Here's why third trial has been postponed for Dana Chandler, charged in two Topeka deaths

Tim Hrenchir, Topeka Capital-Journal
·2 min read

Shawnee County District Court Judge Cheryl Rios late last month postponed the third trial of Dana Chandler, a woman accused of the 2002 Topeka murders of her former husband and his fiancée.

A new trial date hasn't yet been set, Rios told The Capital-Journal on Wednesday.

Rios granted a continuance from the previously planned trial date of July 22.

Court records show the continuance was requested by Tricia A. Bath, who is teaming up with her husband, Thomas J. Bath, to help the 64-year-old Chandler defend herself.

In requesting the postponement, Tricia Bath said she wouldn't be available for the bulk of the time in which the July 22 trial would take place, because a rescheduled trial date of Aug. 1 had been set in a different case she was arguing in federal court.

Chandler's third trial will be in Pottawatomie County instead of Shawnee County, where her previous two trials took place, Kansas Supreme Court Justice Caleb Stegall ruled when he approved Chandler's request for a change of venue in October 2022.

Stegall also appointed Rios as a temporary judge for the district to which the case was moved so she could continue to oversee the proceedings against Chandler.

A Shawnee County District Court judge late last month postponed the third trial of Dana Chandler, a woman accused of the 2002 Topeka murders of her former husband and his fiancée.
A Shawnee County District Court judge late last month postponed the third trial of Dana Chandler, a woman accused of the 2002 Topeka murders of her former husband and his fiancée.

Why has the Dana Chandler case gone on so long?

Chandler faces first-degree murder charges in the 2002 shooting slayings in a southwest Topeka duplex of her former husband, Michael Sisco, 47, and his fiancée, Karen Harkness, 53. Both were shot at least five times.

Police recovered no physical evidence linking Chandler, who lived in Denver at the time of the killings, to the crimes.

Still, Chandler was charged in 2011 and convicted the following year of the intentional first-degree murders of both victims. She received two "Hard 50" prison sentences, leaving her ineligible for parole for 100 years.

The Kansas Supreme Court in 2018 unanimously reversed Chandler's convictions and sentence, concluding prosecutors engaged in serious error and misconduct linked to her first trial.

Shawnee County District Attorney Michael Kagay then requested and was granted the right to refile the case against Chandler.

Chandler's second trial ended in a hung jury in September 2022.

Jurors said afterward they had been deadlocked, with seven favoring conviction and five favoring acquittal.

Shawnee County prosecutor Charles Kitt then requested a third trial for Chandler.

Rios granted that request while allowing for Chandler to go free on bond and stay with a relative while awaiting those proceedings.

Contact Tim Hrenchir at threnchir@gannett.com or 785-213-5934.

This article originally appeared on Topeka Capital-Journal: Third trial postponed for Dana Chandler in 2002 Topeka double homicide