Nevada County Picayune and Gurdon Times Newspaper Archive

Culpepper sets November 14 trial date for quarted in 2001 carnival murder case

Trial dates have been set for the four people arrested in connection with the Sept. 11, 2001, murder of Harold Reed.

Reed, 62, was an employee with the carnival at the Nevada County Fair at the time of his death.

Eighth Judicial District-North Circuit Judge Duncan Culpepper was on the bench for the quartet's first appearance, Wednesday, Oct. 9.

Dana Knox was the first to appear before Culpepper. She has been charged with hindering apprehension of the three main suspects.

Hindering is a class B felony, punishable by 5-20 years in prison and a fine not to exceed $15,000.

At the time, none of the four had attorney's present, and the only pleas entered were done by the court for the trio charged with Reed's murder. All three were not guilty pleas.

Knox told the court she couldn't afford an attorney, and will have one appointed for her. She also said she has three children, ages 15, 13 and three, all living in public housing projects.

Culpepper set her bond at $10,000 or 10 percent, while giving her a pre-trial hearing for Nov. 4, and a trial date of Nov. 12.

Rodney Walker and Recordo Walker, 20-year-old brothers, were charged with capital murder.

Culpepper said this is a class Y felony punishable by death or life in prison without the possibility of parole.

The two were also charged with robbery, a class B felony.

The court entered pleas of not guilty for the pair as neither had or could afford an attorney.

They were told their lawyers may be local attorneys or possibly someone from out of town because of the number of defendants in the case.

The fourth suspect was Edwin Williams, 18. He was also charged with murder and robbery and will be represented by a public defender.

The Walkers and Williams were denied bond because of the nature of the charges. All three will remain in jail until their trials.

Culpepper set their pre-trial hearing for Nov. 4, with their trials to begin Nov. 12.

He informed all three they face the death penalty in this case.

According to Prescott Police reports, the Reed case began as a missing person situation.

Reed, from Alexandria, Minn., was reported missing by Wayne Kohler, manager of the carnival.

Kohler notified the Prescott Police Department of Reed's disappearance on Sept. 13, 2001, telling officers Reed had last been seen the night of Sept. 11, 2001, with two young black males.

According to the report, a witness said he saw Reed leave with the two, but didn't know their names.

Kohler told authorities Reed was "mentally challenged" and had several medications he needed to take.

Officers contacted one of Reed's sisters, who said he had no history of drug use, but liked to drink and had been known to catch rides with big trucks.

The sister said Reed was a "trusting person," "liked to talk," and "had the mind of a second grader."

Reed's body was found on Sept. 14, 2002, around 7:15 p.m. after police received a call on West Pine North about a dead person.

Officers arrived at the scene and talked to the people who had found Reed.

The officers were told the witnesses had been walking to the fairgrounds when they saw a tennis shoe and ball cap lying next to the street, and a large unknown object they thought may be a dead body about 20-30 yards in the wooded area.

They also noticed a strong odor in the air, which was described as being like that of a dead animal.

Officers went to the location to determine what was causing the odor and found Reed's body.

The area was secured as a crime scene, while officers checked the body.

According to reports, the body had apparently been dragged from the street to where it was found.

Reed's body was later identified and his family notified of his death.