March 21, 2010

Man gets life prison term for murder of ex-girlfriend in Dent County in 1982

by KY3 News

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Story Published: Dec 18, 2009 at 4:05 PM CDT

Story Updated: Dec 24, 2009 at 11:41 AM CDT

WAYNESVILLE, Mo. -- A man from Beaufort got a life prison sentence with no chance of parole on Friday for the murder of a woman from Salem in 1982. A jury convicted Donald Nash on Oct. 30 for the shooting and strangling death of Judy Spencer, his ex-girlfriend.

Spencer's body turned up in rural Dent County. DNA testing that wasn't available in 1982 is what led to Nash, 67, being charged last year. Investigators say Nash's DNA was on material under Spencer's fingernails, indicating a struggle before she was killed.

Judy Spencer's family now helps other crime victims deal with their pain and sorrow. They're also planning to write a book about the murder and their 27-year wait to see her killer convicted.

The trial was in Phelps County with a jury from Crawford County to try to ensure a fair outcome. Senior Judge Douglas Long, a retired circuit judge from Waynesville, presided at the trial on a special appointment from the Supreme Court. He held the sentencing hearing in Waynesville.

Life without parole was the only sentence available to the judge because the attorney general's office, acting as a special prosecutor, did not seek a death penalty. Nash was convicted of capital murder under a state law in effect in 1982.

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