US News
Texas man sentenced to 20 years in 1986 'Killing Fields' cold case
A jury handed James Dolphs Elmore Jr. the maximum sentence for manslaughter in the death of 16-year-old Laura Miller.
The short version
- A Galveston County jury sentenced 61-year-old James Dolphs Elmore Jr. to 20 years in prison for manslaughter.
- Elmore was convicted for preparing a fatal dose of cocaine administered to 16-year-old Laura Miller in 1986.
- The primary suspect, Clyde Hedrick, died by suicide earlier this year before prosecutors could present indictments against him to a grand jury.
- The majority of the more than 30 unsolved deaths linked to the 'Texas Killing Fields' area remain open investigations.
Key facts
- James Dolphs Elmore Jr. received the maximum 20-year prison sentence following a manslaughter conviction in Galveston County.[ABC News · Associated Press]
- Prosecutors alleged Elmore prepared a vial of cocaine that Clyde Hedrick administered to 16-year-old Laura Miller before her death in 1986.[ABC News · Associated Press]
- Authorities planned to seek indictments against 72-year-old Clyde Hedrick for the deaths of four women, but he died by suicide prior to the grand jury presentation.[ABC News · Associated Press]
- Miller's body was one of four discovered between 1984 and 1991 in a rural field in League City, part of a broader corridor along Interstate 45 where more than 30 bodies have been found since the 1970s.[ABC News · Associated Press]
- Following his daughter's death, Tim Miller founded Texas EquuSearch, a search-and-recovery nonprofit dedicated to locating missing people.[Associated Press]
What remains uncertain
- Investigators believe multiple unidentified individuals may be responsible for the broader collection of unsolved deaths along the Interstate 45 corridor.[ABC News · Associated Press]