Evans Trial

Evans appears in court

2008-01-14T15:32:00.000-05:00

Photo by Bruce Matlock

Expert will test guns

2007-07-18T11:47:00.000-04:00

The woman accused of gunning down two Iredell County couples in 2005 appeared in court Tuesday as her attorney presented a motion concerning two firearms.

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Cracking the case

2006-10-01T13:01:00.000-04:00

By Donna Swicegood

Iredell County Sheriff Phil Redmond received two pieces of news he'd been waiting to hear within a matter of minutes on July 25.

One was that his wife Prissy's cancer surgery was a success and the other was that forensic evidence had linked a suspect to two sets of unsolved double homicides.

Thirty minutes later, sheriff's deputies arrested Barbara Evans, 65, in connection with the murders of James and Delet Powell and and Don and Sue Barker.

For months, the two murder cases had been practically all-consuming for Redmond, who knew both couples personally, and for his detectives, who spent countless hours pouring over bank records, talking with hundreds of people who knew the couples and fielding thousands of phone calls about the cases.

Few leads surface

Little did the sheriff or his detectives realize how this case would dominate their lives when the first call came in on Jan. 21, 2005.

Reponda Smith stopped by her parents home in Union Grove around 9:30 a.m. She couldn't get inside. When she looked in through a window she spotted blood and called 911.

Deputies found her parents - the Powells - inside, both dead from gunshot wounds. Right away, detectives knew solving this case would be difficult, Redmond said.

James Powell, an avid car restorer and former convenience store operator, ahd a wide circle of friends and acquaintances that extended beyond the borders of North Carolina.

Twelve hours at the crime scene was just the start, said Lt. Roger McDaniels, one of several detectives who worked on the two cases.

In the day following the Powell murders, interviews were donducted and at least five people were given polygraph tests, McDaniels said.

That included family members, such as Reponda and her husband Kenny.

As days stretched into weeks, the investigation continued to grind on, Lt. Stanley Watkins said.

On a cold night a week after the murders, deputies stopped cars in front of the Powells' home, hoping someone noticed something unusual the Thursday before.

More of the Powells' acquaintances were interviewed. One of those acquaintances was a woman named Barbara Evans, whose late husband knew James Powell, according to the sheriff.

The State Bureau of Investigation sent agents to help.

"There were numerous leads. Folks were constantly calling in," Redmond said. "The detectives were checking out leads constantly."

But none of those clues gave detectives what they needed to make an arrest or even focus the investigation on one person.

An eerily similar scene

Detectives were still working round-the-clock on the Powell case when tragedy struck again - on Sept. 16, 2005.

The scene was eerily similar to the one nearly nine months earlier.

A call came in just around 7 a.m. that day.

George Mooe, an employee at Barker's Grocery, had gone to the home of Don and Sue Barker.

Like Reponda Smith a few months earlier, Mooe sensed something was wrong that morning. He couldn't see inside the house, and couldn't get either Don or Sue Barker to open the door.

After getting a relative, he came back to the house. By then it was daylight. He saw Don Barker laying inside the house. He called 911.

The scene was reminiscent of the one in Union Grove, with the same cast of detectives and crime scene investigators.

A canine officer, Travis Ward, took his bloodhound around the area but came up with nothing.

Contrary to popular rumor, the bloodhound did not lead Ward to Evans' house, which was less than two miles from the Barker home, Redmond said.

McDaniels said the bloodhound was used more to determine if the suspect may have dropped something leaving the scene.

"It was more of an article search," he said.

McDaniels and Watkins said they noted the similarities in the two cases right away, but did not have any solid evidence connecting the two.

The process that began in the Powell murders repeated itself.

Family members were also investigated, but eliminated, Redmond said.

He said family members in both cases were cooperative and understood the need to focus on them initially.

"In both of these cases, these families were very understanding of what it took to solve the case. They undserstood the procedures and why we had to do what we did," he said.

Both of the adult children in these cases - Reponda Smith and Allen Barker - endured gossip that they were somehow involved, Redmond said.

Like Powell, Barker had a wide circle of friends and acquaintances. His grocery store on Turnersburg Highway at Houpe Road had long been a popular gathering spot.

The Barkers were known throughout the ocmmunity for their generosity and involvement.

As detectives pursued the two cases as separate crimes, they submitted ballistics information to be processed.

Ballistics test points to single weapon

That ballistics evidence provided the link they had been waiting for, Redmond said.

About one month after the Barkers were killed, the lab confirmed the same weapon was used in all four deaths.

The SBI, which had been helping on the Powell case, sent more people to assist with what was suddenly a quadruple murder investigation. Watkins, who attended an FBI training school at Quantico, Va., used his contacts to engage the services of the Behavioral Analysis Unit to do a profile.

Scott Hartley of the N.C. Justice Academy lent his expertise on interviewing and examining statements, Watkins said.

Evidence points to Evans

Now detectives began looking for connections between the two couples, Watkins said.

During the next 10 months, anyone linked to both couples was looked at with extra scrutiny.

Again, Evans name popped up in the investigation, Redmond said. She was a frequent visitor to Barker's Grocery, and had even put money in a jar that was used to collect donations for the reward fund.

As the investigation continued, those linked to both cases were eliminated one by one.

Eventually, everything focused on Evans, Redmond said.

Authorities searched her home in the days before the arrest, and according to Redmond, found weapons possibly linked to the case.

Long investigation yields arrest

The phone call he got on July 25, while at the hospital awaiting news on his wife, confirmed a ballistics match.

The district attorney's office, which had worked with detectives on the case since its early stages, gave the go-ahead for arrest warrants.

Redmond said neither he nor his detectives can comment on the exact evidence found in the case as it is now in the hands of the district attorney's office.

The case is now winding its way through what promises to be a long period of pre-trial motions and hearings.

Mark Rabil, who was appointed to represent Evans through the Indigent Defense Fund, said the next step in the legal process is a Rule 24 hearing scheduled for Nov. 27.

At the Rule 24 hearing, the district attorney will present evidence to determine if the death penalty can be sought in this case.

Rebil said now he is waiting to get a look at the more than 5,000-page case file presented to the district attorney.

"We have some of it," he said Friday.

For now, Evans remains in the Women's Correctional Center in Raleigh, where she's being held without bond.

The trial is likely to be at least two years away.

Despite claims that the timing of the arrest was motivated by the upcoming eleciton, Redmond said, it came as soon as the evidence was presented to the district attorney's office.

"The sheriff's office does not issue warrants. We present the case to a judicial official (magitrate, judge or district attorney) and the state of North Carolina issues warrants," he said.

Redmond said he's proud of the work his detectives and deputies turned in on this case.

"They kept plugging and plugging," he said.

All the nights, weekends and canceled days off were worth it, Redmond said. That point was driven home, he said, on graduation night when the Barkers' great-niece, Meredith Haynes, spoke about Don and Sue during her salutatory address to her North Iredell High School classmates.

"Hearing her talk, seeing how she felt, seeing the loss, it made it all worthwhile," Redmond said.

Evans makes first court appearance

2006-09-06T12:56:00.000-04:00

By Mandy Zatynski

A Statesville woman facing four charges of first-degree murder made her first appearance in Iredell County Superior Court on Tuesday.

Barbara Evans, 65, is charged in connection with the Jan. 21, 2005, shooting deaths of James and Delet Powell and the Sept. 16, 2005, deaths of Don and Sue Barker.

Superior Court Judge Mark Klass scheduled a Rule 24 conference for Nov. 27. At the conference, the judge will decide if the prosecutors can seek the death penalty.

Evans did not speak during her brief appearance. She sat emotionless next to Mark Rabil, an assistant capital defender who is representing her, in a swivel chair that hid most of her small frame.

At the request of the Iredell County Sheriff's Office, Assistant District Attorney Mikko Red Arrow asked the judge to transfer Evans to a state prison in Raleigh.

Red Arrow said Evans regularly take a "lengthy list of medications," and officials are concerned that county resources will not be adequate.

He added that officials are also worried about "attraction from other inmates" although there is not a "safety concern yet."

Klass delayed the move for about three weeks, after Rabil requested that Evans stay in Iredell County while he prepares her case.

Also, Rabil requested copies of search warrants related to Evans' case, which are sealed until Dec. 8.

Rabil said he is still waiting to receive copies of the prosecution's evidence as well.

Red Arrow said he has run into problems copying the 5,000 to 6,000 pages of evidence and agreed to try to deliver it by Sept. 15.

Evidence delivered

2006-08-10T12:53:00.000-04:00

By Donna Swicegood

A dozen large notebooks, containing the case files from two double murder cases were handed over to the district attorney's office Wednesday afternoon.

The notebooks contain interviews, crime scene and lab reports, investigators' notes and photographs related to the murder of James and Delet Powell of Union Grove and Don and Sue Barker of Statesville.

Detective Sgts. Andy Poteat and Bill Hamby of the Iredell County Sheriff's Office said hte notebooks contained more than 5,300 pages of documents, representing more than 700 interviews in the two cases.

Sheriff Phil Redmond and Poteat delivered the handtruck of files to Jamie Sparks of the district attorney's office for use in the prosecution of Barbara Ann Evans, 65, of Statesville.

Evans was indicted earlier this week by an Iredell County grand jury on four counts of first-degree murder. She is being held in the Iredell County Jail.

Evans indicted in couples' deaths

2006-08-06T12:49:00.000-04:00

By Donna Swicegood

A woman charged with murdering two elderly couples last year was indicted by an Iredell County grand jury Monday.

The grand jury returned indictments on four counts of first-degree murder against Barbara Ann Evans, 65, of Jennings Road, on Monday afternoon.

Evans' court-appointed attorney, Mark Rabil, said he was not surprised by the indictments.

"Indictments are never a surprise. They're basically rubber stamps for the police investigations," he said.

The grand jury process consists of detectives and a prosecutor presenting a brief synopsis of the case to 18 citizens chosen to serve on the grand jury.

The grand jury then decides to issue a true bill of indictment or no true bill. A true bill means enough evidence was presented to allow the case to proceed to Superior Court.

Neither the defendant nor their attorney appears before the grand jury.

Rabil said the indictments do not change his client's assertion that she is innocent of the charges.

"This doesn't change anything," he said.

Barker reward donors will use funds in tribute

2006-07-30T12:31:00.000-04:00

By Donna Swicegood

During hte months after the deaths of Don and Sue Barker, many people tossed in loose bills, coins and checks to contribute to a reward fund aimed at helping find their killer.

With the announcement this week of an arrest and the likelihood that reward money would not be paid, those who organized the reward effort are looking for a way to use the money and pay tribute to the Barkers at the same time.

Money to be used for a reward was also offered in the case of James and Delet Powell, who were shot to death eight months before the Barkers.

The deaths of both couples were linked to a single weapon.

Barbara Ann Evans, 65, of 138 Jennings Road, was arrested Tuesday evening on four counts of first-degree murder.

Some $10,000 of the $15,000 offered in the Powells' case came from the Governor's Reward fund. That money will go back to the state, Sheriff Phil Redmond said.

In the case of the Barkers, more than $42,000 had been raised through donations to a jar at the store Don Barker ran on Turnersburg Highway and from gifts from individuals.

Robert Taylor, who has operated Barker's Grocery since Don Barker's death in September, said he and the Barkers' relatives are looking at donating the money to a charity.

Sheriff: Murder weapon found

2006-07-29T12:17:00.000-04:00

By Donna Swicegood

Iredell County Sheriff Phil Redmond said Friday that the weapon used to kill two couples last year was found in the home of the woman arrested earlier this week.

Barbara Ann Evans, 65, of 138 Jennings Road, has been charged with four counts of first-degree murder and is being held in the Iredell County Detention Center without bond.

She is charged with the September 2005 deaths of Don and Sue Barker and the January 2005 deaths of James and Delet Powell.

Redmond said Friday the weapon was found during a search of Evans' home on Monday. That search warrant remains sealed by the court, he said.

The case against Evans is expected to be presented to an Iredell County grand jury on Aug. 7 during a session of Iredell County Superior Court.

If the grand jury returns a true bill of indictment, Evans will be bound over for trial in Superior Court.

Winston-Salem attorney S. Mark Rabil has been appointed to represent Evans through the Office of Indigent Defense Services.

Rabil gained fame for representing Darryl Hunt, who served 18 years for the murder of Harmony native Deborah Brotherton Sykes in Winston-Salem before being freed after DNA linked the crime to another man.

Rabil represented Hunt for 20 years through three trials, appeals and other procedures.

The attorney said Friday that he has met with Evans, and she maintains that she is innocent of the charges.

"She's 65 years old with no history of violence. Her family and friends are shocked. It doesn't make any sense," he said.

He called the case one of the most unusual ones he's defended in his law practice, which dates back to 1980.

"I don't think I've ever had a murder case with a defendant of that age and a woman with absolutely no criminal record," he said. "It's very unusual."

He said Evans was shocked by the charges. "She's very distraught. She's anxious to get out of there (jail)," he said.

Rabil said he hasn't seen what evidence the state used to get the murder warrant. He said his client has a copy of the court order that seals a search warrant of her home.

A judge ordered that warrant to remain sealed until Dec. 8, he said.

Rabil said he hasn't made any decisions about how he plans to defend Evans or the possibility of moving the trial out of Iredell County due to pre-trial publicity.

"That's a decision we'll make closer to the trial," he said.

Garry Frank, the district attorney for Iredell County, said earlier this week that he expects Evans could receive a fair trial in Iredell County.

"I know of no reason why not," he said. "But it's something we'll have to deal with as the case develops."

Frank also said he hasn't made a decision yet about seeking the death penalty, although he said the case qualifies for capital punishment.

Rabil said he anticipates that the trial won't take place for at least a year, possibly two.

DA: Death penalty may be pursued

2006-07-28T11:52:00.000-04:00

Clad in a black-and-white striped prison uniform, the woman accused of two double slayings made her first appearance in court Wednesday afternoon.

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Who is Barbara Ann Evans?

2006-07-28T11:50:00.000-04:00

Months after Don and Sue Barker had been killed in their Whites Farm home, Barbara Ann Evans would show up at the grocery that still carries their name. She would buy cigarettes, gasoline and a newspaper, according to a man who works at the store.

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Report: Evans transferred land

2006-07-27T14:12:00.000-04:00

By Jonathan Austin

Long after detectives first focused on Barbara Ann Evans in the Powell-Barker case, county records show she gained sole ownership of her home and property on Jennings Road and then deeded it to a daughter.

Evans has been a focus in the investigation since nearly the beginning, Iredell Sheriff Phil Redmond said Tuesday, and in the months leading up to her arrest, at least one person who knew her said she felt detectives were harrassing her.

She transferred ownership of the real estate to Ronda Baker Jones, records show.

The property, several lots located between Jennings Road and Ebenezer School, had belonged to Willie Sharpe Evans when he married Barbara Ann Baker in 2000.

On Feb. 4, 2002, records show he signed a warranty deed giving her joint ownership, and the next day they both signed a "gift deed" assigning the property to his daughter, who agreed to provide "all necessary care for her father" if he survived his spouse.

Later that year he died.

The deed specified that "Barbara Baker Evans shall be allowed to reside in the subject property" for the remainder of her life.

Late last year, Evans gained sole ownership of the property when her late husband's daughter and her husband signed the property over to her.

No excise tax was paid for the transfer.

Then, in early March, Evans deeded the property to her daughter Ronda, who was listed as living in Nebo.

No excise tax was paid on that transaction.

Tax records showed Wednesday that property taxes of $310.89 were not paid on the property in 2004, and the same amount is due for the year 2005.

With penalties and interest, the tax due now totals $831.60.

On Wednesday, an official with the Iredell County Tax Office said he was preparing a bill to send the new owner for the past due taxes.

Evans charged with four counts of murder

2006-07-26T13:45:00.000-04:00

By Donna Swicegood

After more than 700 interviews and hundreds of hours of investigation, Iredlel County Sheriff Phil Redmond announced Tuesday that an arrest had been made in the two double homicide cases from 2005.

Barbara Ann Evans, 65, of 138 Jennings Road, has been charged with four counts of murer.

The charges stem from the Jan. 21, 2005, shooting deaths of James and Delet Powell and the Sept. 16, 2005, deaths of Don and Sue Barker.

Both couples were killed in their homes - the Powells in Union Grove and the Barkers on White's Farm Road.

Reponda Smith, the daughter and only child of the Powells, has been waiting more than a year for this news.

"It really came out of nowhere," she said. "Here I was picking up my kids' toys and I get a call from the sheriff's office."

"I feel safer. I'm not afraid that somebody will come in and kill me and my kids."

Smith said she's also happy to see an arrest because she and her husband, Kenny, dealth with rumors that they were involved. The Barkers' son, Allen, also faced similar rumors.

"That really hurt," said Smith, who lived next door to her parents at the time of their deaths but has since moved away. "We felt betrayed."

Smith and Lowell Harmon, who is married to Sue Barker's sister, Shirley, said Evans was known to their slain relatives.

"Her husband was a good friend of my dad's, and I'm sure she's been at their house," Harmon said.

Harmon said Evans was one of the many customers who stopped into Barker's Grocery, the store owned by Don Barker, on U.S. Highway 21.

"She stopped up at the store al lthe time, and Don cashed her checks for her," he said.

Redmond said he couldn't elaborate on exactly what led to Evans' arrest, but did say forensic evidence played a major role. The state crime lab determined that the same gun was used in all the slayings.

"Forensices have been a big tool in this case," the sheriff said, adding that Evans had been a focus of the investigation since nearly the beginning.

Harmon said his family was told that Evans had been under surveillance for some time and was the only person detectives could place at both scenes.

Redmond said this has been one of the most intensive investigations in the history of the sheriff's office. Detective Sgts. Andy Poteat, Bill Hamby and Kim Isenhower, along with several other detectives and uniformed personnel, logged many hours on the case, said Capt. Jimmy Craven, head of the investigations division.

"They took time away from their families to work this case. We didn't take it lightly," he said. "I'm proud of the effort put into solving these cases."

Communities celebrate arrest

2006-07-26T13:27:00.000-04:00

By Jonathan Austin and Chyna Broadnax

When Union Grove neighbors heard Tuesday that an arrest had been made in connection with the gunshot slayings of two well-known couples, reactions were either subdued relief or explosing exultation.

"I just wanted to live long enough to know who was responsible for this tragedy and why," said Allen Styers, who lived next door to James and Delet Powell and thinks he heard a car drive away on the January night they were shot to death.

"In my heart, I have always felt like I heard the vehicle leave the house, and I reported that to the sheriff's office," he said.

Styers was stunned when he heard the news on Tuesday, rushing to read a news statement that had been released by the sheriff's office.

He said he also knew Dona nd Sue Barker, who were gunned down in the kitchen of their White's Farm Road home last September.

'A big relief'

Bill Hayes works at Barker's Grocery and considered the Barkers to be good friends.

He said the sheriff's office told him about the arrest on Tuesday afternoon.

"I lost my two best friends, and it's a big relief," he said.

hayes - who said he has long suspected that the killer was someone close to the family - said Evans came in the store just a few days ago.

"We always thought it was somebody" they knew, he said. "Otherwise they wouldn't have let them in the house."

Relatives confirmed Tuesday that they victimes knew the suspect.

Barker had owned the convenience store for 42 years. Friends say he was beloved throughout the community.

"It's something you think of every day," Hayes said. "Why would somebody kill a man who would give the shirt off his back?"

'Been on edge'

Harold and Marie Smith of Union Grove wre stunned with the news of the arrest, which they heard while eating dinner at the Sunshine Diner on N.C. 901, just a short distance from the Powells' home.

"We've all been on edge," Harold said.

His wife, who said she was a first cousin to Delet Powell, shook her head in agreement. "I'm relieved," she finally said.

The slayings, which rocked rural Iredell County like few crimes before, forced long-time residents to question how the killer of ofur retirement-aged people could live in their midst.

"We lock the doors now," Harold Smith said. "We didn't used to lock the doors."

What so many people said they couldn't understand is the fact that a 65-year-old woman had been arrested.

"She a little old to be gun-slinging," Harold Smith said.

At Barker's Grocery, Hayes felt the same: "It's hard to believe a woman could do this by herself."

'Blows her mind'

Don Barker's nephew, Frank Moore, said the Barkers had been cautious after he had been robbed and shot before. But "taking extra precaution apparently wasn't good enough," Moore said.

Robert Taylor said he worked with Don Barker for 30 years and said the day he heard of hte murders is one he will always play back in his mind.

"It was the longest day I had ever lived," he said. "It's been real tough."

Employees at Barker's Grocery now carry handguns for protection, and Taylor said he had been skeptical about the killings since Day 1.

"I suspected about 100 people, but I didn't want to get my hopes up. You wouldn't have thought (Evans) could do this," he said.

"It just blows my mind, and if she did do this I hope she rots in hell."

'It brings tears'

Mike Keller, who operates Union Grove Milling Co. with his mother, said James Powell "was just as good a friend as you could want. He would do anything for you."

Keller was also pleased that an arrest had been made.

"The community will be a whole lot relieved - if that's the right person," he said. "If it's the right one, she needs to get what she deserves."

Steve Wooten said he grew up near the Powells. After their deaths, he took in their dog, Kipper.

He said Delet Powell "was like a second mother to our son," often walking over the baby-sit.

"We knew James all his life," Wooten said.

And now?

"It brings tears."

Police: Double slayings connected

2005-10-13T16:05:00.000-04:00

By Donna Swicegood

The unsolved murders of two Iredell County couples - neirly eight months apart - were probably commited by the same individuals.
Sheriff Phil Redmond announced Wednesday that authorities believe the double slaying of James and Delet Powell and Don and Sue Barker are related.
Redmond said he could not comment on exactly what evidence tied the two cases together.
Investigators have looked into the similarities of these two cases since the Barkers were found nearly a month ago.
Both slayings likely occured on a Thursday night, and both Don Barker and James Powell were involved in or had been store owners.
James Powell had retired after owning and operating several convenience-style stores in Iredell County.
Don Barker was the longtime owner and operator of Barker's Grocery on Turnersburg Highway.

Deputies look for clues in deaths of store owner, wife

2005-09-17T14:02:00.000-04:00

By Donna Swicegood

A popular store owner and his wife were shot to death in their home sometime Thursday night or Friday morning.

Don Allen Barker Sr., 62, and his wife, Sue Jenkins Barker, 63, were found dead inside their home at 828 White's Farm Road, less than two miles from the store he operated for many years.

George Mooe, an employee of the store, called 911 just before 7 a.m. Friday after going to check on Barker, who should have arrived to open Barker's Grocery at 6 a.m.

Mooe said he went to the house, but it was dark and he couldn't see anything. He called Barker's son, Allen, and asked him if he had a key to the house.

"I told him his dad wasn't at work and his parents weren't answering the door," Mooe said.

Mooe went back to the store and returned to the house with Barker's niece. Then, he said, "I saw Don laying in there."

The Iredell County Sheriff's Office responded to find both of the Barkers dead.

Chief Rick Dowdle said Don Barker was last seen around 9:30 p.m. Thursday when he left his store, headed for home.

He said that he wasn't sure when Sue Barker, a retired teacher, was last seen alive. Sonny Davis, who attends church with the Barkers, said Sue had been at Rose Chapel United Methodist Church on Thursday, helping prepare for a yard sale.

Dowdle said early indications are that the Barkers were each shot once, probably with a handgun. An autopsy is scheduled today at Wake Forest University Baptist Medical Center.

"There's no signs of forced entry," Dowdle said. "There's nothing that jumped out at us that was missing; no signs of ransacking."

Authorities roped off the area around Barker's store. Deputies are seeking evidence that might be connected to the murder.

"It was his place of business, and we're preserving the scene in case there is evidence that might lead us to what happened," he said.

There had been reports that Barker had an altercation with someon at the store Thursday after some cigarettes were stolen.

Dowdle said detectives have not been able to confirm that.

"It wasn't reported to us," he said.

This was not the first time Barker had been the victim of violence. On Nov. 14, 2002, he was shot during a robbery at his store, and in March 2003, he was robbed at his home.

Mooe said the previous shooting was one of hte reasons he felt uneasy when Barker didn't arrive at work Friday morning.

"After he got shot, we all started keeping an eye on him," Mooe said.

He said that he had worked for Barker for about a year, managing a mobile-home park near the store.

"He was like a father to a lot of people," he said.

Lowell Harmon, who is married to Sue Barker's sister, Shirley, said he was privileged to have known the couple.

"We were truly blessed," he said Friday afternoon as he came by the store. "They will be missed."

Barbara Taylor, whose son Robert helped Barker in the store, said she spent a lot of time at the store, lending support to her son.

"They were good people," she said. "We loved Don and Sue."

Couples shot dead at home

2005-09-17T13:53:00.000-04:00

By Carrie Sidener

Neighbors and friends gathered around the convenience store cordoned off with crime tape. They were sad, angry and fearful.

Barker's Grocery, a popular gathering place on U.S. Highway 21, never opened Friday morning because owner Don Barker and his wife, Sue, had been killed in their home.

"The impact is so far-reaching," said the Rev. H.L. Talbert, pastor of Rose Chapel United Methodist Church, which the Barkers attended.

"This morning, it was like ripples in a pond spreading outward. ... Don and Sue didn't just touch lives; they shaped them."

On Friday, Sonny and Sue Davis hovered around the store, where they had often spent time.

"That man would give you the shirt off his back," Sonny Davis said. "He would do anything in the world for you. ... Sue tried to tell him to close the store and sell it, but he said he can't."

Davis said Don Barker was robbed twice before and was shot during one of the robberies.

He said when the authorities caught one of hte perpetrators, Don Barker told him, "I hope that boys gets his life straightened out."

"Something needs to be done," Sonny Davis said, citing two other unsolved multiple homicides in the community. "Someone needs to get of their ... and do something."

Sue Davis owned the store when Don Barker started working there when he was about 13. She later sold the store to him.

"He was just like my son," she said.

"Don was the greatest man around," said Michael Carson, who worked at the store. "He was too good a guy. That might have been his downfall."

Sue Barker was a retired teacher at North Iredell Middle School. Principal Kelly Cooper said the staff was deeply saddened by the news of her death.

"She will be deeply missed by our entire faculty," Cooper said.

Teacher Barbara Hill described Sue Barker as a loving woman who cared about her students.

"She would always go the extra mile to help a student, whether it be personal or school related," Hill said.

Bill Hayes, who also helped out at the store, said Don would help anyone in need and often cashed checks for people, although sometimes those checks bounced.

"I have seen poeple pull up in here with no gas and no money, and he'd give them $5 of gas and send them on their way," he said.

Hayes said Don often wanted his friends to work with him in the store after he was shot in a robbery. Maybe that's what led to his death at home, Hayes speculated.

"I suspect that is why they went to his house, because there were always people around him here," he said.

County Commissioner Godfrey Williams, who frequented the store, said the couple will be greatly missed.

"Everyone knew Don and depended on him to be there," he said. "So many people depended on him for groceries and gas ... everyone in the neighborhood."

This is the second double homicide in Iredell County this year.

Talbert said Sue Barker had been organizing a church yard sale for Saturday. It will still be held - now in the couple's honor.

"Their ministry and their love lives on," Talbert said. "An assault can take their lives, but it can't take their love from the community."

Still no answers

2005-02-21T14:19:00.000-05:00

By Donna Swicegood

Reponda Smith has one question for the person who shot her parents to death in the Union Grove home they shared for more than 40 years - why?

"Everybody loved mom and dad, except for whoever did this," she said.

Reponda's parents, James and Delet Powell, were found shot to death in their home one month ago today. An investigation by the Iredell County Sheriff's Office has yet to determine who is responsible for their deaths, and that fact still unnerves Reponda and her husband, Kenny.

"It's scary not knowing why it happened. You wonder if you're safe. You worry most of all if your children are safe," she said.

For the Smiths, the evening of Jan. 20 was the last day they can point to and remember having a sense of safety.

Reponda returned home from work that afternoon, and rushed to her parents' house to pick up her girls. Her mother baby-sat her 6-year-old and 2-year-old girls almost every day.

Her oldest daughter had to be at a meeting, and time was short, Reponda recalls. "Dad was outside," she said.

Her father came across the yard, and the 2-year-old ran across to say goodbye. "He laughed and picked her up and hugged her," Reponda said. He then hugged his older granddaughter before the girls went home.

"I told them I'll see you in the morning," Reponda said. She took the girls home and discovered they had left her toddler's favorite stuffed animal, Kitty-Cat, at her parents' house. Reponda didn't have time to go back at that point. She took the oldest child to the meeitng and, afterward, the girls at the Daisy meeting played while the moms talked.

That was unusual, Reponda said. "Usually, with it being a school night, when the meeting was over, we all left. For some reason, we just sat there and talked."

When she got home, it was time to get the girls to bed, and she decided retrieving the stuffed animal could wait until morning.

Reponda now believes something was keeping her away from the house.

The next morning, she went by her parents' house around 9:30 and couldn't get inside. After spotting blood inside the house, she called 911 and waiting in her van for sheriff's deputies to arrive.

"I was scared to death," she said. but she also felt a reassuring presence. "I felt their presence and I felt to peaceful. That feeling stayed with me until the police got there. When the first sheriff go there, it went away," she said.

Deputies entered the house and found the couple inside, both shot to death. An exact time of death has not been pinpointed, Kenny Smith said.

Reponda last saw her parents around 5 p.m. Thursday and they were found the next morning.

"It could have happened that night or early the next day," Kenny said.

While still reeling from the tragedy, they had to tell their older daughter that her beloved grandparents were gone.

"That's the hardest thing we've ever had to do," Kenny said. "That was tough."

The oldest girl was angry and asked her mother, "'Why did God make bad people?' I told her God didn't make bad people. People chose to be bad," Reponda said.

The Smiths said that their 2-year-old may not understand exactly what is going on, but she does know something is different.
"The first week or so, if she wasn't sleeping, she was crying. She was out of sorts. I feel like she knew something was wrong," Reponda said.
Her oldest daughter was also frightened, a feeling Kenny and Reponda share. "The first night I didn't sleep at all. I was scared to sleep. It was hard for me in the mornings. I'd wake up and it wasn't a dream and it was real," she said.
Kenny said he and his wife think often about what happened that day in the Powells' house.
"You think about them. What were they feeling. They had to be scared," he said.
"Especially my mom," Reponda said. "I know my dad was in the fight-to-survive mode."
The Smiths said they are trying to return a sense of normalcy to their lives - for their daughters' sake - and are trying not to convey their fears to them.
"The hardest part is that nothign is normal anymore, but we're trying to live a normal life," Kenny said.
Kenny said the sheriff's office has done its part to alleviate their fears as much as possible. He said deputies have dropped by and reassured their older daughter that they are there to protect her and her family.
"That really means a lot," Kenny said.
Since the murders, Reponda and Kenny have tried to focus on the joy her parents brought to their lives.
Looking at a photo of the Powell at their wedding aboard the Catawba Queen, they remembered the courage it dtook for Delet Powell to attend.
"She was scared of being on the water, and it took a lot to get her on the boat," Kenny said.
They smile when they talked about telling the Powells that their first child was on the way. "Her dad cried and her mom stuck a screwdriver through her hand," he said.
The girls would become the light of their granparents' lives, Kenny and Reponda said.
"Mom just loved taking care of the girls," Reponda said.
Her father, who worked on and restored old cars, called his granddaughters his little grease monkeys, Reponda said.
Restoring old cars was Powell's passion. "He'd go into that building (a garage behind his house) early in the morning and work until dark," Reponda said.
His love of old cars expanded his circle of friends considerably, she said. He went to antique car shows and parades all over the area.
That circle of friends paid tribute to Powell at his funeral by leading the procession from Statesville to Union Grove in antique cars. His brother, Billy Ray Powell, drove a teal 1940 Ford that Powell had painstakingly restored.
During the course of his life, Powell also owned and operated several stores, including one in Harmony for many years and, later, in Statesville.
It was at that store in Statesville where he tangled with an armed robber.
"Some guy came in to rob him, and I think dad went after him with a baseball bat and he (the robber) shot him in the hand," Reponda said.
She is convinced her father also put up a fight with the person who killed him. "Just from the way the house looks, I think he did," she said.
Her mother, Delet, worked outside the home until Reponda, her only child, was born. She then stayed at home to care for her daughter and, later, her granddaughters.
Kenny said that's one of the reasons the deaths have hit him and his wife so hard. "We not only lost her parents and their grandparents, but a babysitter and friends. They were so much more than ordinary grandparents."
Now they are searching their memories of that Thursday night and looking into their parents' lives, trying to find answers.
About a week before their deaths, James Powell went to Love Valley to buy some tin.
"Somebody was with him, but we don't know who it was," Reponda said.
That man was described as a younger person in the 20- to 30-year-old range. "It's a mystery to us," she said. Her father was 74. "We don't know who he would have been with in that age group," she said.
That person has not come forward, and many others who may have clues to the identity of the killer have remained silent, Kenny said. "Why people are not coming forward, we don't know," he said. "It makes it harder for the sheriff's office."
Rumors and gossip have also hurt the investigation, Kenny and Reponda said. And those rumors have also dealt more pain to the Smiths. "We've been very hurt by some of the gossip," she said.
Both Kenny and Reponda said not knowing who killed the Powells means a lack of trust in people they've known most of their lives.
"It makes you question people you know," Reponda said.
But in the midst of their distrust, they ahve found comfort in the support of neighbors, friends and co-workers. Kenny's co-workers have provided meals for hte family for the past couple of weeks.
Friends and neighbors drop by to offer their help and condolences.
"We've had so many phone calls and prayers. We've gotten prayers from all over the country," Kenny said.
The Smiths said they are now focusing on returning to normal as much as possible and keeping tabs on the investigation.
Lt. Stanley Watkins, who is leading the investigation for the sheriff's office, said James Powell's wide circle of friends and acquaintances has produced a lot of paperwork in the investigation.
"He knew a lot of people and it's taking a lot of legwork," he said.
Watkins estimated that the sheriff's office has conducted more than 100 interviews in the past month.
Detectives are also awaiting results from evidence sent to laboratories for testing.
Watkins has also distributed flyers with the Powells' pictures and they are hanging in windows across the county.
"We're still hard at it," Watkins said. "We're hoping we'll get a resolution before too much longer.
Reponda hopes for the same thing.
"Whoever did this brought a lot of heartache and misery," she said. But "I guarantee we'll come out on top. God takes care of those that love him, and he'll take care of whoever did this for a while. Someday I'll see mom and dad again, but hopefully that person never will."
"He won't," Kenny added.

Deputies still searching for clues

2005-01-29T16:10:00.000-05:00

By Donna Swicegood

Still searching for clues in the deaths of an elderly Union Grove couple, deputies set up a roadblock on N.C. 901 on Thursday night to ask motorists if they remember anything about the previous Thursday that might be relevant.
"We're looking for anybody that might have seen anything that night or Friday morning, no matter how unimportant it might seem," said Lt. Stanley Watkins of the sheriff's office. "It might be important to us."
Earlier this week, Watkins said the sheriff's office is seeking information about a beige mid- to late-1980s model Dodge pickup seen at the home on Friday morning. He stressed that the person connected with this vehicle is not a suspect.
"We just want to see if they got an answer at the door and if they talked with anyone," he said.

Autopsy: Couple was shot

2005-01-23T12:26:00.000-05:00

By Donna Swicegood

A Union Grove couple found slain in their home Friday morning died of gunshot wounds, authorities said.

Autopsies conducted Saturday morning at Wake Forest University Baptist Medical Center in Winston-Salem concluded that James Powell, 75, and his wife, Delet Reid Powell, 71, were shot to death, said Lt. Stanley Watkins of the Iredell County Sheriff's Office.

Watkins said there were weapons in the house but "there were none we believe were used in the crime."

The couple was found around 9:30 a.m. Friday by their daughter, who had stopped by to check on them.

The Powells were found in the kichen of the brick home on West Memorial Highway in Union Grove.

Powell, who owned and operated stores in various parts of Iredell County, liked to restore old cars, particularly 1940s-era Fords.

Friends of the couple described the Powells as nice people who were willing to help out anyone who needed it.

Sheriff Phil Redmond was one of those who knew the couple personally and he said he was shocked by their deaths. "I've never known them to have any problems with anybody," he said Friday.

Watkins said the investigation is still in its early stages. "We're still going out and doing interviews with folks that knew them," he said Saturday afternoon.

The couple was last seen alive around 5 p.m. Thursday by a family member, and authorities are looking for anyone who may have seen anything unusual in the neighborhood between Thursday night and Friday morning when the bodies were discovered.

Watkins said anyone with information concerning the Powells can call the sheriff's office at (704) 878-3180.

Couple found dead

2005-01-22T15:58:00.000-05:00

By Donna Swicegood

Neighbors in Union Grove were stunned Friday morning when a local couple was found dead in their home on West Memorial Highway.
James Powell, 73, and his wife, Ruth Delet, 62, were found inside their home by their daughter at about 9:30 a.m. Friday.
The Iredell County Sheriff's Office is conducting an investigation into the deaths, and released few details Friday night.
"We're looking at it as a death investigation," said Lt. Stanley Watkins.
Watkins said authorities are not sure how the couple died, and are awaiting the results of an autopsy, which is scheduled for this morning.
The autopsies will be conducted at Wake Forest University Baptist Medical Center in Winston-Salem.
The couple was found insdie the kitchen of the brick house, which sits across the road from Myrtle Beach Golf in Union Grove.
As sheriff's deputies arrived Friday morning and crime scene tape was tied around the exterior of the house, residents stopped to see what had happened.
Clifton benge, who is retired from the Statesville Fire Department, said he was stunned by the deaths.
"It's unbelievable to think that something happened to both of them. They're the kind of people you thought would be around forever," he said.
Benge said he knew the Powells well, dropping by frequently to talk with James, who restored cars.
Benge last spoke to the Powells earlier this week when he drove by and saw James working on a truck body.
"We talked for about five or 10 minutes," he said.
Benge described Powell as a "super nice guy." He'd do anything for you. He was a nice all-around guy."
He said Delet was more of a homebody than her husband. "She was a good person," he said.

Barker robbed again

2003-03-07T15:49:00.000-05:00

By Erinn McGuire

Four months after being shot during an armed robbery, convenience store owner Don Barker was victimized a second time early Thursday morning.
The well-known businessman was robbed and assaulted outside his home. The assailant escaped with a large amount of money and checks.
Despite the bruises and scrapes he sustained in the attack, the owner of Barker's Grocery on U.S. Highway 21 still managed to be behind the cash register in time to serve the lunchtime crowd.
Barker, who has owned the corner store for about 30 years, joked about the scuffle he had early in the morning when an unknown man attacked him outside his White's Farm Road home.
"If I had some hair, it wouldn't be so bad," he said as he rubbed his forehead. "I got a few knocks and am sore."
The store's phone rang throughout the day as customers and friends called to check on him after hearing of the assault.
"He will help anyone who needs it," said lifelong friend Bill Hayes, a retiree who has spent just about every day at Barker's store.
Even though Barker's store has a variety of items, the business is better known for its customer service.
"There's friendship and accommodation," Hayes said. "That's what you come here for."
In November, an armed man shot Barker twice. He was hospitalized and has recovered from his injuries. No money was taken during that incident.
"It would be pretty easy to be bitter, but he's not," said close friend and customer Leon Moose.
The recent attacks haven't deterred Barker and his wife, Sue.
"We are going to live our lives," Sue Barker said. "We're not going to let these cailber of people ruin our lives."
Barker cashes checks for people, many of whom do not have bank accounts. Some say Barker's check cashing business is a valuable service to the community.
"People are taking advantage of that," said Cowles "Cokie" Brisol, Barker's minister. "They're really going to hurt everyone."
Iredell County sheriff's deputies said they are unsure if November's shooting incident and Wednesday's attack are related.
In January, sheriff's detectives arrested five men and charged them in connection to eight robberies, including the November armed robbery at Barker's store.
Since the initial shooting, Barker's store has had two unrelated larcenies where beer and cigarettes were stolen.
Sue Barker said her feelings were mixed about the attack that took place at her home.
"It's a day I hope I never have to repeat," she said.
Barker said he went to start his car around 6 a.m. and then went back inside his house to talk to his wife for a moment. When he returned outside, he was jumped from behind and knocked to the gorund. Barker scuffled with his assailant, but the man was able to get away and ran into the woods.
Investigators believe Barker's attacker had help. Another man is thought to have been driving a small gray car, deputies said.
Immediately following the attack, Barker drove around his neighborhood looking for the suspected robbers. He came across the small car parked nearby. When Barker pulled up next to the car, the driver sped away, Barker said.
The businessman followed behind, chasing the compact car through his store parking lot at the corner of White's Farm and Jennings roads.
The man was able to get away after Barker's vehicle hit a pole.
Sheriff's deputies are looking for a white male in his mid-30s who has light brown hair and a thin moustache. He is slightly overweight with a round face.