The Emily Hacker murder case is coming to a sudden end.
On Thursday morning, Candice Nicole Jones, 32, of Rockdale, pleaded guilty and 32-year-old Edward Brannon Barry of Caldwell entered an “open” plea before District Judge John Youngblood.
Each was charged with first degree murder in the beating death of Emily Hacker, 34, on Jan. 19, 2017.
They will be sentenced in July.
Prosecutor Bill Torrey told The Reporter the other defendants in Hacker’s murder case have agreed to testify against Jones and Barry and will be sentenced after them.
Ashley Yvonne Wesson-Zawadzke and John Stewart, then 23 and 36 respectively, both of Burleson County, were also charged in Hacker’s death.
BEATING—According to the arrest affidavit filed by Rockdale police, Jones initiated the beating by taking Hacker into a back room at 538 Coulter.
It states after a short time, Jones yelled for assistance. The three co-defendants came to Jones’ assistance.
“Jones was sitting on the victim’s chest and was holding victim’s head by a handful of hair and hitting victim with anything Jones could grab in her other hand. A ratchet wrench was described as being used to inflict the fatal blow as well as other hand tools,” the document states.
The affidavit also states Barry struck the victim in the face and head with his elbows and Wesson-Zawadzke furnished a roll of duct tape.
The duct tape was wrapped around the victim’s mouth and head and her wrists were bound by some type of cord.
It continues, stating the victim was placed into a large white bag with a zipper, by Barry and Stewart. Wesson-Zawadzke helped Jones remove Jones’ bloody clothes and clean her up, as Jones’s hands were hurt and swollen.
Police concluded Jones was upset at Hacker for “snitching” to authorities that Jones had a pistol and stole drugs.
FIRST DEGREE—The four were originally charged, and indicted for, capital murder which can carry the death penalty.
Torrey said the charge was reduced to first-degree murder and the state will ask for a 50-year sentence.
He said the move was made with full knowledge and approval of the Hacker family. “This spares the ordeal of trial, identifying photographs of a loved one’s burned body and years of appellate process,” Torrey said.
What about parole? “Without knowing what the judge will do, of course, I believe that they will never see the light of day,” Torrey said.
“All murder sentences, except life without parole, are calculated at a maximum of 60 years,” he said. “A cap of 50 years (on the sentence) means that after a presentence report and sentencing hearing a defendant would have to serve 25 years, day-for-day, on a murder plea.”
At that point Torrey said the prisoner would become eligible “but not entitled” for parole.
Such parole would have to be granted through the Texas Board of Pardons and Paroles. “That’s probably the most conservative administrative body in the world,” he said.
FIFTH DEFENDANT—
Hacker’s burned body was found Jan. 28, 2017, in a rural area of Burleson County in the vicinity of Lyons.
On Feb. 9 of that year, Kevin Cormier, then 31, of Caldwell, was charged with “tampering/fabricating physical evidence (human corpse) with intent to impair.”
It was alleged Cormier participated in moving and burying Hacker’s body.
Cormier was never charged in connection with the murder itself.
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