Going West: True Crime - Dawna Natzke // 260

Episode Date: December 10, 2022

In December of 2011, a 911 dispatcher went missing in Arkansas after leaving a Christmas party. When her body was found in a secluded area days later, suspicions immediately fell on someone in her inner circle. This is the story of Dawna Natzke. BONUS EPISODE patreon.com/goingwestpodcast CASE SOURCES 1. Dawna's Obituary: https://www.legacy.com/us/obituaries/nwitimes/name/dawna-natzke-obituary?id=21929865 2. The Cinemaholic: https://thecinemaholic.com/dawna-natzke-murder-where-is-kevin-duck-now/ 3. Crime Watch: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xXWpXmVmrf0 4. Medium: https://jeancampbell-25104.medium.com/a-killer-in-the-village-dae627265804 5. Arkansas Democrat: https://www.arkansasonline.com/news/2017/mar/30/officer-advised-of-baby-on-way-20170330/ 6. Hot Springs Village: https://www.explorethevillage.com/ 7. Doris' Obituary: https://caruth-hale.secure.tributecenteronline.com/obituaries/Doris--Marie-Smith?obId=25882119 8. Homer's Obituary: https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/51666021/homer-h-smith 9. The Times: https://www.newspapers.com/image/309410118/?terms=dawna%20moeller&match=1 10. The Times: https://www.newspapers.com/image/310354610/?terms=dawna%20moeller%20todd%20natzke&match=1 11. Times Record: https://www.swtimes.com/story/news/local/2020/10/21/villagers-death-brought-domestic-violence-awareness/114452702/ 12. Arkansas Times: https://arktimes.com/news/cover-stories/2013/06/13/will-dawna-natzkes-killer-ever-be-brought-to-justice 13. Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/dorrell.investigations/posts/kevin-duck-files-an-appeal-in-the-murder-conviction-of-dawna-natzkekevin-filed-t/1528769410501519/ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

What is going on to crime fans? I'm your host Tee. And I'm your host Daphne. And you're listening to going west. Hello everybody. Thank you so much for joining us today, thank you so much as well to Holly for recommending today's case It is a holiday case since is the holiday season and speaking of if anybody is looking for a gift of sorts for a fellow Going West listener We did come out with some new merch recently if you go to our website going west pod calm hit the shop tab and website goingwestpod.com, hit the shop tab, and there's all this new stuff, but I am thinking about even adding some more stuff this weekend, so stay tuned for that. And I'm still sick, so I feel like I'm operating

at like 50% volume today, so sorry, they guys have to put up with this voice again, I'm gonna do my best. Yes, also, if you're looking for more episodes going west, head on over to our Patreon, p-a-t-r-e-o-n, dot com slash going west, and you can find a bunch of ad free full-length episodes there. Alright guys, let's get into today's episode.

This is episode 260 of Going West, so let's get into it. 1 個 個 個 個 個 個 個 個 個 個 個 個 個 個 個 個 個 個 個 個 個 個 個 個 個 個 個 個 個 個 個 個 個 個 個 個 個 個 個 個 個 個 個 個 個 個 個 個 個 個 個 個 個 個 個 個 個 個 個 個 個 個 個 個 個 個 個 個 個 個 個 個 個 個 個 個 個 個 個 個 個 個 個 個 個 個 個 個 個 個 個 個 個 個 個 個 個 個 個 個 個 個 個 個 個 個 個 個 個 個 個 個 個 個 個 個 個 個 個 個 個 個 個 個 個 個 個 個 個 個 個 個 個 個 個 個 個 個 個 個 個 個 個 個 個 個 個 個 個 個 個 個 個 個 個 個 個 個 個 個 個 個 個 個 個 個 個 個 個 個 個 個 個 個 個 個 個 個 個 個 個 個 個 個 個 個 個 個 個 個 個 個 個 個 個 個 個 個 個 個 個 個 個 個 個 個 個 個 個 個 個 個 個 個 個 個 個 個 個 個 個 In December of 2011, a 911 dispatcher went missing in Arkansas after leaving a Christmas party. When her body was found in a secluded area days later, suspicions immediately fell on someone in her inner circle. This is the story of Donanatsky. Donna Smith was born on November 17th, 1965 in Hammond, Indiana, about 25 miles or 40 kilometers south of Chicago. Her family consisted of parents Doris and Homer and three sisters named Debbie, Vicki, and Kathy. Doris held various positions over the years, including working as a bank teller, a real

tour, a secretary for a private investigator's office, which sounds really fun, and a seasonal decorator at Christmas time. Homer served in the army before working as a super attendant for an engineering company, and after Homer retired, he endorsed opened a ceramic store right there in Hammond that they kept in business for 22 years, which also sounds very fun. Friends and family described Donna as fun-loving and gregarious and remember her super-infectious laugh. Every post on the Memorial Facebook page just talked about how kind she was and her obituary

says she quote, never met a stranger. The life of the party, she loved to go out dancing, like to sing, and had a large circle of friends. Her son later said quote, I don't think she had an enemy or a person that didn't like her. Donna graduated from Lake Central High School in St. John, Indiana in 1984. And shortly after her high school graduation,

Donna married Ronald Moler, and in July of 1986, the two welcomed a baby boy named Ronald Jr. The marriage ultimately did not work out, and Donna soon found herself single again, but she wouldn't be for long. A few years later, in 1989, Donna's parents, Doris and Homer, relocated to Hot Springs Village, Arkansas, which is a small community located about 50 miles or 80 kilometers west of the capital city of Little Rock. Afterly named, the lush and very picturesque area is dotted with hot springs, encompassed

in Hot Springs National Park, and is also near the Washtaw River and the Washtaw National Forest. I mean, who would have thought that there would be hot springs and hot springs village? Yeah, what a shock. So an entirely gated town of about 13,000 residents, it's become popular as a resort and retirement destination, boasting a dozen lakes, hiking trails, golf courses, and year-round outdoor sports. I mean, that honestly sounds like a really nice place to retire.

They've got all these activities to do. So in 1992, while living in Merrillville, Indiana, about a half hour away from Hammond, where she grew up, Donna Mary Demand named Todd Natsky, and the two along with her young son, Ronald Jr., or Ronnie, moved down to join her parents in Hot Springs Village. Together Todd and Donna had Aaron and Brandon making them a family of five. Donna worked sporadically while raising her three boys, including as a waitress and a receptionist at an area doctor's office. Doris remembers the impact her daughter had on the community saying quote, we would go

shopping or go out to dinner or something, and she was always charging across the room, hugging someone and asking, how's your arm or how are you? Or did your husband ever get his new car? Everyone remembered her. Donna eventually settled into a career at a police department and became an emergency dispatcher. A job that she reportedly loved and was naturally gifted at,

given her warm and caring nature. For the small, safe, southern town, serious crime was pretty rare. Sadly, in 2009, the Smith family lost their patriarch, Donna's father, Homer. He was remembered as, quote, an honest man with a big heart and a pillar of his community. He was very active in his local church,

even organizing his own volunteer program, called Homer's Homework. He and Doris were married for over 50 years. Donna, especially close with her parents, had actually extended her own father's life after donating a kidney. That's amazing. Yeah, really, really kind and generous.

Well, and actually when she donated it, she had to have part of her ribs cut out, but this gave her dad another 10 years of life. So in 2011, Donna experienced another setback in her personal life when, after almost 20 years of marriage, her husband totally blindsided her by asking for a divorce. The couple separated in January with the goal of getting back together, actually, but in April of that year, so a few months later, Todd officially filed a petition for divorce. With that, Todd moved out, and Donna's son Ronnie, now in his 20s, had left to, leaving Donna and her son's Aaron and Brandon alone in their townhouse on the west side of Hot Springs Village.

She really struggled with the transition back into single-huds, like she was just feeling very lonely, and her mom went so far as to say that she was getting depressed. To cheer her up, they made a weekly ritual of going to a local bar called Patsy's Bar to drink and watch football together on Thursday evenings. It was there that Donna met Kevin Duck, another local who frequented the bar for football games. They met in May of 2011, so just a month after her husband had totally shocked her by falling sorry for divorce.

So obviously feeling very vulnerable, Donna relished the attention and the excitement of someone new. Donna's friend and neighbor Cheryl remember's quote, You know what attracted her to him? He made her laugh for the first time in years. She deserved it. Her friends were really happy for her at first because Donna loved the companionship and the courtship was a very good distraction from a difficult divorce

and a demanding job. And I know a lot of you guys out there know about that job because I know we have a lot of 911 dispatcher listeners actually because remember last year we did the Ruth Price episode and if you haven't listened to that you have to because our listeners solve that case and then we did a part two I always just and blown away when I think about that case and and everybody's participation but I remember we got a ton of emails from people saying that they were 911 dispatchers so for everybody out there who is one you know how rough that job is. And that's exactly what Donna was doing.

Although Kevin was almost 20 years younger than Donna, he was 27 at the time and she was 45, it seemed like a pretty good fit. His youthful exuberance was fun for Donna and a breath of fresh air while navigating a contentious divorce. He was working as a mechanic at a shell gas station, living in Jesseville, about 15 minutes from Hot Springs Village, and was also divorced with children. He even bought her a car, a 1997 Teal Ford Escort station wagon. It was an older model, but he had utilized his mechanical prowess and fixed it up for her

so it ran like new. And he also tended to her son's cars. Doris remembers him being a doting partner in the beginning saying, quote, he was really good to me and good to Donna. If we were sitting beside Donna, he was rubbing her on the hand. His attention was always with her. But this quickly turned from an admirable trait to a red flag. Her children had concerns immediately, partially because of the age difference, and also because

Donna made way more money than Kevin. Her oldest son, Ronnie, remembers quote, we just kinda went with it because we were trying to make our mom happy. The behavior that presented as doding and protective in the beginning, quickly turned to possessiveness and jealousy. Donna even started asking her mom to come on dates with them, which Doris found very concerning as if Donna didn't feel safe by herself. And I gotta say, that seems like a huge red flag.

If you have to bring somebody else on your date with the person that you are dating, Yeah, probably not the best situation. Oh, yeah. And we see this in a lot of different cases too. How at first the person can seem really great. It's almost like that's their manipulative behavior of trying to reel you in with all the goodness before showing you the real side of them. Absolutely. Yeah. So Doris remembered his behavior becoming increasingly more concerning, saying, quote, he always had his hand on her leg rubbing her back,

snapping her bra, very inappropriate. Donnis Friend Cheryl, who lived in the same coldest sack of townhomes that Don and her sons remembers her husband Jim, who also worked with her at the police station, being extremely concerned about Donnis relationship with Kevin. the police station, being extremely concerned about Donna's relationship with Kevin. Now, Cheryl remembers, quote, Donatole Jim that Kevin was always touching her. He always had to be touching her.

Jim told her, There's something wrong with somebody who always has to be touching you. There's something wrong with that. Donna, rightfully so, began to have concerns about the nature of their relationship. And Doris, her mom, remembers her impression of Kevin sowering around this time and that she was looking for a way out. There were also rumors circulating in the community, although unsubstantiated that she had begun dating the former Hotsprings Village Chief of Police, David Flory.

The mere rumor of this sent Kevin into a tailspin. So around December 10, 2011, about a month after her 46th birthday, Kevin moved himself into Donna and her son's home without consulting her. And remember at this point, I mean, they had met eight-ish months ago, so I mean they've been dating for a decent amount of time but like to just move in without saying anything like not okay. And Doris, Donna's mom again, I feel like I have to keep saying that because they both have denames, but Doris said quote, she came home from work and he was moved in.

So like, while she was gone, he just came in and put all this stuff in there. And she recalled Donna being absolutely furious at the presumption and forcefulness with which he had made the decision for them. A decision which would also affect her sons who still lived at home. And although she and Todd were living separately, Donna wasn't even divorced yet. Donna's family and friends just really hoped that she would kick him out and end their relationship once and for all, but she felt guilty that he had already given up his home to move in with her because she is such a nice woman that even in this moment she is considering

him before her. Now Kevin was also on his best behavior, just trying to win back her favor. So for about a week, things seemed pleasant enough again, but her family knew better. Her son Brandon remembered thinking, quote, in the back of my head, I'm saying, you know, there's something not right.

The whole situation just was off to me. On December 21, 2011, the couple was planning on attending a Christmas party together. The party of the Hot Springs Village Property Owners Association, so many in the community were expected to attend. But just the day before, Donna told one of her sisters that she was planning on having her coworker and friends husband, Jim, help her figure out a way to kick Kevin out of her house. The night of the party came around, and Doris received a call shortly before Donna and Kevin were planning on heading over, asking her to come with, already not really a good sign.

But Doris of course agreed wanting to make sure that her daughter was comfortable. So, around 6pm on the evening of December 21st, the couple picked Doris up and the Ford escort station wagon that Kevin had bought for Donna and the three headed to the party. Now Doris sensed that something was wrong immediately, remembering the palpable tension in the car, saying quote, there was something wrong with Donna. There was something wrong, and she would not say a word. Kevin was fine. When the two arrived at the party, they kept their distance, but Doris remembered that neither of them seemed to be

in a particularly festive mood. Around 10pm, Donna went outside to smoke a cigarette. When she came back to the party, she was crying. Around 10pm, Donna went outside to smoke a cigarette. When she came back to the party, she was crying. Now assuming something had happened with Kevin, Doris rushed to her side, but Donna actually claimed that it was something that had to do with her soon-to-be ex-husband, Todd. Donna's best friend, Patti, who was also in attendance, took her into the bathroom to calm her down.

And Doris remembers, quote, Patti H a way realized something was happening, so she went into the bathroom with Donna. She didn't know Kevin was outside of the bathroom listening. Patty was screaming for Donna to throw that SOB out, get rid of them. Doris thinks Kevin likely heard the entire exchange and was furious at both the women. Moments later, Donna was gone. Patty remembers seeing them leaving, saying, quote, It looked to me like he wanted to walk out the door and she didn't.

So creepy that he was listening to and just knowing that he heard that and then knowing what is coming up next, just not good. So at about 10.30 pm, Doris looked around the room and her daughter was gone. But strangely, she left her purse, glasses, and cigarettes behind, although there was no sign of her cell phone. Doris found it incredibly out of character for Donna to just abandon her at the party without saying goodbye and knowing that Donna and Kevin were Doris' ride home. She wouldn't have just done that to her mom.

Yeah, that's really, I mean, obviously that doesn't look very good. Right, so according to her, Donna never would have left her purse or her mother behind. But Doris went home with another party goer, but felt just unnerved by the situation that she had just witnessed. Knowing that Kevin had heard them saying bad things about him situation that she had just witnessed, knowing that Kevin had heard them saying bad things about him and that she was really upset anyway. And then no explanation as to why they left it all? Exactly, just bad feelings all around.

And the fact that Donna wasn't talking on the way there, like something's wrong. So at 2.21am on December 22nd, so a few hours later, Kevin called Doris. Now Doris recalled later, quote, he said, Miss Doris? It was strange. He never called me Miss Doris. He called me Mom, just like all Donna's friends. He said, Miss Doris is Donna there? And I said, no, she's with you. She left me at the party with no way home.

He hung up real quick there. Doris then remembers him calling again about four hours later around 6.45 in the morning. He said, quote, I was sleeping on the couch and Donna left. I figured she was going back to the party to get you. Again, Kevin hurriedly hung up the call. Meanwhile, Donna's friend Cheryl had taken an early morning walk and noticed that the interior light of her car still parked in the driveway was on. Around that same time, which was about 5.45am, Donna son Brandon woke up at home, accustomed to just, you know, hearing his mom leaving for work at that time. But when he looked out the window, Donna's station wagon was still in the driveway.

Now later that morning, around 8 a.m., Patty texted Donna asking if everything was okay, concerned that it appeared that he had pushed her out the door at the party the night before. About two hours passed before she received a response, and it said, he didn't push me, I fell and he caught me. I had taken a pain pill and was tore, but it had been spelled like T-O-U-R-U-P. So it sounded like she was tore up from this apparently this apparent fall that she had. So, but doesn't sound like this is Donna that's texting Patty. So this was strange for multiple reasons.

Patty claimed that the two usually preferred to talk on the phone over texting, but her verbiage was also a clue. Donna was a smart woman who always texted with proper grammar, and this text was riddled with mistakes, and she would have known to use the correct wording of torn up, if that's even something that she would have said at all. Patti claimed that Donna would never have left without giving her a hug. The next time her car was seen, though it was not confirmed to be her actually driving the car, it was speeding through town.

Witnesses noted the sighting because of how fast it was going. No one had seen or heard from Donna since the night before when she left the party abruptly. Her son said sadly, quote, I had concerns for Orraseen Donna since that party on the night of December 21st, 2011, and none of Donna's friends or family had heard from her the next day at all. Kevin, at home in the morning as usual, claimed that Donna had dropped him off at their house, or let's say Donna's house that he was living in, after leaving the party, and headed back to pick up her mother, which we know never happened.

So he claimed that he had gotten home at around 10,30 or 11 o'clock PM and gone to bed. But her sons knew that this was a lie because they had been home and awake until midnight and not seen or heard from either Kevin or their mom, which means at least until midnight they were not home, which means were worthy for those few hours after leaving the party. Kevin then said that he woke up to find her missing and then he went to work that morning as he always did, but he was running late. So he was due at the Shell gas station at 8.30 a.m. and according to his manager, he didn't make it until 10.10 a.m.

Donna's son contacted her friends, her employer, and just anybody else that they could think of just trying to put together the pieces of the previous night at the Christmas party, but no one had anything else to offer after she had left with Kevin Duck. Now a little background on Kevin. Kevin and his siblings, a younger brother named John, and a younger sister, were raised in a devoutly religious family. Their father, Luther, was even a preacher at the local church,

and the family lived in a small rural community in the woods that prided themselves in living off the land. The brothers and their father regularly hunted together and raised their own food, but Kevin's younger brother John remembers that Kevin always seemed on the verge of snapping and that he was manipulative and quick to anger. Yeah, I mean, we know he's a piece of shit, we know he's a liar. And a manipulator.

But he's also a leech. I mean, you know, he just latched onto Donna and was like, you know, I'm moving in. You're my property. Super jealous. He's a narcissist. He's a leech. He's just a bad dude. So as a child, John remembers there being an incident when Kevin was so angry at his siblings that he locked himself in the family's bathroom threatening to kill himself. He brought a gun into the bathroom with him, and the family heard it discharge, so it went off, but once they were able to get into the bathroom, horrified, they found that he had shot the gun through the window, and seemed thrilled that he had caused his family

so much distress. That's pretty fucked up. Yeah, why would you be so happy about that? So Kevin also reportedly enjoyed torturing animals, which we know that's a sign of something. And incredibly fucked up. Yeah, so this was problematic for such a religious community and the church attempted to intervene and help him to know a veil. John later admitted sadly that he wished that he had taken John's life himself to spare Kevin's community the misery that he inflicted upon them. The Duck family, even Kevin's parents, kept their distance from him, knowing how volatile and evil he could be.

I mean, if your entire family thinks this about you, that says a lot. Yeah, it does. So in 2008, Kevin was arrested on charges of domestic violence and was actually still on probation for these charges when he started dating Donna. He had a long history of violence against women, with both an ex-wife and an ex-girlfriend pressing charges. He was also accused of beating his two-year-old daughter with a PVC pipe, Fock, horrible guy.

So finally, after over 24 hours with no word from Donna, her son's headed to the very police station where she worked and reported their mother missing on December 23rd. And I gotta say, this guy's kind of a fucking idiot because he's literally, you know, a suspect in the murder of a woman who works at a police station. Yeah, and he has all this other stuff on his record. So it's like, you think you're just gonna be able to do something and not get looked at right away? Especially when her whole family and friends

are suspicious of you anyway, like, nice try. Yeah, exactly. They knew from the get go. So because Donna was one of their own, law enforcement was relentless in their search for her. Knowing who she was dating, foul play was suspected immediately. Now police launched an aggressive search of both the residential areas and the wooded trails and backroads, but found no sign of Donna.

And remember this guy grew up in the woods, he's a hunter, so he's probably very familiar with the land, obviously, because his family lived off the land. Yeah, absolutely. And also we have to remember that, you know, like I had mentioned, he didn't come into work until about 10, 10 in the morning. So he was a couple hours late to work. And then by 10, 30 PM the night before,

so 12 hours earlier is when they left the party and when Kevin claimed that around the time they had gotten home or that he had been dropped off. But we know that that wasn't true because the suns were up till midnight and didn't see them during that hour and a half window. So then it just makes you wonder, you know, we know he was up in the middle of the night at 2.30 texting or calling Doris. And then again at 6.45. So it's like, he is doing something

throughout all these hours. He had all this time to kill her and hide her body somewhere. You know what I mean? Like highly doubt he woke up at 230 and was like, I think I need to, you know, text Doris now at 230 in the morning. Yeah, like he was up doing some shit. So anyway, again, the police had an aggressive search.

And then a neighbor of Scott Randalls, who had hosted the Christmas party the night Donna went missing, came forward with a possible tip. The neighbor happened to be walking near Scott's house at the same time that Donna and Kevin were leaving, and heard what she described as a man's voice, happened to be walking near Scott's house at the same time that Donna and Kevin were leaving, and heard what she described as a man's voice, uttering a single syllable over and over approximately five times. And she called the sound of it

maniacal, anguishing, hysterical, and indistinguishable. She could not hear Donna at all, but seconds later, the car pealed out of the driveway of Scott Randall's house and sped it down the dark street. On December 24, 2011, Christmas Eve, the local Forest Service contacted Hot Springs Village Police, explaining that they found a car a flame in the woods about 8 miles or 12 kilometers outside of Blue Springs, Arkansas, which was just a three-minute drive down the road from Jesseville, where Kevin had been living before he forcibly moved in with Donna and her sons. The car had actually been found by a forest service employee at 11.15am on December 22,

so a couple days earlier, the morning after Donna went missing. And it had still been on fire. This car was on fire for two full days. Forest service waited for the fire to just die down before investigating it further, and noticed that it had burned so hot that parts of the engine had melted. For unknown reasons, the car was not reported to police until two days later again, Christmas Eve. It was quickly determined to be Donna's station wagon, reduced to ashes.

Now this particular phase of the investigation garnered criticism because while the scene of the car was investigated, the car was then towed away without being secured. And it had been exposed to the winter elements before sitting in evidence awaiting processing for four days. It was both worrisome and a relief that no human remains were found in the car. Dona may still be alive somewhere, but it also meant that it was likely that, as her friends and family already suspected, she had been met with foul play. Christmas passed, and her loved ones grew more and more despondent. On New Year's Eve, January 31st of 2011, Patti organized a grassroots search of the community,

expanding into the Jesseville area where Kevin had lived. Now, over 500 friends, family members and locals turned up to the Jesseville High School gymnasium that day to help. In an interesting turn of events, Kevin Duck's father, Luther Duck, joined the search efforts, claiming that he thought he knew where Kevin would hide a body if he had been involved, which Kevin's family suspected was the case. He told law enforcement, quote, if he killed her, that's where she is. There was a pond in the Washtitan National Forest that the duck family used to frequent his kids, and Luther directed them there, and sure enough, Donna's body was waiting for

them. Just the fact that his dad was like, if he did this, I know where he would hide a body. Like you know where your son would hide a body that's... He's like my son is literally fucking Satan. He's literally the kid from the Omen. And he has been since birth. Yeah, so I know exactly where to look. So creepy. So while relieved, obviously, that 10 days of pretty much hell had come to an end, Donas, friends, and family were, of course, devastated by this news.

Because you always hope that you'll find your loved one alive. And Doris remembers that Donas co-workers at the police department were openly weeping with grief. She said, quote, in my heart, in my mind, I just knew it was Kevin. One of the officers described the scene as gruesome and brutal because she had been beaten and sustained life-threatening blunt force trauma to her head, but that's not what ultimately killed her. The medical examiner concluded that, based on the water in her lungs, she had been discarded

in the pond after being beaten and she had actually drowned. She died within six hours of leaving that party. So by the time that he had called, you know, I'm sure this is a no-shot, but by the time that Kevin had called Doris after I think it was like 2.22ia or 222 a.m. or something like that. Yeah, she was probably already dead. She was already dead. Yeah. So she was found naked and badly decomposed with her clothes strewn along the shore nearby. Because her body was so decayed, it was difficult to pull DNA. However, both Donna's DNA and the DNA of an unknown mill were found on her bra that had

been discarded along the waterfront. I wonder who's DNA that was. Wow. Surprisingly, Kevin did consent to submitting his DNA for profile matching, and even more surprisingly, he was not a match. So who's DNA was it? As always, theories began to circulate like could someone else have helped Kevin Duck cover a permurder or could it have been someone else entirely

and Kevin is telling the truth this whole time and just happens to also be a piece of ship and not a killer. Now according to Kevin's defense attorney quote, there's no doubt that whomever's DNA is on that brisier had something to do with this crime. There was also clothing that did not belong to either Kevin or Donna, clinging to a barbed wire fence near where her body was recovered. Both Kevin and his attorneys claimed that this point to involvement from a third party. And Kevin claims that he believes that it points to the former Hot Springs Village Chief

of Police, David Flory, the man that he accused Donna of having an affair with. David, like fiercely denied, claims regarding an affair as well as having something to do with her murder, and he also voluntarily submitted to a DNA test, but it was not a match. Kevin claimed that he and Donna were expecting a baby, but this was a claim that everyone in her life denied, especially given the fact that she had been smoking and drinking at the party on the night of her disappearance. Then there was Todd Natsky.

Some pointed fingers at him, painting him as a jealous ex-husband, especially because we know that at the party she was crying, apparently because of him. Right, and Doris and Todd had actually been embroiled in a financial dispute amidst the divorce in which lawyers had to get involved. But Todd had an airtight alibi. He had been with his new girlfriend, and one of his and Donna's sons on the night of the party. With Donna's cell phone still missing, the court subpoenaed her cell phone records as

well as Kevin Ducks and found that both of their phones had pinged within 200 yards of the pond on the evening that Donna disappeared. I mean, that's just it for me. Yeah, I mean, that's gotta be it, right? I think, honestly, obviously, the, honestly, obviously, the DNA found on her bra is really bizarre. And I don't know how to explain that. But the fact that Kevin had lied about when he got home, saying he got home around 1030 and that he was dropped off.

And you, you know, the sun said that he wasn't. And then the fact that he was up all night, that he was late for work. And then calling Doris in the middle of the night. Yeah, it's just, that's too suspicious of me to like look away from him. I think it does make more sense that he would have involved somebody else. This is just my personal opinion, though, carry on.

Right. So law enforcement actually issued a warrant for Kevin's arrest. By that time, Kevin had fled not only the area, but the state and was found in Burlington, Colorado, about a two and a half hour drive east of Denver. Suspicious. Yeah, and then he was extradited back to Arkansas on February 6th. He was unfortunately released shortly after on $15,000 bail in February of 2012, but was again taken into custody due to a pending domestic violence charge on April 3, 2012.

This ensured that he remained in prison long enough to make the case against him for his likely involvement in the murder of Don Anatsky. After five long years of delays and setbacks, Kevin's trial finally began in 2017. Kevin's ex-wife Amber testified against him telling a harrowing story about the time that Kevin dragged her down the stairs of their home while she was pregnant and had beaten her and left her for dead in the woods.

After deliberating for just four hours, a jury came back with a guilty verdict and a recommendation that Kevin Duck be imprisoned for life without the possibility of parole. When asked if he had any final remarks, Kevin simply said, I think y'all made a mistake. Sadly, Doris did pass away in September of this year, 2022, at 82 years old.

She mourned her beloved daughter until her death, saying, quote, it wasn't right because she wasn't supposed to go first. I really miss her, always. Kevin attempted to appeal his conviction, of course, filing it less than two months after his verdict was returned, but the conviction was upheld. In a statement read at the trial by Donna's son Brandon that brought tears to the courtroom, he said, quote, Thank you so much everybody for listening to this episode of Going West. Yes, thank you guys so much for listening to this episode and on Tuesday we'll have an

all new case for you guys to dive into. This case was truly just so tragic and the fact that she had even worked for a police station and was a 911 dispatcher just makes this so much more horrifying. I don't know why but it just does in my opinion. But I also feel like there isn't, I mean there's closure because obviously I feel like we all agree that Kevin is behind it but it is still weird that there's this unknown male DNA on her bra. Yeah, I mean it definitely could have been a third party, but at least we know that Kevin is where he's supposed to be right now.

Absolutely. So thank you guys so much for tuning in. Don't forget to check out our new merch head on over to our website, goingwestpod.com. Hit the shop tab and we'll see you guys next week. Alright guys, so for everybody out there in the world, don't be a stranger. Thank you. you