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2007 Parker,Theresa 3-21-2007; Walker County 41 YO
Topic Started: Apr 4 2007, 10:09 PM (745 Views)
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http://www.newschannel9.com/news/parker_96..._testified.html

Testimony of Death Threats In Sam Parker Hearing

John Madewell
February 26, 2008 - 4:50PM

Sam Parker faces charges of his estranged wife's Theresa's death even though her body has not been found. She has not been seen since March of last year. His bond AND arraignment hearing happened this morning in Lafayette, Georgia.

Three different people, including Sam Parker's mother-in-law, testified the former LaFayette police officer had made death threats against them. His ex-wife, Keila Beard, testified he once jumped on top of her, started choking her, pulled out his service revolver and put it to her head threatening to blow her brains out. You will not see any of this testimony, because Judge Jon Wood denied our request for cameras in the court.

Sam Parker arrived at the Walker County jail around 8:15 this morning. The prosecution had six witnesses testify about his past. Three people testified of personal death threats made by Parker. And Panama City, Florida police officer John Deegis testified about what our investigative team REVEALED TO you almost one year ago.

The officer testified back in 2003, Sam Parker had handcuffed himself to his wife Theresa Parker in his car and told her he wanted to blow his brains out with her cuffed to him. In addition, Parker's ex sister-in-law, Tabitha Thomas testified Sam Parker threatened to kill her. Thomas was married to Theresa Parker's brother and had trouble getting child support from him. She says Sam Parker told her to stop pursuing it and that he would kill her, her new husband, kids and bury them where no one would find them. She testified he also said he had killed before and was not afraid to do it again.

But she never filed any kind of police report. Parker's attorney says the state's witnesses had a purpose.

David Dunn said, "I think that was more for the media's benefit than the judge."

We asked Dunn if it was typical for that amount of witnesses for a bond hearing. He responded, "Very unusual."

Parker was visibly upset during some of the witness testimony. His attorney explained, "I think maybe your first word is better, agitated. I think he was hearing things that he did not agree with as being true. But evidentiary issues we'll fight out in court, they're not for this forum," Dunn said.

After the hearing, Theresa Parker's sister didn't say much after meeting with investigators. We asked her if the non decision on bond was tough for the family.

Christina Hall said, "A little bit, but we feel good about it. We do, we feel really good about it, just keep our fingers crossed."

In the arraignment portion of Sam Parker's hearing, he pleaded not guilty. He remains in custody. Judge Jon Wood says he will take the bond matter under advisement.


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http://timesfreepress.com/news/2008/feb/26...es-recount-thr/

Sam Parker pleads not guilty; witnesses recount threats

By: Chloe Morrison

LaFAYETTE, Ga. — Former LaFayette police Sgt. Sam Parker pleaded not guilty this morning to a charge of murdering his wife, Theresa Parker, and to three other felony charges.

Theresa Parker has been missing for almost a year, and, though no body has been found, Sam Parker was arrested Feb. 4 on a murder charge.

Walker County Superior Court Judge Jon Boling Wood heard more than two hours of testimony during the arraignment and bond hearing today.

Witnesses ranged form Chattooga County Probate and Magistrate Judge Jon Payne to Theresa Parker’s mother, Claire Caruthers.

Judge Payne said he has known Sam since the defendant was a child. Regarding whether Mr. Parker is flight risk or a danger to the public, Judge Payne said he feels that Mr. Parker would have already fled or harmed someone if he was going to do so.

All other witnesses told stories of a violent and moody Sam Parker.

Mrs. Caruthers said Sam talked to her after her boyfriend was arrested on a traffic violation. She lived next door to Sam.

She said he told her, “If me or Greg crossed the property line, he would kill us and bury us and they’d never find us.”

Rome Judicial Circuit District Attorney Leigh Patterson also called four more witnesses who described a variety of threats and boasts they said Sam Parker had made.

Public Defender David Dunn said his client is “ready to fight,” and that he was agitated by what he feels were untruths sworn to by the string of witnesses.

Mr. Dunn, who said he was surprised by the extent of prosecution testimony put up during the hearing, said he thought the proceeding was a show for the media.

On cross examination, he asked each witness whether they had reported the alleged incidents involving Sam to authorities, and for each one also asked why they had not.

Judge Wood said he will consider all testimony before making a decision regarding whether to set bond for Mr. Parker.

The defendant, shackled at the wrists and ankles during the hearing, was ordered to be held in an undisclosed neighboring county jail pending the judge’s decision.


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http://news.mywebpal.com/news_tool_v2.cfm?...alnews&om=0

Some key facts in the Parker case

Theresa Parker, a dispatcher with Walker County 911, has been missing since March 21, 2007.

Theresa and her husband, Sam, had a house on Cordell Road, which is northeast of LaFayette in Walker County. They were undergoing divorce preparations and were not living together. She was living at the Cordell Road residence and he was living in his deceased father’s house in Trion in Chattooga County.

Sam, a sergeant with the LaFayette Police Department, immediately became a “person of interest” in his wife’s disappearance.

In early April, Harbin “Ben” Chaffin, a corporal with the LaFayette Police Department and a good friend of Sam, was arrested for making false statements to investigators in the Parker case.

Also in early April, District Attorney Herbert “Buzz” Franklin disqualified his office, which is headquar-tered in LaFayette, from the case. The case was handed over to the Floyd County district attorney’s office in Rome, Ga. with DA Leigh Patterson in charge.

Sam was fired from his LaFayette police job in mid-April after authorities found explosives in his work locker.

In late July, Chaffin was charged with tampering with evidence, violation of oath by public officer, and computer invasion of privacy. He is out of jail on bond.

In early February 2008, Sam was charged with and indicted for murdering his wife. On Feb. 28, Walker County Superior Court Judge Jon “Bo” Wood denied bond for Sam Parker.



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http://news.mywebpal.com/news_tool_v2.cfm?...D=3511&on=1

“No body” murder cases: Former D.C. prosecutor talks about Parker case

03/11/08
Josh O'Bryant

How difficult is it to convict a suspect of murder if there is no body and no weapon, such as in the Sam Parker case?

Tad DiBiase says it’s easier than one might think.

DiBiase, a former homicide prosecutor from Washington, D.C., shed light on “no body” cases.

DiBiase has collected more than 200 “no body” homicide cases, including several other Georgia cases beyond the Sam Parker case, which can be researched on his blog at nobodycases.blogstream.com.

According to DiBiase, the biggest obstacle that a “no body” prosecution faces is proving that the person was actually murdered. This allows for two components.

The first would be to prove that the actual person is deceased, while second would be proving that that person was actually murdered.

“What I have found in looking at a lot of these cases is that, while that is a burden, it is actually less difficult than I think lay people and maybe most jurors might think. That is because, in most cases, it becomes pretty obvious that at least up to the first point that the person is actually dead. Then the battleground really is on the second point, which is ‘were they murdered’, and then the third point of course being did this guy … actually do it,” DiBiase said.

According to DiBiase, what you find in a lot of these cases is that the person who is murdered, is otherwise not usually a victim of a crime.

“In those cases, it is usually very easy to prove that the person is not alive. They have missed their sons 10th birthday, his 11th birthday, his 12th birthday. They have missed all of these important events,” DiBiase said.



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http://www.wdef.com/news/one_year_annivers..._parker/03/2008

One Year Anniversary of the Disappearance of Theresa Parker

Submitted by Bethany Mowry on March 21, 2008 - 4:09pm. News

March 21, 2008 marks the one year anniversary of the last time anyone saw Theresa Parker alive.

The Walker County 9-1-1 dispatcher's disappearance sparked an investigation and media frenzy no one is likely to soon forget.

It started with a simple plea -- help us find this missing 9-1-1 dispatcher.

"We're stressing that we definitely need the help of the people in the community," Walker County Sheriff Steve Wilson said on March 26, 2007.

Search crews organized and combed the woods near the home Theresa Parker had shared with her estranged husband, LaFayette Police Sergeant Sam Parker -- it was an effort they would repeat many times over.

The search on March 27, 2007 was particularly difficult, Fire Chief Randy Camp said that day,"There are a lot of personal emotions because again, she was a personal friend to a lot of them"

Soon after, investigators searched the home itself. Sam Parker became a person of interest, but not a suspect, in the case. After explosives were discovered in his locker at the police department, he was dismissed.

On April 13, 2007, Police Chief Tommy Freeman told reporters, "I want to send a clear message to everyone. Everyone in my department, everyone in this city, that is not ever going to be tolerated as long as I'm the chief of police here."

Websites and billboards popped up, pleading for information relating to Theresa's disappearance. It would be months before an arrest was made in her murder. But before that arrest, the person in question would appear on a local television show to share his side of the story.

In his December 11, 2007 appearance on television, Sam Parker pleaded, "People are going to form their own opinions, and that's fine, but for our families' sake, if you don't know it for fact, don't say it because it hurts so bad."

Nearly two months after his appearance, investigators arrested Sam Parker for the murder of his wife Theresa. Now a year after she disappeared, he awaits trial, denied bond.

Sam Parker remains in an undisclosed area jail.


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http://www.wdef.com/news/extra_coverage_of...earance/03/2008

Extra Coverage of the Anniversary of Theresa Parker's Disappearance

Submitted by Bethany Mowry on March 21, 2008 - 4:25pm. News

We've pulled some extra stories from the archives for the one year anniversary of Theresa Parker's disappearance.

The first is the story we ran from a March 30, 2007 prayer vigil hosted by her family. Included in the story is Sam Parker's sister, making a statement on his behalf.

Next is a story aired after Sam Parker's fellow police officer Ben Chaffin was arrested in connection with the case. This aired on April 3, 2007.

Another story we've added to the extra coverage is one after police were called to Sam Parker's residence.

He had just been fired from the LaFayette Police Department and was making threats to hurt himself.

Finally, a story on Eddie the Springer Spaniel. He and his handler were flown in from England to help search for any evidence in the case.



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Hearing Set April 17 In Sam Parker Murder Case
posted April 8, 2009

A hearing is set April 17 in the case in which former LaFayette Police Sgt. Sam Parker is charged in the murder of his wife, Theresa Parker. The hearing comes over 14 months after the arrest of the officer in the mysterious death.

The hearing is set in the main courtroom at the Walker County Courthouse at 9 a.m. before Judge Jon Wood.

A follow-up hearing is set for May 15.

Parker is represented by David Dunn, the public defender in Walker County. The prosecutor is District Attorney Leigh Patterson of Rome, Ga.

Officials said few motions have been filed in the case.

Parker is being held without bond at a jail in another county.

He was arrested Feb. 4 of last year, though he publicly had denied any involvement in the death of his wife, who was a 911 dispatcher for Walker County.

The arrest also was made though her body has never been found despite numerous organized searches.

Ms. Parker was first reported missing on March 21, 2007.

Walker County Sheriff Steve Wilson said at a press conference at the time of the arrest that, after 11 months of investigation, "the time was right" for the arrest.
http://www.chattanoogan.com/articles/article_148529.asp

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New Developments In Sam Parker Murder Case
Comments 4 | Recommend 0
August 05, 2009 5:28 PM
John Pless
A Walker County judge has decided what kind of evidence can, and can not be used against Sam Parker.

Parker is about to go on trial for killing his wife Theresa even though police have never found her body or evidence she's dead.

Some evidence the prosecution team spent a tremendous amount of time and money on will not be allowed against Parker.

Remember last month, when the prosecution showed the judge the video of cadaver dogs in action? Prosecutors argued the dogs alerted their handlers back in 2007 to the smell of a decomposing body near Teresa Parker's car and Sam Parker's garage.

Lisa Higgins with the Louisiana Search and Rescue Dog team testified in July "almost immediately I gave the command and she hit really hard, worked very, very hard inside the wheel well on the driver's side and gave a full indication right there."

After further cross examination it was learned that cadaver dogs can hit on other things, like pigs, or bark when they're excited about something not connected with the search. Parker's defense team argued that evidence should be thrown out since no one knows what excited the K-9's.

Walker County Superior Court Judge Jon "Bo" Wood agreed, saying in a previous case the Georgia Supreme Court "decided the alerts should not have been admitted."

The FBI had great interest in the Parker case because it was going to be a "test case" where cadaver dogs would help in the prosecution of a no body murder trial.

But on another issue Judge Wood sided with prosecutors about deputies going on Parker's property without a warrant. Judge Wood concluded in his July 31 ruling "...the Court finds that the officers had a right to be on the property of the Defendant and alleged victim for a safety/wellness check."

Theresa Parker seemingly vanished more than two years ago without a trace. Her husband Sam is accused of killing her despite no body and no evidence she's dead.

"When you don't have the body you don't have the best, single piece of evidence in a murder case," according to Thomas "Tad" DiBiase.

Dibiase was a federal homicide prosecutor for more than 12 years in the District Of Columbia who has spent the last five years researching so-called "no body murder cases."

The Parker murder case is only the seventh case known in Georgia where prosecutors have gone to trial without a body. DiBiase found the six previous Georgia cases span from 1949 to 2005. All but one in 2001 resulted in a conviction.

One of the more recent was the case against Calvin Hinton in Atlanta, who was convicted in 2005 for killing 19-year-old Shannon Melendi. Her body was never found before trial, but after his conviction Hinton admitted he burned and then buried her body in his yard.

In the Parker case we have yet to hear about any other physical evidence that could help win a conviction.

"Typically in an investigation the public does not know all the information that is there, so that's the first caveat, you can never predict what the police or the prosecution may have that hasn't been revealed yet," DiBiase said.

Dibiase said in most no body cases a conviction is based on three factors: there is forensic evidence tying the suspect to the victim, the accused gives a confession or the accused tells someone else about the crime.

Since the cadaver dog testimony won't be allowed we're not sure what physical evidence prosecutors may have.

We do know that the prosecution team is under pressure to make a challenging case. Chattanooga criminal defense attorney Jerry Summers, who's not involved in the Parker case, gave us his perspective about prosecutors under that kind of pressure.

"Of course there's an inordinate amount of public pressure in the Sam Parker case, it's been highly publicized and unfortunately that sometimes puts pressure on prosecutors because prosecutors are publicly elected," Summers said.

The process of picking a jury begins August 17 in Bartow County, Georgia. Jurors will be sequestered and brought to the Walker County Courthouse in LaFayette for the trial.

http://www.newschannel9.com/news/parker-98...idence-sam.html

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http://www.chattanoogan.com/articles/article_158127.asp

Sam Parker Found Guilty Of Murder
Sentenced To Life For Slaying Of Wife, Theresa
posted September 3, 2009

A criminal court jury on Thursday afternoon found former LaFayette Police sergeant Sam Parker guilty of murder.

He was sentenced to life in prison by Judge Jon "Bo" Wood.

Parker also received two concurrent five-year terms for violating his oath of office and giving a false statement.

He was found not guilty of computer invasion of privacy.

The jury from Bartow County deliberated for 23 hours over four days.

Parker was found guilty of the slaying of his wife, Theresa, whose body has never been found. She was last seen March 21, 2007.

The jury as late as at noon on Thursday said it was still deadlocked 8-4 on the murder count. Judge Wood then gave the Allen charge ("dynamite" charge) urging them to reach a verdict by focusing on the facts of the case and not becoming advocates for either side.

Parker, 51, showed no emotion. He was asked by Judge Wood if he wanted to say anything, and he declined.

Judge Wood said he was sentenced to serve "the rest of your natural life" in prison.

The judge told the jurors from Bartow County they could later speak with anyone about the case or they could decline to do so.

He let the jurors leave the courtroom first and get on the bus. He said a deputy would be at their arrival point in Cartersville to see that they were not disturbed.

The jurors had heard two weeks of testimony. Parker did not take the witness stand. His attorneys said he has always maintained his innocence.

Prosecutor Leigh Patterson from Floyd County said after meeting with the Theresa Parker family, "We will never stop looking for Theresa."

She said the former Walker County 911 dispatcher "got that close to getting away." Ms. Parker had gotten an apartment in Fort Oglethorpe and was in the process of moving items from the Parker home on Cordell Avenue in LaFayette when authorities said Parker killed her.

Prosecutors said Parker stashed her body in the back of her Toyota 4Runner, went out to meet a lady friend to establish an alibi, then hid the body the next morning before going fishing with attorney Bill Slack.

Ms. Patterson said, "He knows where the body is."

Concerning deputy Shane Green, who authorities said was close to Ms. Parker, Ms. Patterson said cell phone records showed he did not join her for a trip to Gatlinburg shortly before she disappeared.

Sheriff Steve Wilson said deputy Green was on patrol the night she was killed, and the fact that he used several tanks of gas is not unusual because of the size of the county.

Ms. Patterson said there had been previous successful prosecutions in Georgia of murder cases where there was no body found.

She said the prosecution was aided by the fact it was allowed to display to the jury "similar transactions" and "pattern of conduct" regarding Parker, including the testimony of a former wife who said he put a gun to her head, choked her and handcuffed her to a bed after dragging her by the hair through broken glass.

She praised GBI Agt. James Harris for spotting inconsistencies in Parker's statement soon after Ms. Parker was reported missing.

Sheriff Wilson said Agt. Harris "did a jam-up wonderful job."

He said it was one of the most difficult cases to prosecute he has encountered.

The sheriff said of Parker that "the fact that he did not participate in the early searches was a red flag."

Sheriff Wilson said of Theresa Parker, "She was a very sweet person. It was always a pleasure to talk with her."
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Parker verdict talk of the town

By: Joan Garrett
(Contact) ARTICLE TOOLS E-mail story
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Staff Photo by Tim Barber Tina Cook, former co-worker of Theresa Parker, calls her co-workers late Thursday with the news of the verdict in front of the Walker County Courthouse. "I'm ecstatic, I couldn't have ask for anything more," said the 911 dispatcher.








Article:Parker trial turns media spotlight on Walker County

Article: Jury deliberations continue in Parker slaying trial

Article: Testimony gives insight into culture of police



Article: Parker chooses not to testify

Article: State rests its case against former officer Sam Parker



Article: Witnesses testify to violence, threats by Sam Parker

Article: Officers express doubts on Parker

Article: Friend says Parker acted normal on trip

Article: Cadaver dogs out of Parker trial

Article: Friend asked deputies to check on Mrs. Parker

Article: Judge keeps Parker in jail

Article: Chattanooga: Judge denies separation of charges for Parker

PDF: Indictment against Sam Parker and motions from defense lawyers and prosecutors

Article: Georgia: Sam Parker talks about life in jail

Article: Investigators use robotic camera to search well, Blue Hole for clues or body of Theresa Parker

Judge denies bond for Sam Parker

Parker bond pending judge’s decision

Parker facing more charges

Husband arrested in missing dispatcher case

Walker County 911 dispatcher missing since March 21

International investigator, K-9 dog join Parker search

Dispatcher's family plans vigil to keep search alive

Officer to face extradition on charges in missing dispatcher case

LaFayette Police officer fired for having explosives

Sheriff starts tip line for Parker case

Dispatcher's family tries to move on as questions persist

Message boards new turf in Parker case

Missing dispatcher fundraiser planned

New prosecutor accepts missing woman case

Missing woman's husband fired

Dispatcher's friend keeps busy with vigils, fundraisers

Family of missing woman announces launch of Web site

Theresa Parker family creates Web site

Illinois case mirrors Parker's

Mrs. Parker's 911 job filled

LaFayette officer suspended without pay

Husband of missing dispatcher Theresa Parker says he's been singled out unfairly

Search continues for dispatcher

LaFayette officer charged with making false statements in Parker investigation

When a loved one is missing

Pond draining comes up empty

Authorities draining pond in dispatcher search

Benefit for missing woman seeks smiles

Lawyer to Parker: Stop talking
LaFAYETTE, Ga. -- The day after Sam Parker's murder conviction sent shockwaves through his hometown, residents here are still buzzing about the conviction they call both a surprise and relief.

"I am happy," said Debbie Queen, a LaFayette resident who talked with friends about the trial Friday before eating lunch near the Walker County Courthouse. "I was afraid he was going to get off because they hadn't found the body."

After a three week trial, Mr. Parker, a former LaFayette police officer, was convicted on Thursday of malice murder in the killing of his wife, Theresa Parker. Mrs. Parker disappeared more than two years ago and her body has never been found.

Mr. Parker's lawyers said Friday they are working on an appeal and plan to file it after the Labor Day weekend.

Walker County Superior Court Judge Jon "Bo" Wood sentenced Mr. Parker to life for the murder charge and added five years for each of the other two felonies that drew guilty verdicts -- violation of oath as a public officer and making false statements during an investigation.

One of Mr. Parker's lawyers, public defender David Dunn, said he plans to file a motion for a new trial and that Judge Wood likely will rule on that motion after the trial transcript is prepared several months from now.

If Judge Wood denies the motion for a new trial, Mr. Dunn said he will file an appeal with the Georgia Supreme Court. It could take more than a year before an appeal process is complete, he said.

Walker County Sheriff Steve Wilson said he was pleased with the jurors' decision to convict Mr. Parker.

"The verdict validated what we have been pursuing for more than two years," Sheriff Wilson said. "There are no winners in this, but there is satisfaction in knowing that someone has been held responsible."

While at times he doubted the possibility of a guilty verdict, Sheriff Wilson said he believed certain evidence, such as images of bruising on Mr. Parker's arms after his wife went missing, made a significant impact on jurors as they weighed the case.

Like many in the community, Teresa McLin, who works in LaFayette, said she and her family have followed the Sam Parker trial closely.

Working in public service jobs, both Mr. Parker and his missing wife were well known in the community. Hundreds of people helped look for her after she went missing in March 2007, and the fact that Mrs. Parker's body was never found cast some mystery over the case.

Mrs. McLin said she expected the trial to end in a hung jury since the jurors said they were divided on the murder verdict after a couple of days of deliberation. She said a mistrial would have prevented the community and the families of both Mr. and Mrs. Parker from moving on.

"I am kind of relieved it is over," she said. "I was surprised. I didn't think they would come to a decision."

Still, even with a murder conviction, Sheriff Wilson said Theresa Parker's family won't be able to fully move on until they find her body and know what happened to her.

"As time moves forward we will always be looking for Theresa," he said. "We will never give up, and maybe one day we'll find her."
http://www.timesfreepress.com/news/2009/se...the-town/?local
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48 Hours Mystery: The Secret
When A 911 Operator Married to a Cop Vanishes Into Thin Air, Her Deadly Secret Is Exposed

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.(CBS) "Life still goes at a small pace here in LaFayette, Walker County. You can be to work in just a few minutes…. be home in a few minutes," according to Sheriff Steve Wilson. "We're located right in the heart of the Bible Belt.

"Being able to go on Friday night to watch your children play football or watch your daughter cheerlead as I did, that’s what small towns are all about."

"She was the middle sister and I was the youngest," Christina Hall told "48 Hours Mystery" contributing correspondent Tracy Smith of her sister, Theresa Parker. "Theresa loved everybody. She loved family - that was the most important thing to her. …You think of the best sister you could have and she was definitely…"

"She's one of our own. She's a 911 dispatcher," said FBI Special Agent Marc Veazey.
"She's that person on the other end of the radio when you’re in need, she's there."

"When I hugged her that night, it was just the strangest thing," Hall recalled. "It was almost like just this feelin' of I was never gonna see her again.

"I just, you know, kept tryin' to call her…I just called her over and over, and over, I was panicked… She is nowhere to be found, you know. And you don't wanna think the worst, but, I mean, you do."

"This case is about a 911 dispatcher and a city police officer …a married couple and one had turned up missing," said Sheriff Wilson.

"It's like a horrible dream I can’t wake up from," said Theresa's husband, Sam Parker. "I miss her, I miss her a lot."

"People came out in hundreds to search for her," said Sheriff Wilson. "We covered about 175 square miles of landmass. The community as a whole was very concerned about Theresa Parker missing."

"I am hopeful they'll find her. I hope they find her in good health," said Sam Parker.

"Every mornin', when I open my eyes, I think about her," said Hall. "You know, at night, when I lay my head down, to go to sleep, I think about her. You know, 'Theresa, where could you be?'"

"I don’t believe that she would have just vanished off the face of the Earth," said Veazey.

"We knew this was not the typical missing person's case in Walker County," the sheriff said. "This was gonna be bigger than Walker County when it was all said and done."

It was the first day of spring, March 21, 2007 - a time of new beginnings for Theresa Parker according to her sister, Christina Hall.

"She was at my house Wednesday night for about an hour. And we talked and she wanted me to go to her new place…"

The 911 dispatcher and her police officer husband, Sam Parker, were divorcing after 13 years of marriage.

"The marriage was playin’ itself out, but it wasn’t in a bad way," Sam told Tracy Smith.

Theresa was getting ready to move into her own apartment near her sister and nephews.

"She was just so excited to be closer and be able to go help us out with them and spend more time with them," said Hall.

But when the sisters said their goodbyes that Wednesday night, Hall said something was different. "… when I hugged her I just got this - just the emptiest feelin'. And it was really strange."

The sisters didn't talk at all the next day, and Hall figured Theresa was just busy cleaning her new place. But by Friday morning, March 23, that empty feeling in her gut was back.

"I just woke up and felt like I had this black cloud over me… and I’m not usually like that," Hall explained. "I thought, 'I’m gonna talk to Theresa. She always made me feel better.'"

Theresa didn’t answer her phone. Hall went to work, still hoping she'd hear from her sister at any moment.

"Every time the phone would ring I'd check the ID to see if it was her," she said. "I thought, 'She'll be callin' anytime since I've left her a message.' Cause it was odd that she didn’t call me right back."

Meanwhile, Theresa’s friend and co-worker, Rhonda Knox, was also getting worried after a strange early-morning call on Thursday, March 22.

"At 6:00 in the morning my phone rings and it's from Theresa. And I answer it and there's just a few seconds there and then hang up," Knox explained. She knew it was odd for Theresa to call and hang up.

"I thought, 'This isn’t Theresa,' you know, so I called back. It rang and then went into voice mail," she said. "I started callin' the house. I started getting worried."

To ease her mind, Knox called police officer and friend Shane Green and asked him as a favor to check out the home Theresa still shared with her soon to be ex-husband, police officer Sam Parker.

"So when Shane went to the house, did he call you? What did he say?" Smith asked.

"He was sayin,' 'OK, we've beat on the door.' And I told him, I said, 'Look in the garage. She parks in the garage every time.' And he shined in there and he told me, he said, 'Her car's not here.'"

It's around 6:30 a.m. and Theresa’s Toyota Forerunner was no where to be found; Sam Parker’s patrol car was in the garage and his pickup truck was parked outside the house in plain sight.

Strangely, Theresa’s SUV was back at the house Thursday afternoon, but no one had seen her and she wasn’t answering her cell phone.

Everyone was calling her, including husband Sam Parker.

More than 24 hours had come and gone with no word from Theresa. Her sister was frantic.

"There were just no ifs, ands or buts about it," hall said. "I knew something so horrible -and I was just scared to death."

Then, on Friday evening March 23, Hall got a call from brother-in-law Sam Parker. He was on patrol working the night shift.

"I could immediately tell something with him wasn't right. Cause he was talkin' really fast and he kept clearing his throat and that was just out of character for him," Hall said. "And I was like, 'Well, we need to do something. We need to file a missing person’s report. You know, this is not Theresa.'"

Hall said Parker told her he'd gone fishing with a buddy that Thursday morning and that when he left the house, Theresa's SUV was in the garage. But if Hall was panicked, Sam Parker seemed anything but.

"He said, 'Well, I’m at work right now, but when I get off of work in the mornin' I’ll see what I can do,'" she said.

On Saturday morning, March 24, 2007, Theresa's family calls the police.

"Our detective was assigned the missing person case," Walker County Sheriff Steve Wilson said. "He told me, he said, 'Sheriff… something’s just not right here.'"

Sheriff Wilson knew this case was just too personal for him to investigate. He not only knew Theresa from 911, he'd also gone to the police academy with Sam Parker. So he called in the GBI, the Georgia Bureau of Investigation.

Special Agent James Harris headed straight for Theresa's new apartment, looking for any clues.

"We found a few odds and ends, some clothes, some shoes, her 911 uniform," he said. "We found where Lowes had stopped in to deliver a washer and a dryer that she had previously purchased. And she wasn't there, so they left one of the flyers on the doorknob."

With no signs of Theresa, neighbors and friends joined together, holding prayer vigils and putting up missing posters.

Agent James Harris was eager to talk with Sam Parker. And on Sunday March 25, four days after Theresa went missing, Sam Parker, the police officer, wasn’t the one asking the questions.

"I knew that we had to lock him in on a timeline," Harris explained. "And one of the things that jumped out at me immediately was that he said he was in his truck the whole night."

Three people had already told Agent Harris a different story; they saw Sam Parker's truck parked at Sam and Theresa's house early that Thursday morning.

"And Sam is telling you that he was driving around in his truck?" asked Smith.

"That's correct. So then, that's when red flags started going up and Sam became a suspect in my eyes," Harris said. "I couldn’t understand why he would lie about somethin’ that small… at least I thought it was small at the time."

Sam Parker believed Theresa had gone off on her own because they were divorcing. He couldn’t understand why investigators were looking at him.

Law enforcement was facing a real mystery: What happened? And why couldn’t anyone find the police officer's wife?
Kenneth Parker looked up to his big brother, Sam, and followed in his footsteps.

"We were the Norman Rockwell vision of brothers growin’ up next to a river. We grew up, very close, very close," he told Tracy Smith. "He went in the Marine Corps, I went in the Marine Corps. He went in the police department, law enforcement; I went into law enforcement."

According to Kenneth, being a cop meant everything to Sam. "He was a cop 24 hours a day."

Kenneth said his proud police officer brother was quickly smitten with a young 911 operator.

"He started talkin' about this new dispatcher… she was very attractive and he started talking about how he would like to try to take her out," he explained. "One thing led to another and he started dating her and it took off from there."

"You’d instantly fall in love with her just about when you get to talk to her, because she was just that way," Kenneth continued. "She just made you feel comfortable."

Her nickname was "Mother Theresa," and according to younger sister Christina Hall, she was the glue that held their family together.

"She was the type of person, if you needed her, you called her [and] she was there."

Theresa’s first marriage had ended in divorce and Sam already had two ex-wives. Despite their past failed relationships, they seemed like a good match.

"When I first met him, I liked him. He had a good funny sense of humor and he seemed to be a gentleman to her," Hall told Smith. "I thought he probably is [the one for her]. You know, he's gonna be the one… she was just crazy about him."

Theresa and Sam Parker married on Sept. 11, 1993. They seemed happy at first, but after a few years, their relationship turned rocky.

"They were fighting one moment, in love with each other the next," said Kenneth. "It was a seesaw and evidently they liked it that way."

But it seemed Theresa finally had enough and decided to pull the plug after 13 years of marriage.

"She's a missing person and I don’t know where she is," said Sam Parker.

Part of the problem investigators have in searching for Theresa is the terrain. The woods across from the Parker's home go on for miles and miles in every direction. This is mountain country and it's thick with trees and brush all over the ground. It’s a perfect place to hide something and chances are no one will ever find it.

"There’s hundreds and hundreds of old wells in this area. And Mr. Parker grew up here," FBI Special Agent Marc Veazey said. "His childhood was spent hunting and fishing in these woods. His adulthood is spent fishing in the ponds all around this area. He knows this like the back of his hand."

Investigators discovered that Sam told people -perhaps jokingly-he could use that knowledge to do some pretty awful things.

"He told everybody in Walker County, but a couple, that he knew how to get rid of a body and no one [would] ever find it," GBI Special Agent James Harris said. "He'd talk about puttin' 'em in ponds and the turtles would eat 'em."

Law enforcement and volunteers searched fingertip to fingertip through the woods; they drained and searched ponds and combed through the local landfill.

Authorities even searched Parker’s home five times. They confiscated a collection of old guns and rifles, but investigators didn’t believe they were connected to Theresa’s disappearance.

"I told 'em, y'all … didn’t even search her closet, you didn’t look through her personal stuff. You went in and you looked for things and took things of mine and only looked at me," Sam told Smith.

"We provided [dogs] a scent of Mr. Parker’s scent off his clothes and also off his patrol car," Veazey said. "They ran as they alerted to his scent, all up this hill, and back down this way as indicating he had been here."

"They're drawing conclusions that she may have been harmed, and she may possibly be dead," Sam said. "Me personally, I’m not going to let that enter my mind until I have to, if in fact, it did, if something has happened."

Harris said there were other people they looked at, "but we went where the evidence led us. And it kept funneling us to Sam Parker."

"Mr. Parker is, in my opinion, very cold and calculating, very meticulous in his actions," Veazey said. "He was very meticulous in the way he was a police officer. His uniform was always perfect. His car was always perfect."

But investigators were finding Sam Parker's story was less than perfect.

"Mr. Parker advised us that the last time he saw or talked to Theresa was approximately 7:30 on Wednesday, March 21 when she was loading up her vehicle and taking things to her new apartment," said Veazey.

But according to the phone records, Sam had called Theresa several times in the early morning hours on the Thursday she disappeared.

"In fact, there were two phone calls and that Mr. Parker was trying to get in touch with her," Veazey said. "He denied making any additional telephone conversations."

"That's bizarre behavior for a seasoned police officer who would know you’d pull the phone records," said Smith.

"I don't know if he forgot about them, or if he was trying to cover that fact up, I’m not sure," Veazey said.

Then the crime-scene specialist examined Theresa's Toyota Forerunner.

Harris said, "He turned 'round to me and said, 'We’ve got blood back here.' I knew it was on then."

And there was more.

"The back of the Forerunner had been obviously vacuumed. You could see the vacuum marks in the back of it so… someone cleaned it," Veazey said.

"I knew we were lookin’ the right way. Meaning Sam Parker," said Harris.

The crime lab tests confirmed Theresa's blood and Sam's DNA were in the back of her SUV. Investigators now had what they needed to make an arrest.

"We placed him in handcuffs and the only thing he said was - he asked me if I'd turn off his coffee pot for him. So I did," said Veazey.

Nearly one year after 911 dispatcher Theresa Parker disappeared, her police officer husband, Sam Parker, was charged with his wife's murder.

When asked if he killed Theresa, Sam told Smith, "No." When she asked what he thought happened to her, he replied, "I do not know."

"Nobody knows that she was killed. There's no physical evidence, there's no forensic evidence, there's nothing to show that she was killed," said David Dunn, Sam Parker's defense attorney.

Dunn has a whole other theory to explain Theresa Parker's disappearance.
The week before 41-year-old Theresa Parker disappeared, she took a trip to the Smoky Mountains - three days in Gatlinburg, Tenn. Theresa made a reservation at her favorite cabin, the "Honey Bee Hide-a-Way."

"She called me her first morning there and was like, "I'm having coffee outside. It's just beautiful," her sister, Christina Hall recalled.

It was supposed to be a quick getaway before her move and the divorce.

"You know, she told me 'I wanna be by myself and think about things, clear my mind.' She'd been so stressed," Hall said.

When asked if her sister was alone, Hall said, "She was alone, yes."

Sam Parker, 51, knew his wife was going to Gatlinburg and had even given her money for shopping. But there was something about her trip that troubled him, so he decided to do a little investigating on his own.

"He was, you know, a husband just like any other husband, tryin' to find out who went off for a coupla days with his wife," said defense attorney David Dunn.

Sam Parker called the lodge and convinced the clerk to send him Theresa's registration.

"She registered for a room using the name Barker. Whether someone, you know, actually went with her or visited her there while she was there, we don't know that," said Dunn.

According to Prosecutor Leigh Patterson, Sam "was very angry about the Gatlinburg trip, because he was convinced that she had cheated on him."

Sam's suspicions about Theresa and another man grew when he found something else puzzling on her room reservation.

"She listed two adults. We know from the statement that Shane Green made that he was at least invited to accompany her. We know that much," Dunn said.

Remember, Shane Green was the police officer who discovered Theresa's SUV missing the morning the prosecution believes she was murdered.

"You don't think that this could've been just a work relationship?" Smith asked Kenneth Parker.

"No, I don’t - not between those two," he replied.

Patterson disagreed with the defense theory that there were two people staying at that lodge.

"No there were not. Our information is there was nobody there to see her and if the defense wants to say that Shane Green was there with her, the phone - the cell phone towers - show that his cell phone activity was not in Gatlinburg," she said.

Green said he was not in Gatlinburg and was never romantically involved with Theresa.

Patterson said she believes Sam's jealousy is unfounded.

"He was a very controlling, manipulative person and I think Theresa was tired of being controlled and manipulated," she said.

According to prosecutors, Theresa Parker did have one big secret.

The 911 dispatcher, who had helped so many people in crisis, was dealing with a very personal crisis of her own: an angry and abusive husband.

"I think she hid it very well. And I think she hid it from everybody," said Hall.

When asked if Sam had a drinking problem, his brother, Kenneth, said, "No, he could drink real well (laughs). Yes he could drink. He drank way too much."

Kenneth said Sam was "funny" when he drank, describing him as "a happy drunk."

Theresa's sister said there was nothing funny about her brother-in-law when he had too much alcohol.

"He became a violent, mean drunk," she said. "He would keep a water bottle in the refrigerator durin' family -you know- dinners or whatever. And he would sneak over there and drink out of this bottle. And it was straight vodka. I’d seen him in action, you know, so scary."

When asked about the allegations that he had issues with drinking, Sam said, "I think it’s just, you know something that got blown out of proportion."

"So you did drink, but it didn’t affect your job. Is that fair to say?" asked Smith.

"That's very fair to say, yes," he replied.

Hall said Sam's behavior could change from nice to nasty in an instant.

"They had went out to eat for dinner one night and, of course, he started out drinking…" she explained.

When her sister left the restaurant, Hall said Sam followed her.

"… and they got into the car and he started threatening her. …took his gun out, was shootin' his gun up in the air in the parking lot."

Theresa called 911. But when the police arrived, they didn’t arrest Parker. Instead, they took him to a hospital for psychiatric evaluation.

"After an incident like that, why didn't Theresa walk away?" Smith asked Hall.

"You know - she just didn't wanna give up," she said. "And, you know - and she - she loved him. She was in love with him."

It's a story Keila Beaird said she knows all too well because she lived it. She was Parker's second wife and was married to him for four years.

"One time, he was drinking a glass of water and he - threw the glass on the floor and it broke…" Beaird explained. "He actually took me by the hair and drug me through the living room into the bedroom and he drug my feet. I was barefooted and he drug my feet through that broken glass and they were bleeding and pulled out his handcuffs on the top of his belt and handcuffed me to the bedpost."

He eventually let her go because he had to go back to work. But Beaird said when Sam Parker abused her again a few months later, he gave her a warning.

"…he told me before he left, that I'd better not tell anybody or call anybody, because if I did he would kill me. He said, "You can believe me that I know how to do it without getting caught and they will never find your body.'"

Still, neither Keila Beaird nor Theresa Parker ever filed a police report about Sam Parker's alleged abuse. His brother, Kenneth, doubts it was ever that bad.

When Smith asked if Sam ever hit Theresa, Kenneth said, "Not that I know of."

"Do you think he was physically abusive to Theresa in any way?" continued Smith.

"No. Not physically," he replied. "Mentally, both ways because they liked to play mind games, honestly believe - and he'd always said that she knew exactly what button to push if she wanted to fight."

Kenneth Parker said his big brother is simply misunderstood and not a murderer. In fact, he's convinced his sister-in-law Theresa is still alive.

"I have a theory. I believe that she's either in Mexico or California," he said.

Sam Parker revealed his theory to Special Agent James Harris.

"His exact words to me were, 'She's in Mexico with a guy named Elvis,'" Harris said.

It turns out, Theresa had vacationed in Mexico with her nieces and on that trip they met a resort entertainer named Elvis. Investigators followed up on Parker's hunch and traveled to sunny Cancun.

"Is it possible that you missed Elvis and Theresa in Mexico?" asked Smith.
"No," he replied.

"Is it possible that she could still be walking around alive? That she just wanted to get away?" Smith asked prosecutor Leigh Patterson.

"No. It doesn't make sense and it's not a reasonable theory," she said. "Sam Parker murdered her and disposed of her body and obviously it doesn't bother him that her family still cries for her every day."

With no body, no crime scene and no murder weapon, prosecutor Leigh Patterson has an uphill battle.

"You wish that you had everything, but that's not how a case works," she said. "And we felt like even though we didn't have a lot of forensics that we had a lot of other stuff that was really good."

Defense attorney David Dunn said this case is unique in that there's no body.

"It's very rare in the history of the state of Georgia," he told Smith. "There's been about four of those over 200 years."

The prosecution admits they don’t know exactly how Theresa died, but they're convinced the circumstantial evidence against Parker proves he's a murderer.

"He had threatened people in the past and said, "If you don’t do such and such or if you keep botherin' me, I will kill you and bury you where nobody will ever find you," Patterson said.

"What we're going to see at trial is we're gonna see a trial by character assassination," Dunn said.

"Any time she would turn her back he would flip her off and cuss her behind her back," Theresa’s niece, Ashten Gilbert, testified.

"He told me that he would kill me and he knew how to do it without getting caught and they would never find my body," Keila Beaird, Sam Parker's second wife, told the court.

The prosecution laid out its theory: Theresa left her new apartment shortly after midnight, driving to the home she shared with Sam Parker. She didn't think he'd be there, but he was waiting for her. Sometime between 12:30 a.m. and 1:30 a.m. on March 22, 2007, he killed her.

"After he killed her he put her body in the back of the SUV and then he went to Christy Bellflowers' house," Patterson told Smith.

Incredibly, prosecutors said Sam Parker was heading out on a date.

Leigh Patterson: When the defendant got there, March the 22nd, um did he have anything with him to drink?
Christy Bellflower: Yes.
Leigh Patterson: What did he have with him?
Christy Bellflower: Vodka.
Leigh Patterson: All right, well tell me what kind of container did he have it in?
Christy Bellflower: A water bottle.

"OK, so an hour to kill her. And then you say he left her body in her SUV at their home and went on a date?" asked Smith.

"That's right," Patterson said. "He had to have an alibi. And Christy Bellflower had expected him to come over there. How's he gonna explain, 'Well, I had a date and broke it."

After the date with Christy Bellflower early Thursday morning, prosecutors believe Sam Parker drove home. Then, sometime between 5:30 a.m. and 7:30 a.m., he drove off in Theresa's SUV with her dead body inside and dumped her.

"That's our theory of the case, because that fits with the timeline. He goes back because he has to dispose of her body. He can't leave her lyin' in the carport," explained Patterson.

Defense attorneys Doug Woodard and David Dunn said that scenario is ludicrous.

"Murder is a messy business," Dunn said. "It's virtually impossible to do this kind of thing and leave no traces, no indications, no evidence."

Of the blood found on the rear bumper of Theresa's car, Woodard said, "They had no idea how old that DNA was. They simply couldn't say whether it was a paper cut, an accidental injury or anything else."

But then prosecutors would call their most controversial witness: Police officer Ben Chaffin.

Prosecutor Natalee Staats: Were you and Sam friends?
Ben Chaffin: Yes, ma'am. I considered him a big brother.
Natalee Staats: Had you ever seen Sam and Theresa have a fight?
Ben Chaffin: Yes ma'am. I had.

Chaffin would tell the jury the most explosive evidence of the trial - a phone call from Sam Parker the night Theresa disappeared.

Ben Chaffin He said something that he’d really done it this time, or he’s really gonna do it this time.
Natalee Staats: What else did he say?
Ben Chaffin: He said that he had a place that was gonna be hard to find her, they never would find it.
Natalee Staats: And what else?
Ben Chaffin: And that - he had shot Theresa through the head.

Chaffin told the jury that after that confession, he hung up the phone. But a few minutes later, Sam Parker called him back.

Ben Chaffin: He said if I told anybody, he'd have to kill me too.

Devastating testimony? Maybe not. It turns out Chaffin had given investigators five different stories and he had been arrested for helping Sam hack into Theresa's computer. The prosecution gave him immunity in exchange for testifying.

Defense attorney David Dunn: In your very first conversation with the GBI about Theresa Parker being missing, you didn't tell them about this so-called murder confession you heard simply because - you forgot about it.
Ben Chaffin: I forgot about it.

"If somebody calls you and says, 'I killed my wife,' that's something you’d remember. How could you forget that?" Smith asked.

"And I agree with you. That was my initial reaction when I started reading his statements," Patterson said. "But when we talked to him, it became very clear to us that he was very, very close to Sam Parker. The person that he looked at as a father, as a brother, had done somethin' so terrible he couldn't wrap his mind around it."

"Is Ben Chaffin a good witness? A believable witness?" Smith asked Dunn.

He replied, "Oh, he's probably the most unbelievable witness I've seen in 26 years of practicing law.

"The people that's been in my life for 25 to30 years, they recall things one way and I recall them a little bit differently," Sam Parker told Smith during his trial.
"Have you been looking at the jury at all?" Smith asked.

"Yeah," Sam replied.

"Wondering?"

"I'm not wondering. I’m going to accept what they say. That’s what I’m gonna do."

Sam Parker may have the jury on his side.

"How many of you thought Ben Chaffin was believable?" Smith asked jurors a month after the trial ended.

"None of us even the slight bit thought he was credible at all," a female juror said. "We all felt like he was lying."

Not only did they dismiss Chaffin’s testimony, they had problems with other evidence, too.

"How strong was that blood evidence?" Smith asked the group.

"To me the blood was another circumstantial thing. It wasn't hard evidence for me," said another female juror.

"Most of the evidence was all circumstantial," said a male juror. "It was more so for us we were putting together a jigsaw puzzle…"

The jury would have to piece it all together, but it was beginning to look like the prosecution's murder case against Sam Parker wasn't adding up.
How Theresa Parker may have died has always been a mystery, but the prosecution believes photos showing bruises on Sam Parker's right arm are a significant clue to what happened.

"What we felt was, that Mr. Parker, who is known to abuse choke holds in the past, had used this maneuver on Theresa and that she had fought back by putting her hands up. And that’s what left the bruises on the inside of his arm," explained FBI Special Agent Marc Veazey.

"I think she fought for her life at the end. And those bruises are evidence of that," said Prosecutor Leigh Patterson.

"Would you argue they didn't come from a struggle with Theresa?" Smith asked Defense Attorney David Dunn.

"Oh no. They're inconsistent with that, certainly," he said. "I didn’t see them as a significant factor."

Patterson gave the courtroom a dramatic demonstration of the rear naked choke hold - the move she believes Sam used to kill his wife, Theresa.

"What did you think when the prosecutor brought up the choke hold and actually asked to be put in a choke hold?" Smith asked.

"I think it was absolute fabrication," Dunn replied.

There's one more piece of explosive evidence the jury would see before they deliberate: a poster of a badly bruised woman with a crude title discovered in Parker’s police locker.

"Shoulda thrown it in the garbage. Probably shoulda done that, but instead just threw it in the locker and that’s where it sat until it was pulled out," Dunn said of the poster.

"So we shouldn’t read into it that he had some issue with women?" asked Smith.

"No. It means nothing," said Dunn.

But it meant something to Prosecutor Leigh Patterson.

"This was the guy who thought this was funny," Patterson told jurors, referencing the poster. "Ladies and Gentlemen, Theresa Parker almost made it out. She almost made it to her new life. Find him accountable. Find him guilty. Thank you."

Defense attorney David Dunn pleaded with the jury to be mindful of reasonable doubt.

"Listen to the charge, especially the charge on circumstantial evidence. Follow the law. Find Sam Parker not guilty."

The jurors said the task of deciding Sam Parker's fate was particularly daunting because they had an overwhelming amount of circumstantial evidence, but not much else.

"In the beginning, it was very split: two and ten. Two were guilty, and ten, ten were undecided," said a female juror.

A male juror said their deliberations "got quite heated at times."

When asked if they watched Sam Parker during the trial, a female juror said, "I tried to get eye contact with him as much as I possibly could. I just needed to. Just because of the feeling of this could be my uncle. This could be my brother. You know, I had to do that."

After three days of deliberation, the jurors seemed hopelessly deadlocked.

"There wasn't that smoking gun," the male juror said. "We did have to make a decision on someone else’s life."

"I was very worried about sending an innocent man to jail or releasing a guilty man to do the same thing again," said a different female juror.

The judge urged the jury to give it one more try. This time, they would take an even closer look at the cell phone evidence.

"It threw up that red flag of 'Hey, here I am.' And looking at the cell phone records, he was not where he was telling us he was," the male juror said.

On Sept. 3, 2009, two-and-a-half years after Theresa Parker disappeared; her family would finally have a verdict:

In Superior Court of Walker County, state of Georgia, state of Georgia versus Samuel L. Parker, we the jury, after due deliberation, find the defendant, count one: guilty.

Guilty of first-degree murder, Parker shows no emotion. The judge handed down the ex-cop’s sentence on the spot: life in prison. Theresa’s family left the courthouse in tears.

The verdict is a victory for the prosecution and a defeat for the defense.

"This fight has not ended. It’s barely just begun," said Dunn.

"Does Sam still have a little bit of power?" Smith asked Patterson.

"Sure, he's still got some control because he hasn't told us where she is. It's still about manipulation and control. Still," she replied.

"In your gut do you think that you’ll ever find her?"

"I hope so. We’re gonna keep tryin'."

Sam Parker, the former police officer, who is now a convicted murderer, was still willing to talk to "48 Hours."

"I never caused her any, you know, bad times or you know, never once ever hurt her," he told Smith.

"Did you kill Theresa Parker?"

"No," he replied.

"Her family thinks that you did. And thinks that you could ease their agony by saying where she is. Can you help them at all?"

"No, I can't."

Christina Hall hangs on to memories of her older sister - grateful for the guilty verdict, but painfully aware that the man destined to spend the rest of his life in prison may be the only one who holds the key to finding Theresa.

"You want to find her, bring her home, lay her to rest. That's what she deserves, you know. She’s not a piece of trash," she said. "And that’s how I feel he treated her. Wherever she is out there, she doesn't deserve to be there."

According to the U.S. Dept. of Justice:


•More than three women a day are murdered by their husbands or boyfriends.

•Only one in four incidents of domestic violence against women is reported to police.

The National Domestic Violence Hotline has 24-hour access in all 50 states: 1-800-799-SAFE (7233)
http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2010/01/30/...ain;contentBody
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http://www.amw.com/fugitives/case.cfm?id=44242

Theresa Parker Report a Tip
Sex: Female Race: White Current Age: 44 Height: 5'07" Weight: 125 lbs. Hair (Color, Description, Facial Hair): Brown
Eyes: Brown

Theresa Parker Report a Tip

9-1-1 Dispatcher Disappears


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Police say Harbin Chaffin was arrested for making false statements.

Theresa Parker is not the type of person who misses work.

When she didn't show up for her shift as a 9-1-1 dispatcher on Sunday, March 25, her friends and family knew something was wrong.

Now the police officers who normally rely on Theresa's help as a veteran dispatcher are the ones trying to help her.

Police say Theresa's family worried when they didn't hear from her for several days because she normally keeps in touch with her family regualrly.

She was last seen leaving her sister's home on Wednesday, March 21, 2007.

Investigators say Theresa and her husband, Samuel Parker, a LaFayette Police Officer, were in the process of separating.

Around the time she disappeared, Samuel was staying with relatives while Theresa was staying in the home they had shared together.

Police found her car at the home, but no sign of Theresa and there were no obvious signs of foul play at the home.

Cops say Samuel Parker has been cooperative and isn't considered a suspect, although they have not ruled out any suspects as well.

A ground search conducted on March 27 and an aerial search on March 28 turned up nothing.

Investigators have little to go on, but say it is extremely unlike Theresa to just disappear without telling anyone and they fear the worst.



Arrest Made In Case Of Missing Dispatcher


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Police say Parker is known as a reliable veteran dispatcher.

A police officer who works with the estranged husband of a missing Walker County 911 dispatcher has been charged with making false statements in the investigation of the missing woman.

LaFayette police officer Harbin Chaffin was arrested April 2 for making false statements.

Chaffin works as a supervisor on the same shift as Sgt. Sam Parker, estranged husband of dispatcher, Theresa Parker, who has been missing since March 21.

Investigators declined to say what the false statements pertained to, but the investigation has included dozens of interviews.

Walker County Sheriff Steve Wilson, said Chaffin's arrest was not a resolution in the case, but it was progress.

"And, any progress is significant," he said.

Meanwhile, crews continue to drain a large pond on property located near the home where the Parkers had lived before their separation.

Police divers have been searcing the pond, but investigators decided to drain it to inspect it more carefully. It was said to be deep and have brush and obstructions that made it difficult for divers.

Sam Parker, a veteran LaFayette Police Department sergeant, has been on leave from his job since his wife was reported missing.

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Body of missing NW Ga dispatcher recovered

Associated Press - September 22, 2010 4:14 PM ET

LaFAYETTE, Ga. (AP) - A northwest Georgia sheriff says the remains of missing Walker County 911 dispatcher Theresa Parker have been found.

Parker disappeared in 2007 and a jury last year convicted her husband, former LaFayette, Ga., police officer Sam Parker, in her murder. He is serving a life prison sentence.

Chattooga County Sheriff John Everett told the Chattanooga Times Free Press the remains were found Monday about 100 feet from the Chattooga River in the Holland community near the state border with Alabama.

Everett said Walker County Sheriff Steve Wilson told him the remains have been identified as Parker.

Wilson called a late afternoon news conference in LaFayette.

Teresa Parker was last seen leaving her sister's home on the night of March 21, 2007.

http://www.wrcbtv.com/Global/story.asp?S=13200054
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Remains of Missing 911 Operator FoundUpdated: 7 hours 53 minutes ago
.Print Text Size Print this page|EmailShare on FacebookShare on TwitterShare on DiggShare on LifestreamHugh Collins
Contributor

AOL News (Sept. 23) -- Authorities in Georgia have found the remains of Theresa Parker, a 911 operator missing since 2007.

The remains were found in a remote wooded area in the northwest corner of the state near the Alabama border. Police searched the area after a farmer found a jawbone there Monday, CNN said.



GBI / Walker Co. Sheriff's Office / AP
A farmer found the jawbone of Theresa Parker, who had been missing since 2007, in a remote area of northwestern Georgia on Monday, authorities said.Dental records identified the remains as belonging to Parker.

Sam Parker, Theresa's husband and a former police officer, was convicted of her murder last year, even though no body had been found. Witnesses said that he had talked about killing his wife and knowing about a remote place where he could hide a corpse, according to The Chattanooga Free Press.

Theresa Parker, who was 41, worked as an emergency dispatcher in Walker County. She was last seen leaving her sister's house on March 21, 2007. She had recently moved out of the house she shared with her husband, and was planning to retrieve some belongings from there that night, The Chattanoogan said.

"It's been a long three and a half years," Walker County Sheriff Steve Wilson said, according to CNN, adding that the woman's family is ''glad to finally be able to bring her home."

Hundreds of people turned out across four Georgia counties to hunt for Theresa Parker following her disappearance in a case that made headlines across the country. "We never let up looking for her," Wilson said.


Sponsored LinksSam Parker's trial involved colorful and sometimes gruesome testimony against him. One witness said that he had talked about how he shot his wife in the head. Others said that Parker told them he believed his wife might be in Mexico with a man named Elvis, The Chattanooga Free Press reported.

"[Parker] called [his badge] his get-out-of-jail-free card" Arica Patterson, Theresa's niece, testified.

The area where the remains were found is about 14 miles from where Sam Parker grew up. Most of the land is used for either farming or hunting, local TV station News Channel 9 reported.

"There's nothing but woods, no houses, there's no power on the road as far as I know," James Callahan, who lives nearby, told the station. "It's very hidden."

So far, police have not established a cause of death, and there was no indication that the body had ever been buried.
http://www.aolnews.com/crime/article/remai...3_lnk2%7C172693

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