Eastburn family murders

Timothy Hennis
Born
Timothy Baily Hennis

(1958-02-24) February 24, 1958 (age 66)
Rochester, Minnesota, U.S.
Criminal statusIncarcerated
Conviction(s)Premeditated murder (3 counts)
Criminal penaltyDeath
Details
VictimsKathryn Eastburn, 31
Kara Eastburn, 5
Erin Eastburn, 3
DateMay 12, 1985
CountryUnited States
State(s)North Carolina
Imprisoned atUnited States Disciplinary Barracks

The Eastburn family murders were the murders of Kathryn "Katie" Eastburn and her daughters, Kara and Erin, which occurred in Fayetteville, North Carolina, in May 1985. In 1986, United States Army Sergeant Timothy Hennis was tried and convicted for the three murders. In 1988, Hennis's conviction was overturned on appeal, and he was acquitted the following year. In 2006, the Cumberland County Sherriff's Office obtained DNA evidence linking Hennis to the crime. Despite the Fifth Amendment's Double Jeopardy Clause prohibiting retrials after acquittals, the United States Army was able to initiate prosecution and trial proceedings against Hennis under the dual sovereignty doctrine. In 2010, Hennis was tried and convicted by an Army court-martial for the triple murders and sentenced to death.[1][2][3]

  1. ^ Paparella, Andrew; Gomstyn, Alice (September 1, 2011). "Ex-Soldier Convicted Twice of Eastburn Triple Murder Appeals Again". ABC News. Archived from the original on May 30, 2020. Retrieved November 15, 2020.
  2. ^ Schmidle, Nicholas (November 7, 2011). "Three Trials for Murder". The New Yorker. Archived from the original on November 8, 2020. Retrieved November 15, 2020.
  3. ^ Patterson, Thom (July 18, 2014). "Triple murder suspect goes from guilty to innocent and back to guilty". CNN. Archived from the original on April 12, 2020. Retrieved November 15, 2020.