Callaway County man charged with murder in 2002 cold case makes first court appearance
CALLAWAY COUNTY, Mo. (KMIZ)
A Callaway county man accused of murdering his in wife in April of 2002 had his initial court appearance Friday morning.
Harold Dickens appeared in court via jail video at the Callaway County Courthouse.
Dickens is being charged with first-degree murder, a class A felony. The punishment for that charge is life in prison or the death penalty.
He is set to be back in court 8:30 a.m. Monday for an arraignment and bond hearing.
Court documents say Harold allegedly stabbed his wife, Debra Dickens, to death on April 28, 2002.
A month prior to the murder, documents say Debra filed for divorce from Harold.
Former Callaway County Sheriff Dennis Crane spoke with ABC 17 News at the scene of the murder in 2002.
Crane said no one had been able to get in contact with Debra, so a family member went over to the house and found her body.
Callaway County Prosecuting Attorney Ben Miller presented the cold case to a grand jury. After two days of presenting evidence and deliberating, the indictment was given on Wednesday.
Miller said new technological advances in forensics have made it easier to reevaluate cold cases like these.
