Special Grand Jury To Get Hargon Murder Case (Hargon found guilty gets death penalty )

TAYLORSVILLE, Miss. (AP) -- After two days of intensive searching, investigators say they've exhausted any hope of finding the missing Yazoo County family near the property of a relative suspected in the case.

"We've done everything we can do here," State Highway Patrol spokesman Warren Strain said. "We've exhausted all the information we have developed regarding this site and the buildings on it."

Investigators had been searching near the 160-acre property of Earnest Lee Hargon. Strain said Hargon will be arraigned Monday in Yazoo County on multiple felony charges. Hargon was charged Sunday in Smith County with a drug and firearms violation.

Hargon is a suspect in the disappearance of Michael and Rebecca Hargon and their 4-year-old son, James Patrick.

Strain said prosecutors in Yazoo County will continue with their case against Earnest Hargon.

"Not being able to locate the Hargon family will have zero effect on going forward with the charges," Strain said.

Strain said there was "a laundry list" of possible charges that could be filed in Yazoo County, but declined to specify any of them.

Authorities have not said whether they believe the family members are still alive. Blood and spent bullet casings were discovered at the family's home in Yazoo County. Investigators have not found a .22-caliber weapon that apparently was fired in the home.

Earnest Hargon, an adopted cousin of Michael Hargon, was named in a single charge of possession of methamphetamines while also in possession of a firearm. Hargon was carrying less than an ounce of the drug, authorities said Sunday. The firearm is an AR-15 assault rifle, which Strain said could be converted into an automatic weapon.

Strain said possible evidence was found Saturday at Hargon's property in Smith County but would not elaborate.

Investigators also have been checking a piece of land that Michael Hargon recently inherited from his uncle, Charles Hargon, to determine if it is linked to the disappearance, said Jennifer Hargon, Michael's sister. Earnest Hargon, Charles Hargon's adopted son, was not included in the will, she said.

Strain said the Madison County property is a consideration in the case, but not necessarily a motive.

"It could be a potential motive, but it's not the only one," Strain said, adding that other evidence collected in the searches has linked Hargon to the family's disappearance. He declined to elaborate.

Smith County Sheriff Charlie Crumpton said an arraignment for Hargon had not been set on the drug and weapons charge, but he said it would occur before Wednesday.

No big developments emerged on Sunday, although Crumpton said significant progress had been made.

Lisa Ainsworth, the wife of Earnest Hargon, has been questioned at least twice, Strain said. When asked whether she provided evidence against Earnest Hargon, Strain declined to comment.

Authorities closed off a county road on both sides of Leaf River Veterinary Services. The clinic is on Earnest Hargon's property and his wife works there as a veterinarian, Strain said.

The search area included the clinic, Earnest Hargon's residence, several other buildings and the banks of the nearby Leaf River, Strain said.

Earnest Hargon's brother-in-law, John Ainsworth, 24, described Hargon as an outgoing guy not capable of kidnapping a family. He said the investigation has been hard on his sister, Lisa Ainsworth, who has been happily married to Earnest Hargon for almost eight years.

"It's really a surprise," John Ainsworth said of the speculation of Earnest Hargon's possible involvement in the family's disappearance. "She (Lisa) is dealing with it. It's been pretty hard on her."

Taylorsville Mayor Ron Walker said Lisa Ainsworth, tends to the animals on his farm and he has met Earnest Hargon, who he called "quiet and cordial."

"Lisa is the vet in town. She and her family are well known," Walker said. "Her family is well-respected hardworking people. I'm sorry they're having to go through this."

Janette Brewer, 48, who teaches Earnest Hargon's 16-year-old son, said she is praying for the missing family," Brewer said. "We want them to be found hopefully alive."

The three also had fractures, bruises, cuts and abrasions.

They all fought hard. He must have used James Patrick to control Rebecca. It sounds like ELH drove back to his and Lisa's home and killed Rebecca and James Patrick somewhere on their property. Then he put them in his pickup and drove over to his friend's place to bury them. However, why did he throw the gun out the window on the drive to Taylorsville if Rebecca and James Patrick were still alive? And what about the nudity? Did LE find the gun and the clothes? Oh my, Rebecca died with her arms around her baby.

Can't believe the jury will be deciding his fate today. It was a short trial, but there's nothing there to save his sorry hide. I don't know if he can whine later about an incompetent attorney since he confessed, his cap was at the house, two of his vehicles were used, and he took LE to the graves. Evans did his duty to his client with the drugs and molestation (yep, knew it) but there's no way around the deed.

Will Jennifer inherit it all now - Diana's, Michael's, and Charles' property? Such tragedies in that family. And it's still not over for her. She's had a lot of responsibility thrown at her. She'll have to go in Michael's place to the parole boards every year for their father and then wait out any appeals of ELH. Hope she can mature and turn her life around so some good can come of all this. Will she finally see that drugs destroy and put her kids first?

GUILTY

Jurors Sunday to deliberate fate of Hargon after conviction

YAZOO CITY — The twelve jurors found Hargon guilty of killing Michael and Rebecca Hargon and their 4-year-old son, James Patrick. Earnest Lee Hargon was convicted of murder in the death of Michael Hargon, his cousin, and guilty of two counts of capital murder in the slayings of Rebecca Hargon and James Patrick Hargon.

Hargon did not testify in the trial. His attorneys called no witnesses in the trial that began Monday with jury selection.

Ernest Lee Hargon now faces the death penalty in the killings of Rebecca Hargon and James Patrick Hargon because those convictions are capital offenses. Jurors will return Sunday to begin considering Hargon's sentence.

Jennifer Hargon McBride, whose brother, Michael, was one of the victims, today said she wants Earnest Lee Hargon to die. "It's the worst thing I have ever seen in my life.... If this does not warrant the death penalty, I don't k now what does," McBride said after the guilty verdict.

McBride, 25, of Vaughn, is one of the many family members, neighbors and friends who came to the trial and heard the verdict. They are still mourning the death of her mother, Diana, who died of cancer days before the start of the trial. Putting Earnest Lee Hargon to death for the killings also was her mother's wish, McBride said.

She said Earnest Lee Hargon, 45, a cousin by adoption, "disgraced our family."

Earnest Lee Hargon shot Michael Hargon in the back of the head, manually strangled Rebecca Hargon, used a leather lace to strangle the couple's son, then later returned home and told his wife he "got them, all three," according to witnesses.

When asked about the graphic testimony, McBride said, "There were some things that were almost unbearable to see." In closing arguments, Assistant District Attorney Steven Waldrup reviewed the graphic details about the slayings of Michael and Rebecca Hargon and their young son.

He showed photographs of the family before and after they disappeared Valentine's Day 2004. Their bodies were found 17 days later in a woods in rural Covington County.

"You've heard it. You've heard it all," Waldrup told the jurors. "The evidence is overwhelming."

He ended by saying, "When I go home tonight, I'm going to be able to hug my kids and my wife. Michael Hargon's not going to be able to do that."

Authorities said Earnest Lee Hargon, a Taylorsville resident, killed Michael Hargon at the family's Vaughan home and took all three to Covington County, where he killed Rebecca Hargon and the couple's son and buried all three.

Defense attorney Wesley Evans asked jurors to put aside their emotions. He urged them to listen to his client's taped confession "because you're going to find the statements of the person are not the acts of a rational person."

"Listen to the tape," he said. "It may be important later."

The sentencing phase gets under way at 1 p.m. Sunday before Circuit Judge Jannie Lewis. Both sides plan to call witnesses. Andre deGruy, one of Earnest Lee Hargon's defense attorneys, said he did not know whether he would testify during the sentencing phase.

Jurors could consider mitigating factors that might lead them to decide on life imprisonment without the possibility of parole. Among such factors may be an abusive childhood and drug addiction.

Earnest Lee Hargon's ex-wife Lisa Ainsworth, who testified for the prosecution, said her husband had been molested as a child. In an interview with her local paper last year, she said Hargon, to whom she was married at the time of the killings, became addicted to drugs when he began his trucking business.

Ainsworth, who divorced Earnest Lee Hargon in October of last year, testified Friday that she feared for her own life after her then- husband told her what he had done.

"He said, 'I went to see Mike. Things got a little out of hand,' " she said.

"I said, 'Earnest Lee,' I said, 'Rebecca's going to be calling' ... He said 'No, I got them, all three.' "

"He didn't eat. We ordered food, but we couldn't eat," she said, her voice breaking.

Authorities believe Earnest Lee Hargon killed the family over a 50-acre farm in Canton that Earnest Lee Hargon's estranged father, Charles, had willed to Michael Hargon. Michael was Charles Hargon's grand-nephew.

Charles Hargon cut his sons out of his will shortly before his death.

The case drew national attention. Because of the pre-trial publicity, jurors were selected from Marshall County to determine Earnest Lee Hargon's guilt or innocence.

A family friend had testified he called Hargon just after his father, Charles Hargon, died. He told him he had been cut out of his father's will, and if he wanted to contest it, he needed to act. Michael Hargon, however, was in the will.

Tim Wood, a Mississippi Bureau of Investigation agent at the time of the slayings, said he recorded two confessions from Hargon last year, detailing what happened next.

Battle over death or life in prison starts today
# 'You don't know how anyone could do this'

Hargon returns to court today for the trial's sentencing phase that will decide if he will face the death penalty.

YAZOO CITY — Relatives of a slain Vaughan family saw the accused killer convicted Saturday and will return to court today for the penalty phase that will decide if he will be executed for his crime.

They also are related to the killer, Earnest Lee Hargon of Taylorsville, who was charged with killing his cousin Michael Hargon, Michael's wife, Rebecca, and the couple's 4-year-old son, James Patrick.

"It's the worst thing I've ever seen in my life. It's the worst thing most people have ever seen in their life. If this doesn't warrant the death penalty, I don't know what does," a soft-spoken Jennifer Hargon-McBride, Michael's sister, said after the verdict.
The jury of nine women and three men took 1 1/2 hours to decide Earnest Lee Hargon had beaten, shot and strangled the family, then buried them in a shallow grave.

Hargon remained still as the verdict was read. Yazoo County Circuit Judge Jannie Lewis set 1 p.m. today for his sentencing phase before officers escorted him out of the courtroom.

The family's disappearance on Valentine's Day 2004 and the 17-day search for the trio drew national attention.

The two-day trial included graphic prosecution testimony. The defense rested without calling any witnesses.

Earnest Lee Hargon has provoked unspeakable anger among his relatives, but caused others to confront their feelings on capital punishment and grapple with the acts of a person who was, at least at one time, considered a family member.

"He's not our family," said Hargon-McBride, 25. "He doesn't deserve to have the Hargon name, because the Hargon name is good."

Earnest Lee Hargon was adopted.

One Yazoo City resident with no connection to the case stood outside the court Saturday holding a sign that read, "Hang him high. We don't care. He's just taking up air."

But Betty Douglas, 63, who was friends with Earnest Lee Hargon, his late father and the murder victims, said she wanted to see him convicted, but does not want to see him executed.

"I'm just shaken. I guess I'm really sad. I don't think I'm much of a death penalty advocate and I came to feel that way, maybe through this, through seeing all the tragedy and all the people that were hurt and it's not going to bring anybody back," she said.

"But yet I know what Rebecca and Michael's family have been through, too. I'm just glad it's not me that has to make those decisions."

Charles Hargon, Earnest Lee Hargon's father, taught Douglas and her husband Roy about the cattle business.

"You don't know how anybody could do this," said Roy Douglas, 73. "I'm sure a lot of people are looking for the why, and I don't know where that'll be found. You know, the why. Why it happened."

Jurors convicted Earnest Lee Hargon of one count of simple murder and two counts of capital murder. If they don't unanimously agree on a death sentence, he'll be sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole.

Prosecutors will present aggravating evidence, and will have the opportunity to call family members to testify during the phase.

The defense plans to present mitigating evidence, focusing on a crystal methamphetamine addiction they have said their client has.

"The jury out an hour-and-a-half ... We know that they are going to deliberate. They are taking the case seriously, and we have a lot more to tell them," said Andre de Gruy, one of Hargon's attorneys. "Earnest Lee, he's a human being. He's a good man, and the jury has convicted him of doing terrible things."

The drug addiction, he said, is central to understanding what happened. "It's a part we wish hadn't been there, and maybe we never would have been here if it hadn't been there. It's got to be told, because it's part of his life. It's part of who he is."

Assistant District Attorney Steven Waldrup said after the verdict that the defense had nothing to work with.

"I think they tried to create something and that's not their fault. There was really no defense in this case."

De Gruy said closing arguments and deliberations for the sentencing phase will be Monday.

The day began with jury instructions and closing arguments from attorneys on both sides.

Hargon attorney Wesley Evans asked jurors to put aside their emotions and consider that prosecutors were not forthcoming with the facts.

He referred to "foreign DNA" which was found on a baseball cap prosecutors said Earnest Lee Hargon left at the crime scene, and to tips he said law enforcement officers did not investigate aggressively.

"They're going to ask you to execute that man, but they won't tell you everything," he said.

The prosecution "mentioned something about foreign DNA. I didn't make that up ... It came from their witnesses. I didn't make that up. The reports about the van ... Eyewitnesses saw a van with three white males. I did not make that up. It came from their witnesses, their investigation."

He also explored the theory that Earnest Lee Hargon reacted in self- defense to Michael Hargon after he believed he may have been reaching for a gun.

Prosecutors in their closing said that even if Michael Hargon had been reaching for a gun, jurors should consider the possibility that Earnest Lee Hargon had pulled his first.

"There was self-defense going on, all right.

"Michael was defending himself, his home and his family from an armed aggressor at 3 o'clock in the morning," District Attorney James Powell said.

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