Visiting judge assigned to Warner murder case
ADRIAN — A Washtenaw County judge has been appointed to oversee the probable cause hearing in the murder case against a Franklin Township man accused of killing his wife, who has been missing for almost three years.
The murder case against Dale Warner had been assigned to Lenawee County District Judge Laura J. Schaedler. In February, she convened a hearing to list several instances where she had had prior relationships with Dale or Dee Warner or their families and gave Dale Warner's defense team the opportunity to ask for the case to be assigned to another judge.
Since then, all of the other Lenawee County judges have disqualified themselves from the district court proceedings. No specific reasons were given, with the judges using the standard disqualification form provided by the Michigan State Court Administrative Office (SCAO) and selecting the option that states, "based on objective and reasonable perceptions, my continued assignment would create an appearance of impropriety."
With all of the local judges disqualified, SCAO appointed Washtenaw County District Judge Anna M. Frushour as the visiting judge who will oversee the case. The proceedings will continue to take place in Adrian.
Because of the reassignment, the preliminary examination that had been scheduled to begin April 9 is now scheduled to start May 1.
Among the potential conflicts Schaedler listed in February were her having represented Dale Warner's mother, Clara, when she divorced his father, John, when she was still in private practice. As a judge, she said, she heard a landlord-tenant case involving Dale and Dee Warner and had a case involving cattle where Dee Warner's brother, Gregg Hardy, testified. She said she has had social contact with Dale and Dee Warner and was acquainted with a few of Dee's children and her brother and sister-in-law.
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Dee Warner was reported missing after her adult daughter went to meet her for breakfast on April 25, 2021, and she wasn't home. Her body has not been found, but the Michigan State Police’s lead investigator in the case, Detective Sgt. Daniel Drewyor, testified in August in a Lenawee County Probate Court hearing that it is his conclusion that she is dead.
In March, Lenawee County Probate Judge Catherina A. Sala ruled that Dee Warner is dead and Dale Warner is responsible for her death. That opinion was issued as part of the civil proceedings related to Dee Warner's disappearance.
At the preliminary examination, the prosecution has to show there is probable cause to believe a crime has been committed and that Dale Warner is responsible. If Frushour decides the prosecution has met that burden of proof — which is less than the "beyond reasonable doubt" standard during a trial — she will bind the case over to circuit court for further proceedings. She also could dismiss one or both of the charges against Warner if she determines the prosecution has not met its burden.
Warner is charged with open murder and tampering with evidence. The open murder charge allows a jury to decide the degree of murder should the case go to trial.
— Contact reporter David Panian at dpanian@lenconnect.com or follow him on X, formerly Twitter: @lenaweepanian.
This article originally appeared on The Daily Telegram: Visiting judge assigned to Warner murder case
