Cold Case Files - REOPENED: A Brother's Burden

Episode Date: October 17, 2023

There were three Evans brothers: the cop, the truck driver, and the troublemaker. When a rumor surfaces connecting one of the three brothers to a murder case eighteen-years cold, the boundaries of loyalty, morality, and trust between siblings are tested. Sponsors:Angi: Download the free Angi mobile app today or visit Angi.com  Apartments: Check out Apartments.com , the place to find your pet friendly place. Skims: Believe the hype - SKIMS has over 100,000 five star reviews for a reason. The Cotton collection and more are available now at SKIMS.com. Plus, get free shipping on orders over seventy five dollars! After you place your order, be sure to let them know we sent you! Select 'podcast' in the survey and select our show in the dropdown menu that follows. 

Matthew Donald Spalding, simply known as Don, had retired from the Navy after 22 years of service. He married a woman named Shirley, and they began their new life together. The couple bought a house in the country where they raised horses. Don also had a day job working at a local power company. Though quaint-sounding, this story isn't as idyllic seeming as you might imagine, because on July 12, 1985, Don Spalding was murdered, execution style, in his own barn. One-third of all murder cases in America remain open. Each one is called a cold case, and only 1% are ever solved. This is one of those rare cases. From A&E, this is Cold Case Files, the podcast.

Don Spaulding's daily routine consisted of waking up early, tending to the animals, and going to work. On that particular Friday, July 2, 1985, Don didn't make it to work. Out of concern for their typically consistent employee, the company called Don's home to make sure he was okay. Shirley Spaulding was the one who answered the phone. Don wasn't home. Shirley stated that she had assumed Don had fed the horses and went to work like usual. That call was received at 8 a.m., but apparently Shirley wasn't overly concerned, because it wasn't until after 10 a.m. that she found Don's body.

A neighbor had noticed Don's truck parked near the horse barn, the same location where they had reported seeing unidentified prowlers earlier in the day. Shirley Spaulding found her husband's body inside the barn. She ran back to the house to phone the police. Captain Phil Perry answered the call and rushed to the Spaulding home. This is Captain Perry. He was right inside the barn about three or four foot laying kind of on his back with his arms thrown out. A bucket kicked over where he was preparing to feed up his animals. Don had been shot four times at close range. At that distance, escape would have been impossible.

The crime scene investigators searched the barn for evidence, digging through straw and mud and animal muck. But they didn't find anything useful. Captain Perry talks with Shirley, thinking that she might be able to provide some kind of insight to help the investigation. She tells Captain Perry the same thing she had told the power company on the phone. She assumed Don had completed his normal routine. This is Captain Perry again. I couldn't understand why she had not been out in the yard or been down to the barn to see if maybe something would have happened to him that morning. If it would have been me, I think I would have been out looking for his vehicle or in the yard or, like I say, in the area of the barn. It would just be natural. My professional experience in education has taught me that there's no correct way to react in a traumatic situation, like the death of a loved one.

Captain Perry, though, was under the impression that Shirley was not upset enough about her husband's murder, evidenced by the lack of tears during their conversation. In the days following the murder, Shirley called the police on several occasions to report prowlers on her property. None of those calls were substantiated, even though an officer had been assigned to keep an eye on the Spalding residence. And an officer was sitting 55, 60 yards away on the highway, looking right down towards the residence, and he didn't see anything. And, of course, sometimes a light bulb will light up in your head, you know, what's going on here? What was going on? Was the traumatized Shirley's imagination creating the illusion of strangers wandering around her home?

Or was something more sinister behind the tragedy that had taken place? News of Don's murder spread throughout the community and it fell on Phil Doak to break the news to his wife, Ellen. The Doaks had been friends with Don even prior to his marriage with Shirley. Captain Perry questioned Phil and Ellen about Don with the hopes of discovering a lead.

It turns out that Shirley and Don had what might be referred to as a whirlwind romance. They'd only known each other for a short time before getting married. Phil Doak remembers the day Don told him he was going to marry Shirley. And I said, well, Don, how long have you known this woman? I think he said three or four days, something like that. I said, man, be careful. Slow down. The couple eloped in private without friends or family.

In fact, no one knew that the marriage had even occurred until one day Don casually mentioned it while working. There's no evidence that in the beginning, Don, Shirley, and Matt, Don's son, lived anything but a peaceful life. According to Phil Doak, though, about two years into the relationship, Don wanted out. This is Phil Doak again. He was telling me about Phil, things aren't right. I've got to get out of there. I've got to get away from him. I'm gonna take Matt, his son. I'm gonna

leave just as soon as I get things lined up and get squared away and find a place to live. The Doaks were skeptical of the Prowler story to say the least. Beyond their dislike for Shirley, they also noted that the Spauldings had guard dogs that responded to even the faintest of noises. Another person had to be notified of Don's murder, his daughter, Linda Smith. I don't know to this day who it was that called me.

They told me that my dad had been murdered. And then I had suspicions. Linda was also suspicious of Shirley. She hadn't trusted her former stepmother from the beginning. Linda believed that Shirley was only interested in Don's money. And maybe, financially, Don was worth more dead than alive. Here's Captain Perry again. If you put a hefty insurance policy together, stock options that you may have,

and a retirement check coming in every month, you're having problems with a husband or a wife, and sometimes people will do crazy things. Shirley gets a check for over $120,000 from Don's former employer. Don's murder case gets dropped into the cold case files for 18 years. Despite the lack of progress, his daughter Linda remained hopeful. I never gave up. I never gave up. I prayed every day that something would come up, that there would be some clues.

On April 14, 2003, a police officer by the name of Wes Evans was out patrolling the streets of Ash, North Carolina. He got a call from his oldest brother, Blake, with a message that they needed to talk. There were three Evans brothers, Wes, the police officer, Blake, a truck driver, and Trent, the troublemaker. Blake tells Wes that their brother Trent is in deep trouble.

This is Blake Evans. He told me, you know, the same thing happened to me, happened to Don Spalding. I said, so what you saying, did you do kill the man? He said, hell yeah. Eighteen years after Don Spalding had been found murdered in his barn, Trent Evans threatened his older brother with the same fate. Scared and unsure of how to handle the situation, he called Wes, his brother, and a cop. This is Wes Evans. I listened to Blake's story and we went the next morning down to the sheriff's

department. We sat down with David Crocker. I can't imagine the dilemma that Wes faced, having to decide between his younger brother and the law. Ultimately, his choice was the law and the protection of his older brother. Wes went back to the Sheriff's Department, where they met with Lieutenant Crocker. He explained to me that he was an officer, but yet he was his brother. And he felt he needed to bring it to our attention to see if it was true or not. He didn't want to believe it, but the report had come to him and he felt like he needed to pass it on. Lieutenant Crocker, along with Captain Gene Kaysen,

pulled Don Spaulding's murder out of the vault of cold cases and began to reexamine the evidence. They find a connection pretty quickly between Trent Evans and Don and Shirley Spaulding. Trent, at one time, had been married to Shirley's daughter, meaning Shirley had been his mother-in-law. This is Lieutenant Crocker. It started to fit together when they were explaining to me how Trent was married in the family and the strong connection between Trent and Shirley Spaulding.

Kaysen and Crocker come up with a plan to get more information from Trent, but they can't do it alone. They ask Wes Evans to wear a wire to help incriminate his brother Trent. This is Wes Evans. David told me that it was his last shot to try and solve this case. So I agreed. Wes hopes that his cooperation will exonerate his brother, the kid that he grew up with. Wes sets up a meeting with Trent, a car trip to their father's grave.

Here's some audio of their conversation recorded by the wire. I'm your brother, and I'm here to help you no matter what. Oh, I know that, okay. Blake called me last night, the middle of the night, and he told me some things. He told me that you were involved in Don's death,

Don's fall six years ago. Yeah. No, no. I'm Don D. Don's father, six years ago. Yeah. Yeah, I know. Trent denied being part of the murder, but Wes's hope for his brother's innocence was destroyed. And he looked at me, and he denied it. But the look on his face was, it was the look of a guilty man. As the brothers pulled up to the cemetery, the investigators continued to

listen to the conversation. They were hopeful that they would hear Trent make a confession, but they also wanted to ensure that Wes was safe. Wes pushed on, letting his brother know that he was in his corner. Me being a police officer, I can help you and cover you. I'll be in your corner, but Trent's got to know the damn facts. That's all I'm asking. Wes tells Trent what he believes to be the truth, making the statement, You were in the barn that day, weren't you? Trent surprisingly, in a voice no louder than a whisper, says, Yes, I was. Wes Evans accomplished his mission.

He got his brother to confess to playing a part in the murder. He'd been successful in his task, but it had come with a price. Here's Wes to explain. There had always been a certain respect that I felt that he had for me, a certain trust, and I used that trust up that day. Detectives take the investigation into Trent to the next level, after the break. Angie is the go-to place for everything home, and they've made it easier than ever to connect with skilled professionals to get all your home projects done.

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rib tank is so soft and light. It goes great with the cotton rib boxers and leggings. Everything just fit me so well. There's something about Skims that makes a simple t-shirt look like it's something that was made for me or tailored for me. Whoever said loungewear was only for the house hasn't tried Skims. Believe the hype. Skims has over 100,000 five-star reviews for a reason. The cotton collection and more are available now at Skims.com. Plus, get free shipping on orders over $75. If you haven't yet, be sure to let them know we sent you. After you place your order, select podcast in the survey and select our show in the drop-down menu that follows. Enjoy. Three hours after the recording was made, Trent Evans was asked to come to the police station for questioning. At that point, he wasn't under arrest.

Here's some audio from the interrogation. You drove your own vehicle up here. Yes. You're free to leave. You came out of the door freely. And it's not locked. You understand that. You weren't walking out any time. Is there anything confusing about that?

No, but... Good. Trent tells the detectives that he had no part in Don Spalding's murder. In fact, he tells them that he's being framed for the murder by his brother, Blake. This is Trent. He said, I'm going to go down to the sheriff's department. He said, I'm going to tell them you killed Don Spalding. he tells them that he's being framed for the murder by his brother, Blake. This is Trent. The police bring out their trump card, the recording from the wire that Wes wore during their conversation. They also bring in Trent's mother, who was also Blake and Wes's mother,

with the hope that the truth would be revealed. It worked, and Trent started to open up. He starts with a name, Shirley Spaulding. When did Shirley approach you? Okay. The way this thing started. She said, I wish that bastard was gone. Trent said that Shirley had offered him money to kill Don, but he thought she was joking.

He laughed it off the way people do when someone says something distasteful. Trent told one of his co-workers, Michael Strickland, about what Shirley had said. And Mike said, hell, I'll do it. Mike Strickland. Mike Strickland. Mike Shrickman. Okay. I thought it was a joke. Trent then went on to tell investigators that he had connected Shirley and Mike.

But after that, he had no part in the murder. The detectives don't believe him. There's things that you're not telling us. I'll just be honest with you about that. You're not being 100% truthful. No, I ain't telling you. I told you the whole nine yards. My pop door man, she gave me the money. I gave him the money.

I was doing it. You didn't get any part of it? No. You drove the man up there. You knew about him. He was going to do it, and you didn't do it. I didn't know what he was going to do. Come on.

I didn't. The detectives have a strong case against Trent, but they don't feel like he acted alone. They want to ensure that everyone involved in Don's murder is identified and charged, especially his wife, Shirley. Are you willing tonight to go and talk to Shirley? Would you consider doing it?

Yeah. Would that work, that angle? I would give it a whirl. This time, the detectives put a wire on Trent Evans and sent him to talk with Shirley Spaulding, his ex-mother-in-law. The conversation started like this. You sure you didn't say nothing like that? No, I have not. ex-mother-in-law. The conversation started like this. Trennan told Shirley that he wanted to talk about Dawn's murder, but he starts to get confrontational. He accuses her of talking about it with others and potentially throwing him under

the bus. Here's some more audio from the wire tape. I had to look that idiom up. Basically, I am so sure, by the sound of my head, I would do it. I had to look that idiom up. Basically, Shirley was saying that she would do whatever it took to prove that she had not told anyone about the murder. Then, to the surprise of all listening, Shirley makes one final statement on the tape. When I got that last bout of the bank, it was for you and Vicki's truck for $7,500. And that's what was in that last envelope I gave you.

The police believe the exchange of $7,500 was a payment for Dawn's murder, blood money. It was also a tangible piece of evidence connecting Shirley and Trent to Dawn's murder. This is Detective Crocker. We're on target. Enough for her to say the cover-up, let's do this, talk about the exchange of money. We felt confident that we definitely had our master plan here. There was one final suspect that the police had yet to connect to the murder, Michael Strickland, Trent's former co-worker. So, after saying goodbye to Shirley, Trent, his wire, and the police

made their way to Michael Strickland's home. This is Detective Crocker again. We caught him in his sleep. We took him off guard. Trent's conversation with Mike is similar to the conversation with Shirley. Someone is talking about the murder, and Trent is scared of being caught.

Here is part of that conversation. Michael tries to reassure Trent. He tells him that there's no way Shirley will tell because she would get the most prison time. He tells Trent to keep his mouth shut, and if the police come to him, they will lie and try and trick him. If he stays quiet, they won't get caught. This is Captain Kaysen. I think the last thing he tells Trent is, uh, no matter if the police come to you, no matter what they tell you, they tell you they got 50 people lined up to testify against you, don't believe it. Just stick to your guns and we'll be all right.

And we know at that point we got him. With significant evidence against the three suspects, the police decide it's time to bring them all in for questioning, starting with Shirley Spaulding. Trent, I went to your house last night. decide it's time to bring them all in for questioning. Starting with Shirley Spaulding. Shirley was backed into a corner. The police had her on tape talking about the crime. Surprisingly, Shirley is overcome with concern and what might even be described as empathy. But it's not for her deceased husband. Do you want to tell us what you know?

I'm scared to. I'm scared that you put me in jail and there's nobody to feed my dogs. Her dogs. Shirley is scared to confess to a murder because she's uncertain who will care for her dogs if she's incarcerated. Here's Detective Crocker again. After being assured that her dogs would be cared for, Shirley started to open up about her relationship with Don. She told the detectives that life with her husband had been a living hell and that he was abusive. We went and checked. There was no hospital record of her being in the hospital. No reports of neighbors. 911 calls, you know, being abusive.

She's never confided in anybody, him being abusive. It just never came forward. The detectives don't believe her story. They think Shirley killed Dawn for his money, using Trent and Michael as the weapon. Shirley goes on to tell detectives how she believed the murder went down. When they were in the barn, did they tell you what Don did before he was shot? All he said is he called me. He called me a bitch, that's all. So you're saying the last words from Don, what's he called? He said that Don was walking down the runaway with the buckets. And he said, well, she's the biggest, she's a bitch or she's the biggest bitch or something.

All I know is that he presumed he was referring to me. Shirley Spaulding was charged with a single count of murder, along with Michael Strickland and Trent Evans. With all the evidence against the trio, there's still one piece of the puzzle that's missing. The gun. Trent Evans discloses that he threw it into a body of water known as the Green Swamp.

The day after he's charged, Trent agrees to take the investigators to the spot where he discarded the weapon. He indicated standing from the top of the bridge that the weapon had landed probably 20, 30 feet off to my left into the water on this side of the bank. Divers search the swamp looking for the gun, but they don't find it.

A local man approaches the police and in a strange turn of events, he reveals the location of the gun, but they don't find it. A local man approaches the police, and in a strange turn of events, he reveals the location of the gun. And the guy says, it's not a.22 rifle, is it? And of course, everybody's eyes lit up and said, yeah. I said, well, about a year ago, my girlfriend's father found a rifle, the barrel sticking up, and he retrieved it, and it's now behind his barn just up the road here. The investigators finally had all the evidence they needed to ensure the three suspects would be convicted of Don Spaulding's murder. We felt confident with it.

We had good interviews. We had all the pieces, all the small pieces that we felt that we were able to get, and we proceeded to the DA's office and laid it out to them, and of course they indicted on first-degree murder. In May of 2004, all three suspects pled guilty to second-degree murder. Shirley Spaulding was sentenced to 30 years. Trent Evans was sentenced to 21 years. And Michael Strickland was sentenced to 25 years in prison.

Linda Smith, Dawn's daughter, was content with these sentences. I'm really satisfied as long as they have to spend that whole time there because I will be there when they come up for parole. Shirley Spaulding suffered from a heart attack in June of 2004 and was diagnosed with chronic pulmonary obstructive disease. Her medical care cost the county upward of $6,000 per week. Ultimately, the decision was made that she would be released from the North Carolina Correctional Institution for Women in order to spare taxpayers the expense. On June 27, 2006, Shirley died from complications related to her illness. She was 68.

Michael Strickland was paroled in August of 2009, serving less than five years. He died on April 17, 2014, at the age of 60. After serving less than five years of his 21-year sentence, Trent Evans was paroled in April of 2009, and the Department of Corrections reports that he's living in Brunswick County. Wes Evans was essential in solving the case of Don Spalding's murder, but his effort came with a cost, losing the trust of his brother. Wes explains how he made his choice. At the end of the day, one is right and one is wrong, and you've got to make that choice. And this case was personal for me, and it was not a matter of choosing my profession

over my brother's freedom. It was a matter of choosing between right and wrong. Cold Case Files, the podcast, is hosted by Brooke Giddings. Thank you. The Cold Case Files TV series was produced by Curtis Productions and hosted by Bill Curtis. Check out more Cold Case Files at AETV.com and by downloading the A&E app. Dive into true crime on Pluto TV. Unravel the mysteries with forensic files and 48 hours. Investigate crimes with Dateline 24-7 and unsolved mysteries. With thousands of free crime movies and TV shows, Pluto TV is the true home of crime.

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I always say, show me a perfect family, I'll show you a family with secrets.