model and was last seen in the area between 9 and 10 p.m. Oct. 25 or
Oct. 26.
Anyone with information on Heather’s whereabouts or on either truck
is asked to call the York County Sheriff’s Office at 803-628-3059 or
Crime Stoppers at 877-409-4321.
As he prepares to bury his youngest daughter, Catterton knows he would have sacrificed his own life to protect her.
“I would definitely trade places with her,” he said. “Anybody would for their kid that they love. It just breaks our hearts.”
Heather’s dad is also asking anyone involved in the girl’s death to cooperate with investigators.
“Please come forward and give peace of mind to everyone who loves
her,” Catterton said. “Whoever it is, they’re going to catch you
anyway.”

The 17-year-old was a “runner.” Sometimes she would go missing for weeks at a time.
With book and streets smart, Heather Marie Catterton’s academic life
soared at one point when she attended Shelby Middle School. But it
didn’t last.
Catterton was found dead Oct. 29 near a small bridge on Robinson Yelton Road outside Clover, S.C.
The teen was found unclothed from the waist down, wearing only a
hooded sweatshirt, socks and necklace, according to the York County
Sheriff’s Office. The office has declined to say how she died. Her
death is being investigated as a homicide.
Although Catterton’s life was cut short, many who knew the teen said
she always wore a smile and would do anything to help the people she
cared about.
Another life
Catterton lived in and out of foster and group homes for more than
five years of her life. She often left the homes by running away.
Cleveland County Department of Social Services took over custody of Catterton years ago, according to her biological family.
“They would say activity has gone on,” said her father, Nick Catterton.
One night at their previous home in Grover a shot was fired and
Catterton was placed in DSS care over child endangerment concerns, her
father said.
Social services had released her from its custody about a year ago, family said.
“They couldn’t control her from running away from these homes,” Nick Catterton said of his daughter’s foster and group homes.
Catterton called his daughter a “daddy’s girl.” She got into trouble because of her “free-spirited” nature, he said.
Silent cries
According to the National Runaway Switchboard, between 1.6 million and 2.8 million youths run away from home each year.
“It’s alarming,” said Maureen Blaha, a national children’s expert
and executive director of National Runaway Switchboard centered in
Chicago. “It’s a silent crisis in this country. The public needs to
realize we have a serious problem in this country that needs their
attention.”
The organization serves as the federally designated national
communication system for homeless and runaway youth. The hotline
handles more than 100,000 calls each year.
Fifty percent of their calls are from youth who have already left
their homes, while the other half is from parents dealing with a crisis
and looking for support, Blaha said.
Statistics indicate family dynamic issues are the No. 1 reason youth
call the switchboard, Blaha said. Those problems range from inability
to cope with current family struggles, wanting to flee the situation
making them feel upset or trying to fit into a new family structure.
“They don’t know how to cope and may flee,” Blaha said.
Runaways
Catterton was reported missing at least five times in one year.
Oftentimes, officials found her in Gaston County not too far away from
her biological family’s home.
Catterton was loyal to her friends, officials said, and never gave
information regarding others or possible older men she would hang
around, an official said.
Catterton’s father, Nick, said it was always difficult for him when she ran away from the homes.
“She wanted to be with her parents,” he said. “It would always be me a cryin’ … her a cryin.’”
The calls
Catterton often lived on the run, staying at home sometimes, with
friends sometimes and at other times no one knew where she was.
“She wouldn’t even tell me who she was with because she knew I would come right then and get her,” Nick Catterton said.
Heather Catterton had recently been released from jail on drug charges, according to the N.C. Department of Correction.
Although the teen struggled with drugs and did hang around the wrong
crowd, one family member said, she didn’t deserve to die the way she
did, Catterton added.
“Whoever (did) this couldn’t have been in their right state of
mind,” Catterton said. “They had to be some kind of monster, maniac.”
Catterton was in a nearby hospital for about a month due to health
problems. After he was released last week from care, Heather’s body was
found the next day. She had been missing 10 days.
Her mother, Stella Funderburk, said in recent months Catterton
thought she could do whatever she wanted to do, but she always kept in
touch with her family until the weeks preceding her death.
“She didn’t call while he (her father) was in the hospital,” Funderburk said. “I knew something was wrong.”
Officials said in her past when trying to question where she had
been and who she had been with Heather never told anyone and protected
those she was around.
“She had a lot of connections in Cleveland and Gaston counties,” the
official said. “(Police) tried to get information from her and she
wouldn’t give any information.”
Take a look
Catterton said only the “man (upstairs) knows if this could have
been prevented.” He added communities need to become aware about the
trend of runaway teens.
“It’s a huge, huge problem … to be so young,” he said.
Catterton said he hopes his daughter’s runaway life will help
prevent this tragedy from happening again to another teen and asks
parents to look for signs.
“A father and mother can tell about their kids more than anyone in
the world,” he said. “Parents know the signs. A lot of time they don’t
believe the signs, but the signs are there.”
Information about runway prevention is available free through the NRS.
“It’s a tragedy that this 17-year-old was found dead,” Blaha said.
“Her life was taken from her. You wonder if there were different kinds
of interventions that her life could have turned out differently.”
“She was free hearted and free willed,” Catterton concluded. “I had no control.”

Lab results expected Friday could help sheriff’s deputies solve the
killing of a Gastonia teenager whose body was found two weeks ago near
the state line.
York County Sheriff’s Capt. Jerry Hoffman said results should be
available from various tests performed on evidence from the scene where
17-year-old Heather Marie Catterton’s body was found. He wouldn’t
describe the evidence collected and said the test results won’t be
released because deputies are still investigating the girl’s death.
“Some evidence is still being examined,” Hoffman said Thursday. “We’ll have to wait and see what the results are.”
Detectives are trying to determine where Catterton was and who she
was with between Oct. 18 — the last day family and friends reported
seeing her — and Oct. 28 — the day before her body was found. Hoffman
said tips have been pouring in, and deputies have fielded dozens of
calls about the girl.
“We’ve had a lot of folks calling in with a lot of information we’ve
started checking on,” he said. “We do appreciate the public response so
far. We’re still very interested in speaking to anyone who knows
anything.”
Catterton’s body was found on Robinson Yelton Road outside Clover,
S.C. Deputies said it had been there for one to three days, but
wouldn’t reveal whether she was killed there or her body had been
dumped.
The Sheriff’s Office is seeking information about two pickup trucks
spotted near the crime scene. The first, a red Ford F-150 with tinted
windows and a flat bed cover, was seen in the area of Robinson
Yelton Road between noon and 1 p.m. Oct. 27. The driver was a white
man, and a white woman was reported in the passenger seat.
The other truck is a Chevrolet S-10 with a two-tone custom paint job
— blue on top and tan on the bottom. It’s believed to be a 1987 to 1990
model and was last seen in the area between 9 and 10 p.m. Oct. 25 or
Oct. 26.
Anyone with information on Heather’s whereabouts or on either truck
is asked to call the York County Sheriff’s Office at 803-628-3059 or
Crime Stoppers at 877-409-4321.

A decade-long friend of Heather Marie Catterton said she first met the man accused of killing Heather at the teen’s funeral.
Krystal Wylie, of Grover, is a longtime friend of the Catterton family.
“I went to the funeral. He was there,” Wylie said of Danny Robbie
Hembree Jr., the Gaston County man charged with two counts of
first-degree murder.
He’s accused in the October death of Heather and the Nov. 11 death
of Randi Dean Saldana, 29, one of Heather’s friends. Both bodies were
discovered in York County, S.C.
Multiple sources say Danny Robbie Hembree Jr., 47, was dating Heather’s sister, Nicole Catterton.
Wylie said she was in shock when she found out Hembree was
arrested and couldn’t believe someone now accused of killing her could
attend Heather’s funeral.
“Nicole left the gravesite with Danny,” she said. “It’s shocking.”
The teen’s funeral was a closed casket but friends and family
could walk up to the casket, place something on it or say their
goodbyes.
“Everybody walked up there,” she said. “I don’t recall him walking up there.”



Cleveland County connection

The arrest Saturday touched many people in Cleveland County, including Heather’s former foster family.
Grace Briscoe believed someone had information about the death of Heather because the 17-year-old never went anywhere alone.
“Someone was always with her,” Briscoe said.
Grace and husband, Milton, were shocked when Heather’s body was
found nude from the waist down on Robinson Yelton Road outside Clover,
S.C. on Oct. 29.
But when Grace found out about Saldana’s body and that the two were friends, she figured they were connected.
“It was close together; it was just too close,” she said.
A horseback rider found Saldana’s body badly burned in the Kings
Mountain State Park on Nov. 15. Both bodies were found in York County
less than 10 miles of each other.



A runaway life
Heather was a “runner.” In and out of foster and group homes for
more than five years, the 17-year-old ran away from many of those
placements, even loving, supportive environments.
A Gastonia resident when she died, Heather lived most of her life in Cleveland County.
Heather was the Briscoes’ first foster child. Heather came into their lives at age 12 and lived with them for more than a year.
Heather struggled with demons throughout her short life, including
drugs. She was released from jail on drug charges just weeks before her
death.

‘It eases my mind’
The Briscoes cared about Heather and the long, difficult journey
during her young life. Grace said although they have a suspect in
custody it doesn’t help the pain of losing a foster child they loved
dearly.

“I am so glad they found somebody,” she said. “It eases my mind.”

Grace said Heather had her whole life ahead of her and didn’t deserve to die.

“She couldn’t have done anything so bad for (someone) to kill her,” Grace said.

Judge sets trial date for Gaston man accused of killing 3 female friends

The man accused of killing three women will stand trial for capital murder in September.

A date was agreed upon Monday in front of Superior Court Judge Jesse Caldwell.

The first-degree murder trial of Danny Hembree Jr. will begin Sept. 12, 2011.
A clean-shaven Hembree stood in front of the judge with his attorneys, Rick Beam and Brent Ratchford. He waved to some supporters in the crowd before being returned to jail.

Hembree, 48, who has been charged with three counts of first-degree murder, faces the death penalty.

He was transported from Central Prison in Raleigh to the Gaston County Jail for the appearance. Hembree is serving 12 years in Central Prison for armed robbery with a dangerous weapon in Cabarrus County.

Hembree has been charged in the 1992 murder of Deborah Ratchford, 30, whose body was found in the woods near Oakland Street Cemetery, according to police.

Charges for Ratchford’s death did not come about until 2009 when two other women were killed in less than a month.

Heather Catterton, 17, of Gastonia was found dead Oct. 18, 2009, in York County, S.C.

Randi Dean Saldana, 30, was found Nov. 11, 2009, also in York County, S.C. The bodies were discarded less than 10 miles apart.

Catterton’s body was found along Yelton Road near Clover, S.C., and Saldana’s burned body was found near a trail in Kings Mountain State Park.

Gastonia resident James Swanson was also charged in Ratchford’s murder, but Bell dismissed the charge nearly two weeks after Swanson’s arrest. Bell said prosecuting Swanson would jeopardize the state’s ability to seek the death penalty against Hembree.

Police say Hembree knew all of his alleged victims. He, Catterton and Saldana were friends, and he dated Catterton’s older sister, Nicole.

Hembree, Swanson and Ratchford all knew each other at the time of Ratchford’s 1992 death, according to Gastonia police.

According to an affidavit in Hembree’s court file, police said that on Dec. 5, 2009, Hembree confessed to killing Heather Catterton and Saldana in his mother’s house at 2304 Oakstone Drive, Gastonia. The affidavit says the two bodies were stored in a closet in the house’s basement and later dumped in York County.

http://www.gastongazette.com/news/hembree-53231-murder-ratchford.html

Son of accused killer charged with rape
August 22, 2011 12:28 PM

The son of an accused killer joined his father behind bars this weekend, charged with the rape of a teenage girl.

Michael Anthony Hembree was arrested Friday, accused of having sex with a 16-year-old, according to Capt. J.W. Human with Gaston County Police.

Hembree, 24, is the son of Danny Hembree Jr., a Gastonia man charged with killing three women. Hembree, 49, is in prison on robbery convictions, still awaiting trial for the killings. The first of his three murder charges will go to trial in October.

Michael Hembree is in Gaston County Jail on a charge of second-degree rape.

The alleged rape happened July 6. Hembree and his accuser knew each other. They had worked together at a restaurant, according to Human.

The teenager was at a party when Hembree came and picked her up and took her to his home at 2308 Oakstone Circle.

“Her claim is that he slipped her some type of drug and there’s a time period of where she’s uncertain of what happened,” said Human.

The girl described coming in and out of consciousness. When she fully regained awareness, she knew that she had been raped, Human said. She reported the incident within 24 hours.

Detectives took the report, investigated the claim and turned over the file to the District Attorney’s office. A warrant was issued Aug. 12 and executed Friday.

Michael Hembree has had a few brushes with the law. In October 2010 he was charged with larceny by an employee. In October 2009 he was charged with violating a domestic violence protection order, according to the Gaston County Sheriff’s Office website.

The alleged rape happened right next door to the house where Danny Hembree Jr. lived when he was charged with three counts of first-degree murder.

One of the three women may have been killed in that house, according to evidence presented during a pretrial hearing last month.

Gaston County District Attorney Locke Bell presented photos taken in the basement of the home during the hearing.

Among the objects pictured from the Oakstone Circle home, which is owned by Hembree’s mother, Jacqueline Hembree, were boots, lamps with electrical cords that had been cut off, and a couch, pillows and carpet discolored by crimson stains.

Danny Hembree is accused of killing 17-year-old Heather Marie Catterton and 30-year-old Randi Dean Saldana in 2009 and 30-year-old Deborah Denise Ratchford in 1992.

Hembree’s other son, Danny Hembree III, has also had experience with the legal system. The 23-year-old has been convicted of multiple drug charges in 2003 and 2006.

No one answered the door at either Oakstone Circle home Monday morning.

http://www.destin.com/news/hembree-60173-gaston-rape-accused.html

Man's murder trial to begin in teen girl's death

Updated: Oct 03, 2011 11:57 AM CDT

GASTONIA, N.C. (AP/WBTV) - A North Carolina man accused of killing three female acquaintances and dumping 2 of them in South Carolina is scheduled to go on trial for capital murder in one of the cases.

Jury selection was scheduled to begin Monday in the first of what will likely be three trials for 49-year-old Danny Hembree Jr.

He could face the death penalty if he is convicted.

Hembree goes on trial first for the 2009 killing of 17-year-old Heather Catterton, whose body was found near Clover, S.C. He's also charged with killing 30-year-old Randi Dean Saldana, whose burned remains were found near Blacksburg, S.C.

Investigators say Hembree also killed Deborah Ratchford in 1992.

The other two cases will be tried separately.

Catterton and Saldana were both found in South Carolina about 7 miles apart and about a month apart in October and November of 2009.

In mid-December 2009, Gaston County Police charged Hembree for the murders of Saldana and Catterton.

Their bodies were dumped in York County, South Carolina, and both cases remained unsolved for more than a month.

Authorities do not think Ratchford, Saldana and Catterton knew each other, but Capt. Isenhour said, "All three women lived high-risk lifestyles." She would not comment further.

Hembree had been dating Catterton's sister and her father told WBTV he was shocked by the arrest.

Police originally arrested Hembree in early December 2009 in connection with three robberies in Charlotte. They say that arrest led them to evidence in connection with the three murders.

http://www.wbtv.com/story/15601506/mans-murder-trial-to-begin-in-teen-girls-death

Jury seated in Hembree capital murder trial
By: Kate Gaier

GASTONIA, N.C. – A jury of 12 with three alternates was seated Monday in the Danny Hembree murder trial. Hembree is charged with killing three women but is only on trial for the death of 17-year-old Heather Catterton at this time.

Monday marked the beginning of the third week of jury selection. Early in the morning the second alternate was seated and the third late Monday afternoon.

Forty-nine-year old Hembree is charged with killing Catterton in Gaston County then dumping her body in York County, S.C. He is also charged with killing Randi Saldana and Deborah Ratchford.

Jury selection was a long, slow process, even more so because it is a capital murder case. Jurors must be open to the death penalty. If convicted, Hembree could be sentenced to death.

The state filed a motion before lunch Monday but didn't disclose what the motion entails. News 14 Carolina learned it has something to do with another witness who was not on the original witness list and possibly a statement made by the defendant prior to his arrest for murder.

Judge Beal will address the motion and any other motions on Tuesday before opening statements.

http://charlotte.news14.com/content/648283/jury-seated-in-hembree-capital-murder-trial

UPDATED 5:10 PM
Testimony begins in Danny Hembree capital murder trial
By: Kate Gaier

GASTONIA, N.C. – Opening statements ended and testimony began Tuesday in the Danny Hembree murder trial. The 49-year-old is accused of killing three women, but this trial is for the death of 17-year-old Heather Catterton, whose body was found in York County, S.C., in 2009.

He is also charged with killing Randi Saldana and Deborah Ratchford.

Gaston County District Attorney Locke Bell took less than 10 minutes to tell the jury about the day Catterton was killed. He said there were drugs involved that day and that Hembree had sex with the victim.

The state says Hembree came up from behind the teen, placed his hand over her nose and mouth, and suffocated her.

The defense questions if a violent crime was committed, why was there no evidence on her body, and says the state can't prove the cause of death and can't prove she was killed by Hembree.

The first witness was Detective Alex Wallace, of the York County Sheriff's Office. During his testimony, he described what he saw when he arrived to where Catterton's body was dumped, off Robinson Road.

“Folded, sort of like her body was bent over. She had some socks on that were multicolored socks. She had a sweatshirt on that was pushed up around her neck area,” he said.

The state introduced two pieces of physical evidence, Catterton's sweatshirt and socks, the only two items she was discovered wearing.

The state also called the York County medical examiner late in the day and a finger print expert from the SBI Lab in Raleigh.

The jury will hear from Hembree during the trial, mostly from videotaped interviews the state will play from 2009.

The trial is expected to take about six weeks.

http://charlotte.news14.com/content/top_stories/648309/testimony-begins-in-danny-hembree-capital-murder-trial

UPDATED 6:37 PM
Victim's friend testifies about night of sex and drugs in Hembree trial
By: Kate Gaier


GASTONIA, N.C. – Jurors in the Danny Hembree murder trial heard testimony Wednesday from the victim's best friend. Sommer Heffner told the jury Heather Catterton, who was selling her body for drugs, was scared to be alone with the defendant.

Heffner said she was good friends with Catterton since they were kids, and told the jury she knew about her friend's lifestyle but Catterton was a good person.

Heffner spent much of the day on the witness stand, recalling a day and night full of drug use and sex. She talked about the last time she saw her friend, a night in October 2009 that included a day-long drug binge with her boyfriend, best friend and Hembree.

Heffner said Catterton would have sex with Hembree in exchange for crack cocaine. This activity continued until early the next day.

Heffner testified that she begged her friend to go home with her instead of staying with Hembree. She says something didn't feel right that morning and Catterton had told her before she was scared to be alone with the accused killer.

The state argues the day she is describing is the day Hembree killed Catterton. Prosecutors haven't laid out the exact motive but testimony is pointing towards drugs and prostitution.

The defense questioned the witness's credibility, since they said she too exchanged sex for crack.

A York County, S.C., forensics investigator also testified Wednesday, as did a crime scene detective and the woman who found the body of Randi Saldana, another woman Hembree is charged with killing

Hembree is charged with killing Catterton, Saldana and one other woman, but he is only on trial for Catterton's death right now. If convicted, he could be sentenced to death.


http://charlotte.news14.com/content/local_news/648353/victim-s-friend-testifies-about-night-of-sex-and-drugs-in-hembree-trial

11:27 AM
Sister of another alleged victim testifies in Hembree murder trial
By: News 14 Carolina Web Staff

GASTONIA -- Testimony continues Thursday in the Danny Hembree murder trial. He's accused of killing 17-year-old Heather Catterton in October of 2009. Thursday morning, the sister of Randi Saldana took the stand. Hembree is also accused of killing Saldana in 2009.

Wednesday, Catteron's best friend, Sommer Heffner, testified that on the day Catterton was last seen alive she and Catterton exchanged sex for cocaine with Heffner's boyfriend and Hembree. She also said Hembree became violent at one point.

http://charlotte.news14.com/content/top_stories/648411/sister-of-another-alleged-victim-testifies-in-hembree-murder-trial

1:04 PM
Gaston Co. detective testifies in Hembree murder trial on jewelry recovered
By: News 14 Carolina Staff

GASTONIA, N.C. — Jurors in the Danny Hembree murder trial heard from a Gaston County police detective Thursday.

The detective testified about jewelry recovered at Heather Catterton's house, weeks after she was killed. Hembree dated the victim's sister and stayed at the Catterton house.

The second witness said the jewelry belonged to her sister, Randi Saldana, another of Hembree's alleged victims. She told the jury her sister would never have given her jewelry away.

Both women were killed in 2009, their bodies were dumped in South Carolina. The trial is only for Catterton's murder.

http://charlotte.news14.com/content/top_stories/648415/gaston-co--detective-testifies-in-hembree-murder-trial-on-jewelry-recovered

10/20/2011 05:29 PM
Hembree jury begins watching tape of alleged confession
By: Kate Gaier


GASTONIA, N.C. -- Jurors in the Danny Hembree murder trial on Thursday began watching a taped interview from December 2009 in which the state says Hembree confesses to killing 17-year-old Heather Catterton.

The defense fought to keep the recording out of evidence, but the judge ruled late Thursday it would be allowed.

Hembree is accused of killing Catterton in Gastonia then dumping her body in South Carolina in October 2009. He is also charged with killing two other women, but this trial is just for the Catterton case.

The judge originally thought tape was one hour long, but when he learned it is closer to two, he stopped it, saying he wants the jury to see it in its entirety.

The state says Hembree admits to killing Catterton in this interview. They say he also admits to killing Randi Saldana and Deborah Ratchford but the jury will not hear that portion of the interview.

The recording took place while Hembree was questioned in Charlotte in connection to a robbery. The state says Hembree told the Charlotte detective to call York County, S.C., investigators.

The defense argued to keep this tape out of evidence because Hembree says it has holes; that it wasn't recording at one point when he spoke with an officer.

The state admits there is about 20 minutes missing but nothing happened.

The jury will hear the entire two-hour recording first thing Monday morning.

Earlier Thursday, jurors heard from a Gaston County detective and Saldana's sister.

http://charlotte.news14.com/content/648430/hembree-jury-begins-watching-tape-of-alleged-confession