Investigation Discovery features late Prosecutor Dan Knight's reflections on Elledge trial

Late Boone County Prosecuting Attorney Dan Knight had one key message for viewers of Investigation Discovery's "On the Case with Paula Zahn" special that aired Sunday, featuring what turned out to be his last high-profile murder trial.

The hour-long program recounted last November's second-degree murder conviction of Joseph Elledge in the 2019 killing of Elledge's wife, Mengqi Ji, in Columbia.

"I'm hoping that maybe when this episode is broadcast, people who are in similar situations like Mengqi Ji will realize resources are available to help survivors of domestic violence," Knight said. "If this somehow can save one person, it is all worth it."

About six months after the case concluded, Knight died by an apparent gunshot in his home June 4. The pre-recorded show did not reference his recent death.

More: What to know about Mengqi Ji, who was murdered in Columbia by her husband Joseph Elledge

Entitled "A Needle in the Mud," the episode provided an overview of the investigative process regarding Ji's disappearance and death, featuring interviews with Knight; Assistant Prosecuting Attorney Merilee Crockett; former True North Executive Director Elizabeth Herrera Eichenberger; KRCG reporter Meghan Lane; Li Lin, a friend of Ji; and a brief tear-filled statement from Ji's mother, Ke Ren.

Zahn, a veteran journalist, is a Stephens College alum.

The investigative process

Apart from the interviews, Knight also took the "On the Case" crew to the Woodlake Apartments complex where Elledge and Ji lived and to where Ji's remains ultimately were found in Rock Bridge Memorial State Park, about 16 months after she was reported missing Oct. 10, 2019.

The title of the episode is a reference to juniper tree needles embedded in Elledge's mud-caked boots that were taken as evidence. The DNA of the needles matched those at Ji's shallow gravesite in the park.

The episode took viewers down the paths investigators took. The initial suggestion was that Ji had left the United States to return to her home country of China, abandoning the couple's 1-year-old daughter, to enter a relationship with a man named Zhou Chao.

While Lin noted Ji's mention of wanting to take a trip to China, it was for a visit, she said. The suggestion about an extramarital affair came from Elledge. He provided Ji's electronic devices, on which were chat logs between Ji and Chao.

More: Boone County Prosecutor Dan Knight was a thorough but humble litigator, say colleagues

In the days after Ji's disappearance, there was no social media activity and no evidence from the Department of Homeland Security to show Ji had left the U.S. or that Chao had entered it. Their relationship strictly was online and there were no arrangements made of the two meeting in person, the program noted.

Law enforcement turned its attention to Elledge, especially after he gave a television interview in which he referenced Ji in the past tense on at least two occasions.

Elledge's demeanor and statements were atypical to both Lane and Knight.

"He wasn't pleading for help," Knight said, with Lane adding how emotionless Elledge was over his reportedly missing wife.

No mention of defense arguments

Elledge admitted during the trial to burying Ji's body in the park, but not to her murder. He and his lawyers maintained throughout that Ji's bodily injuries and likely cause of death were accidental as a result of an argument in which Elledge pushed Ji and she had fallen against a kitchen counter and the floor.

The episode did not reference Elledge's trial defense.

When Ji's remains were found, there were four clean breaks through her ribs on the back side of her body.

Knight surmised another reason for the bodily injuries evident in Ji's remains.

The couple — through evidence presented at trial — was known to give each other massages. During a massage, Knight suggested Elledge "slammed his knees into Mengqi's back," breaking the ribs and possibly suffocating her, leading to her death.

Elledge argued he awoke the morning of Oct. 9, 2019, to find his wife's dead body in the couple's bed following their argument evening before.

He put Ji's body into the trunk of Ji's car, then put the couple's infant daughter in a car seat in the backseat, while he drove around to look for a place to bury Ji's body.

He eventually found a spot off a deer path in Rock Bridge State Park.

More: Boone County Prosecutor Dan Knight found dead at his home Saturday

Readying for the trial

While the episode did not make note of defense arguments, it did explore the difficult road Knight could have encountered if the murder trial had it taken place in 2020.

Knight consulted with legal experts on how to approach a murder trial without a body.

Elledge was charged in February 2020 when Ji's remains were still missing. Part of Knight's argument was Ji never would have abandoned her daughter, which was included when the case eventually went to trial in November of last year.

"It is very, very tough. We needed to show not only was she dead, but that he had killed her," Knight said about preparing for the 2020 version of the trial.

Because of judicial delays due to COVID-19, Elledge's trial was pushed back to last November. A jury came back with a guilty verdict after 11 days and a sentencing recommendation of 28 years, which matched Ji's age at the time of her death.

About three months after his conviction, Elledge pleaded guilty to child abuse and domestic assault charges stemming from bruising found on his daughter in February 2019. He was sentenced to an additional 10 years.

"If I would have tried the case and if there had been an acquittal and then her body would have been found, that would have been a tough one," Knight said in November about Elledge's murder trial.

Always preparing; ready to talk

Knight had to keep his energy up throughout the two-week trial. While the public was not privy to Knight's preparations, it was apparent that between breaks in proceedings, Knight was not sitting idly.

The only time Knight truly seemed to take a breather was when eating a banana or toast at the prosecution desk before proceedings resumed. Even then, he would be up walking around, reviewing the next steps he would take and reviewing evidence boards plastered with crime scene photos and maps.

Even after the trial, Knight did not want the public to dwell on Elledge, but to think about Ji's lost life.

"We need to talk about Mengqi and what kind of great person she was," Knight said. "... This was a case where we had someone who was severely abused and gaslighted without any doubt."

Charles Dunlap covers courts, public safety and other general subjects for the Tribune. You can reach him at cdunlap@columbiatribune.com or @CD_CDT on Twitter. Please consider subscribing to support vital local journalism.

This article originally appeared on Columbia Daily Tribune: TV program includes Dan Knight's reflections on last major trial