UPDATE: Dale Wayne Eaton's latest appeal DENIED

[LooksLikeCRicci]

This just in, courtesy of the Billings Gazette:

Dale Wayne Eaton, convicted killer of Lisa Marie Kimmell, has lost his latest bid for an appeal in his murder conviction. The case has been sent back to the lower court to have an execution date set. Read more about it here: http://www.billingsgazette.net/artic.../24-kimmel.txt

While there's nothing the justice system can do to bring Lisa back to the Kimmell family, I'm glad to see that they are at least one step closer to final resolution of this case.

[kadrmas15]

Well, the execution date is a mere formality. The lower court will set it, then Eaton, assuming he wants to keep appealing this will then appeal to federal court which will issue a stay. Eaton's state appeals have been exhausted but he still has appeals to Federal District Court and the Federal Court of Appeals which will take years to resolve. I think it will be at least another 5 years, maybe more before he is actually executed.

[Todd Mueller]

Thank God that once in a while justice really is served.

He better never see the light of day as a free man again. . .

[shek]

Just letting you know that we got word today (2/25/09) that US Supreme Court has now denied Eaton's appeal. We were rather shocked because it took the WY State Supreme court about 3 years and this decission came in about 3 months. He still has a few steps he can take that may still delay the process.The next one would be what they called an application for post conviction relief (what ever in the heck that means) and must be submitted before May 20th of this year. I'll let you know if we hear more.

[Todd Mueller]

Thanks for the update, shek!

It just breaks my heart that on top of all you have been through this piece of garbage still gets appeal after appeal. I commend you for your resolve.

Sending you our best wishes and hope that this will be resolved quickly and finally.

Take care...

[7hurricane]

I know we are really discussing Eaton here, which btw I'm so glad he was captured and will be sentenced to death.

There are just so much about this case I'm still confused about. This one always baffled me, especially after I heard someone was captured for the murder. First off how did Eaton get a hold of Lisa? Second what about all the supposed sightings of her and her car supposedly after police suspect that she was dead? Has their ever been anything released by Eaton that would explain more?

[Todd Mueller]

Originally Posted by 7hurricane

I know we are really discussing Eaton here, which btw I'm so glad he was captured and will be sentenced to death.

There are just so much about this case I'm still confused about. This one always baffled me, especially after I heard someone was captured for the murder. First off how did Eaton get a hold of Lisa? Second what about all the supposed sightings of her and her car supposedly after police suspect that she was dead? Has their ever been anything released by Eaton that would explain more?

This thread should answer most of your questions. (In case you don't know, our forum member named "shek" is Lisa's mom, so your are definitely getting the straight scoop.)

[LooksLikeCRicci]

If you want to know that whole story, you may want to check out that book that's Shek's avatar. It walks through the whole terrible ordeal. You may want to block out a big amount of time if you choose to read the book, though. I read the whole thing in almost one sitting....

Also, on a legal sidenote: I'm also shocked at how quickly the U.S. Supreme Court made a decision in regard to Eaton's appeal. I'm just glad to see that you didn't have to wait for another three years to hear THIS news.

[kadrmas15]

Did the U.S. Supreme Court actually hear Eaton's case? If he was applying for a writ of certiorari than he was applying for the U.S. Supreme Court to hear the case. Only a miniscule fraction of these type of cases or really any type of cases get heard by the U.S. Supreme Court. My guess is that Eaton will next apply to the U.S. District Court for the District of Wyoming in Casper or Cheyenne for a writ of habeas corpus. If and when that is denied he would then be able to go to the 10th circuit court of appeal headquartered in Denver. If and when he failed there than he would be in essence out of appeals unless the U.S. Supreme Court agreed to hear his case. The three federal judges in Wyoming, one was appointed by Ford, one was appointed by Reagan and one was appointed by Clinton. Out of the 22 judges on that court, the vast majority, 15 out of the 22 were appointed by republicans. 6 were appointed by Reagan, one by George H.W. Bush, 6 by George W. Bush, two by Nixon. Out of the ones appointed by democrats, 4 were appointed by Clinton, two were appointed by Carter and one was appointed by Johnson. So yeah I would say Eaton's chances are stacked against him although it will probably take another 5 years, maybe longer before his appeals are exhausted. I am not a supporter of the death penalty but if and when Eaton is executed I do hope it brings you shek and your family some peace. I hope I do not sound condescending when I say that?

[shek]

Originally Posted by kadrmas15

Did the U.S. Supreme Court actually hear Eaton's case? If he was applying for a writ of certiorari than he was applying for the U.S. Supreme Court to hear the case. Only a miniscule fraction of these type of cases or really any type of cases get heard by the U.S. Supreme Court. My guess is that Eaton will next apply to the U.S. District Court for the District of Wyoming in Casper or Cheyenne for a writ of habeas corpus. If and when that is denied he would then be able to go to the 10th circuit court of appeal headquartered in Denver. If and when he failed there than he would be in essence out of appeals unless the U.S. Supreme Court agreed to hear his case. The three federal judges in Wyoming, one was appointed by Ford, one was appointed by Reagan and one was appointed by Clinton. Out of the 22 judges on that court, the vast majority, 15 out of the 22 were appointed by republicans. 6 were appointed by Reagan, one by George H.W. Bush, 6 by George W. Bush, two by Nixon. Out of the ones appointed by democrats, 4 were appointed by Clinton, two were appointed by Carter and one was appointed by Johnson. So yeah I would say Eaton's chances are stacked against him although it will probably take another 5 years, maybe longer before his appeals are exhausted. I am not a supporter of the death penalty but if and when Eaton is executed I do hope it brings you shek and your family some peace. I hope I do not sound condescending when I say that?

Sorry, I stand corrected, let me clarify that the US Supreme Court "refused / denied" to hear Eaton's appeal meaning he didn't get to first base with them in his appeal effort. I am not very good at this legalese stuff. Then all I know is what they told me the next would be which was to petetion for post conviction relief. To whom? I have no clue! Then of course we know that it is just another step in the process and others may follow. You probably know more about them than I do.

And I am not offended if you are anti death penalty, however I am not opposed to it before or even after our tragic event. And no, we take no pleasure in it and especially now having to deal with it in an upfront, close and personal way. There is no way we could intentionally hurt, let alone kill anybody. I am also pro life, so go figure. Nor do I have any idea what in world politics have to do with any of this and the chances being stacked against him (Eaton) has to do with with this what so ever. This isn't a game of poker. Or am I to assume it has something to do with being a Republican or Democrat? Liberal or conservative? Christian or non Christian? Black or white? Forgive me but I just didn't understand what your point or question was or was there one?

Find peace? Thank you but regardless of the the out come and what the future holds, we have always said that this is something we'll never get over but have learned to move on with our lives and get past it. We have also come to realize this will always be a part of our lives in some fashion or another. My husband said at a press conference that a song by Reba McEntire summed it up the best for him, "The world doesn't stop for my broken heart".

And, nah! I didn't take offense to your comments and didn't take them as condescending and I hope you accept my comments in kind. True, I didn't understand some of them but if you do have questions I can answer, please let me know.

My Best,
Sheila Kimmell

[kadrmas15]

No Shek, I did not take offense. I get what you are saying and I am glad you did not take offense to what I said. The reason I mentioned the politics to try to speculate how conservative or liberal the court may be in deciding Eaton's and other death row inmates appeals. Since the courts in that area are overall more conservative that decreases the chances his appeal will be granted. In this instance, I would agree with his appeal being denied. I saw nothing law wise or whatever that was wrong with his trial or that would have caused the jury to rule differently than what it did. You overall got it right, I was not even basing so much on party as I was on ideology of the individual judges. I myself am an overall conservative republican although I like you identify myself as pro-life.

Basically, both your families struggle and what happened to your daughter have stuck with me since I first learned about it. I was very young, like 5 or 6 years old when I first saw the segment. My parents watched Unsolved Mysteries every week and I would watch it with them. I remember it gave me nightmares. Watching the segment again brought the memories back but I was at least satisfied to see the crime solved and the murderer brought to justice so he cannot do this to anyone else.

I was curious where to obtain the book on the case? Do they sell it on Amazon? I would like to read more about the case to better educate myself on the events and circumstances of the case. Anyway, I wish you and your family well and I am happy my comments did not offend you.

[yuppielawyer]

I personally do not believe in the death penalty, but I do believe that if we are going to have it in this country, it should be saved for those who commit the most heinous crimes. Putting Lisa through the torture that he did over six days and then brutally murdering her qualifies, in my opinion.

Mrs. Kimmell, I know that there is really no such thing as closure when you lose a child, especially to murder, but, I hope that you and your family are at least comforted by knowing that her killer is behind bars, and can never hurt anyone again. Your daughter sounds like she was a lovely young woman, and I hope that you are also comforted by the wonderful memories you all had together.

[yuppielawyer]

One thing I just noticed in refreshing my memory on this case from Wikipedia is that Eaton is also considered a suspect in the Amy Bechtel case. Does anyone know anything more about that?

[TracyLynnS]

Originally Posted by shek

Find peace? Thank you but regardless of the the out come and what the future holds, we have always said that this is something we'll never get over but have learned to move on with our lives and get past it. We have also come to realize this will always be a part of our lives in some fashion or another. My husband said at a press conference that a song by Reba McEntire summed it up the best for him, "The world doesn't stop for my broken heart".

Sheila,

I have often thought of Lisa over the last 20 years. When her case was recently presented again on UM, I explained what I knew of the situtation to my 21 year old son, who was watching with me.

I hope it can bring you some level of comfort to know that Lisa's memory has lived on in the minds of those who never even knew her, but remember, and care, and we are introducing her to the next generation, so she will never be forgotten.

-Tracy

[shek]

Originally Posted by yuppielawyer

One thing I just noticed in refreshing my memory on this case from Wikipedia is that Eaton is also considered a suspect in the Amy Bechtel case. Does anyone know anything more about that?

All I can tell is what I know that comes directly from a relative of Eaton's. The story, in short, goes like this. Eaton was visiting them for a few days and when leaving that morning (same day of Amy's disappearence) he asked if could borrow a fishing pole because he thought he would stop at one of their favorite fishing spots on the way home. Later on the news, it was annonced that Amy's was missing but her car was found on Loop Road and his relative's immediate reaction was, "Hey! That's were Dale was going fishing!"

He did report it to the authories some time down the road but was blown off because by this time they were so bent on the therory that the husband did it. Since Eaton's arrest, the authories now publicly say, at least, that Eaton is a person of interest. But that's about it.

And to everyone, Thank you for your thoughtful kindness and words of comfort. Then without trying to stir the death penalty debate, the odds are more likely that Eaton will die of natural cases in prison before he ever has to face the lethal injection. With that said, we do find a measure of peace in at least knowing he's in a place were he cannot prey on other innocent victims.

Kadrmas - yes, you can order the book on Amazon or you can PM me and I can ship one directly to you.