The Murder of Margaret Jack Sliger
For this case I watched an episode of Murder Comes to Town. It’s season 5 episode 9, titled ‘The Sinner and The Saint.’
A 79 year old woman is killed in a small Tennessee town.
Background
Margaret Jack Sliger
Margaret Jack was born and raised in Mooresburg, Tennessee, a small town that didn’t even have a traffic light or sidewalk. Margaret Jack was a retired elementary school teacher, farm worker and organ player.
Margaret Jack wanted the best for everyone. She even delivered milk from her cows to anyone who wanted it. It was a shock to the small town when Margaret Jack was killed in such a horrific way.
The Murder
On May 18, 2015, Margaret Jack’s neighbor Robert Watts, called Bessie Mae and Dale Livesay, Margaret’s aunt and uncle after he couldn’t find her. The Livesay’s went over to Margaret Jack’s home and discovered her lying in her backyard.
Deputy Josh Byrd, with the Hawkins County Sheriff’s office responded to the call around 10:45-11pm. She was found barefoot, had a laceration to her neck, two gunshots to her head and had two black eyes. Around 11:15pm, other officers and detectives arrived at the scene. It was now a homicide investigation.
The police discovered that Margaret Jack’s body had been moved after she was killed. She had been dragged by the belt on her pants. A trail of blood was found around the perimeter of the home. Margaret Jack had been ambushed while she worked on putting up her barbed wired fence. There were tools on the ground, and her glasses were found on the ground as well.
The police told Bessie Mae and Dale that this was the most brutal murder they had worked on in their law enforcement careers.
The Suspects
The first person the police spoke to was Richard Watts, the neighbor. They asked him what happened, and why he called the Livesay’s. He said he walked over to bring Margaret Jack her mail around 5:00pm, like he did most days. He said that he became worried when he didn’t see her. He said he tried looking for her, but decided to call the Livesay’s around 10pm. The police weren’t convinced by his story, because Margaret Jack’s body would have been visible from the side of her home, especially in daylight.
Richard was questioned again the next day, May 19. This time, he changed his story a bit. This time, he said that he went to bring Margaret Jack her mail around 4pm, and that he did see her body. The way he described her body was not how it looked when she was found by the police. They asked Richard to take a polygraph and to give them his DNA. The polygraph results were inconclusive, but his DNA would eventually rule him out.
The next suspect was a local drug dealer named David Bryant. He had been arrested on May 19, after the police received information about a home invasion. The police received the information about what type of car the suspects fled in, a gray truck, and David, and three others were arrested.
The police asked David if he killed Margaret Jack, and he said no. He also said he broke into the house that day to get more drugs. He and his girlfriend had run out after a night of partying.
David took a polygraph test, which he passed, and gave a sample of his DNA. He was arrested for the home invasion, but his DNA also eliminated him.
The Autopsy
On May 20, Margaret Jack’s autopsy was performed. The medical examiner was able to get some DNA from the waistband of her pants. It was sent in for testing.
The autopsy revealed that she had been shot first, her throat was cut, and then she was shot again. The black eyes were from a close range gunshot, and the bullets that were found were too fragmented to test. The police did know that she was shot with a small caliber gun, most likely a .22 or .25.
Small Town Rumors
Rumors spread through the small town, some people thought that the killer was a drifter, and some thought it was a robbery gone wrong.
There was a rumor that led to a new suspect, a farmhand named Karl Sanders. Karl was also absent from Margaret Jack’s memorial that was held on May 21.
The police went to speak to Karl. He was reluctant to speak to them, and told them he was not going to give them his DNA. He said he didn’t hurt Margaret Jack. The police asked Karl who else would want to hurt her, and he gave them the name of Kyle Wolfe, a 14 year old who often rode his 4-wheeler on her property. Kyle was upset because Margaret Jack told him he was trespassing.
The police went to speak to Kyle, a small 14 year old boy. They asked him about Margaret Jack, and he said that she often yelled at him, and he yelled back. They asked Kyle where he was on the night of the murder. He said he had spent the day riding horses and hunting coyote.
The police asked Kyle to give them a sample of his DNA, but his parents refused. They weren’t able to eliminate either Karl or Kyle since they didn’t give up their DNA. The police weren’t convinced it was Kyle either, because of how small he was.
False Confessions
A few days later, an anonymous tip came into the police about a man who had confessed to his priest about his involvement in Margaret Jack’s murder. The man was named Bobby Stanton. However, Bobby was in his 20’s, but had the mind of a child. When the police did speak to Bobby’s mom, she said he was with her all night. Bobby was eventually eliminated, he had been with his parents.
The community came together to raise reward money for any information about the case. They raised about $4,000. This led to many more tips, including one from a man named Danny Page. Danny was a well-known drug user, and he apparently had confessed to the murder.
On June 12, after days of searching for Danny, he was found by the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation. He was brought in for questioning, and told the police that he had only confessed for “street cred.” He said he had been in jail at the time of the murder, and this eliminated him.
Arrest and Conviction
The case stalled for awhile, until July 20, 2015, when Det. Ken Sturgill received a call from the district attorney’s office. The DA received a call from CPS (Child Protective Services) who was investigation Kyle Wolfe for sexually assaulting his 8 year old sister. The DA was able to obtain a warrant for Kyle’s DNA.
On November 5, Kyle’s DNA came back as being a match to the crime scene. He was arrested, and immediately he asked for an attorney.
In 2016, his case was taken to Criminal Court. Kyle Wolfe plead guilty to second murder, and was sentenced to 25 years in prison. Kyle was asked if he wanted to give a statement after his sentencing, but he declined.
Kyle Wolfe
FINAL THOUGHTS
Margaret Jack’s loved ones believe Kyle’s sentence is too short. If Kyle is a model prisoner, there is a chance that he will be released when he’s in his 40’s. From the looks of things, he seems like a very dangerous individual. There is no real reason for why he killed Margaret Jack, but it’s believed because he didn’t how she didn’t let him do whatever he wanted on his property.
Even though Kyle was 14, I believe the sentence is short. He’s also believed to have sexually assaulted his sister, so I don’t know if the world is safe with Kyle on the streets.
Sources
https://thecinemaholic.com/margaret-jack-sliger-how-did-she-die-who-killed-her/
https://www.therogersvillereview.com/rogersville/article_c5fd80b2-288f-5bd7-86d5-1cf65043efa4.html
