Direct Examination of Erin Sutton, wife of Jeff Sutton, by Jacqie Spradling

Q. I want to ask you about the evening of July 6th, 2002. What did you do, please?

A. My husband and I and at least six of our friends went to a comedy club and we spent the evening there with friends and went out afterwards.

Q. Originally was Mike and Karen invited?

A. We did invite my mom and Mike to go with us to do that.

Q. What did you learn whether they were going to be able to go or not?

A. My mom had called and left a message saying that Hailey and Dustin both had plans for that evening and so they decided that they were going to stay home and be together just the two of them. So they declined our offer.

Q. So did you then share your tickets with somebody else rather than Mike and Karen?

A. Yes.

Q. To a comedy club, you told us?

A. Yes.

Q. Did that have a dinner theater or just the show?

A. Just a show.

Q. Who all went to that?

A. Some of our friends. Wade and Michelle Larr (sp).

Q. When you say our friends, who is our?

A. My husband and mine.

Q. Ma’am, your husband’s name, please.

A. Jeff Sutton.

Q. So you and your husband Jeff and some friends went to a comedy club the evening of July 6, 2002?

A. Correct.

Q. When you were done, what did you and your husband do?

A. We went and had some drinks afterwards and then we went home.

Q. After you and your husband got home, the evening of July 6, 2002, did either of you leave until the next morning July 7th, 2002?

A. No.

Q. When you woke up, what was the plan for the day?

A. We had a barbecue housewarming party at a friend’s house and we were just getting food ready and preparing to go do that in the afternoon.

Q. Did you receive a call on July 7th, 2002, about your mom being killed?

A. When we were on our way to the housewarming party is when I received a call.

Q. Where were you?

A. In a car driving.

Q. Who else was in the car with you?

A. My husband.

Q. Anyone else?

A. No.

Q. Who was it that called you?

A. My father.

Q. DeWitt Harkness?

A. Yes.

Reported by: April C. Shepard, RPR, CCR, CSR

Testimony of Sgt. Richard Volle under questioning from Dana Chandler’s attorney, Mark Bennett

Q. Who else did you look at as a possible suspect?

A. Not me specifically, but Jeff Sutton.

Q. And why did you look at Jeff Sutton?

A. Again, it’s just somebody that’s close to the victims.

Q. Did you ever determine or attempt to determine whether or not Jeff Sutton had received a .9 millimeter weapon from the sheriff in Wabaunsee County at some time shortly before this all happened?

A. No, I did not.

Q. Did you have that information that he had received a .9 millimeter automatic weapon sometime shortly prior to this?

A. I don’t know what the time frame was. Yeah, I did become aware that he had some questions surrounding something in Wabaunsee County, but it was not looked at.

Q. You say it was not looked at?

A. It was not looked at.

Q. Okay. But it was a .9 millimeter weapon in the hands of one of the people that you were considering as a possible suspect, right?

A. He was a possible suspect up to the point he was eliminated as a suspect. Once he was eliminated, we didn’t go no further into that.

Q. You didn’t eliminate him on the basis of him being in possession or not in possession of a .9 millimeter; did you?

A. No. We eliminate people on the basis of the stories that they tell us, that are able to be confirmed and backed up by other people that establish where the person was at the time of the crime.

Q. Where was Jeff Sutton at the time of the crime?

A. He was with his wife Erin Sutton at home.

Q. And who says that?

A. Erin Sutton and Jeff Sutton.

Q. And Jeff Sutton. Anybody else?

A. Not to my knowledge. I know they were out earlier in the evening with friends. Not as far as the time of the actual murders.

Q. So you accepted a potential suspect’s statement, his statement of he and his wife that he was not somewhere else?

A. I accepted the word of the victim’s daughter as saying that her husband, the victim’s son-in-law, did not slip out of bed and go kill him — kill her.

Q. You didn’t even try to match to see if the hairs match or fingerprints match; did you?

A. No.

Reported by: April C. Shepard, RPR, CCR, CSR