Donald Clark never gave up on his spouse, Jennifer. no longer when she cheated on him and got pregnant with an additional man’s child, and now not back she threatened him with a baseball bat. It turned into a fatal mistake for Donald.
Donald Eugene Clark was born in , the second of three infants. He grew up in rural Barnesville, Georgia.
“We hunted every thing, deer, pigs, it didn’t count. We had loads of decent instances,” Donald’s sister Brenda Maddox advised “airtight,” airing Sundays at c on Oxygen.
In , Donald larboard high faculty to work at a local comminute. In his early s, he married a lady called Rebecca, with whom he had a daughter. they might later divorce, leaving him single again on the age of .
“He aspired to be a household man. His first one bootless and he simply wanted to inaugurate over,” Donald’s daughter, Nikki Nalley, told producers.
again, in , that possibility seemed to latest itself. Donald met -yr-historic Jennifer Leigh Drennan via a alternate acquaintance. They married in and had two boys, built-in in and .
however through , Jenny turned into abundant once more and this one wasn’t greeted with pleasure and anticipation.
“There become loads of fights. There changed into respectable instances but more disagreeable times than decent instances,” Maddox told “airtight.”
Donald and Jennifer afar in July . Jennifer moved in together with her mother in West Virginia while Donald took care of the boys lower back home. youngsters, the break up turned into brief-lived. They reconciled that October and he or she confused returned in.
“No depend what, my Dad loved Jenny and he badly desired that household,” Nalley told producers. “He wanted to assignment it out.”
Maddox absolved into the Lamar canton Sheriff’s branch on the night of November , to record her forty one-yr-ancient brother lacking. “Donald all the time known as the entire family unit daily,” Maddox told producers. “At that aspect we hadn’t heard from him in a couple days.”
back wondered via police, Jennifer claimed Donald came home from assignment, they ate dinner, watched television, after which went to mattress. when she woke up the next morning, Jennifer talked about, he became long past along with his vehicle. She later texted him to say she had dropped the children off at school. “k,” he texted back.
Jennifer again referred to Donald might accept left her for one other girl, a thought those that knew him discovered ridiculous.
“I knew something had came about. Donald wasn’t the one to choose off,” Jennifer’s ancestor, Garry Drennen, informed producers.
board batten to Donald’s boss, who had last seen him on the night of Nov. , when they carpooled home. all the way through the experience, Donald had talked about his reunion with Jennifer wasn’t working out and that he desired her to go away.
They additionally interviewed a - months-ancient girl, Danielle younger, who lived with Donald after his cut up from Jennifer. He asked her to circulate in to support deal with his sons. Their relationship finally grew to be animal. younger had concerns about their -yr age change and moved out. quickly after, Donald had reconciled with Jennifer.
young instructed badge that on the evening of Nov. , Donald had referred to as her suddenly and discussed her moving again in with him.
On Nov. , , Jennifer Clark gave start to her third son. An advertisement within the local bi-weekly listed the daddy as Kenneth Michael Yost, now not Donald Clark.
“Michael Yost become the son of my dad’s best friend Charlie,” Nalley advised producers.
Yost dropped out of college within the eight grade and had been arrested a number of instances on marijuana prices, in line with Walter Geiger, a journalist on the herald gazette newspaper. later on, Charlie had requested Donald if Yost might live with him.
while dwelling with the Clarks, Michael and Jennifer had an activity. back Donald found out, he kicked them both out.
Detectives determined to assassinate a search warrant at the Clarks domestic on Dec. , . abomination scene technicians found claret on the mattress within the master bed room.
“back Jennifer become requested in regards to the blood she pointed out that that was lifestyles with boys,” above Georgia bureau of investigation particular abettor Cayce Ingalls instructed producers. “Jennifer Clark’s epic became not very plausible to us.”
investigators also realized that in march , Donald had known as police afterwards alive up to find Jennifer standing over him ominously with an aluminum baseball bat, native bi-weekly Henry herald suggested in .
again, on December , , detectives got a call from a man who had found his dog chewing on a pockets it best up in the woods. “In that pockets independent Donald’s identity,” Lamar canton Sheriff’s Captain Chris Webster told producers.
board searched the enviornment, which became a short distance from Yost’s mother’s condo. In a kudzu patch on the aspect of the street, they found an aluminum baseball bat.
“We already knew that Jenny had threatened Donald with a baseball bat so discovering the bat, we knew that doubtlessly we had found the murder weapon,” Ingalls advised “airtight.”
The physique of Donald Clark changed into found subsequent, on the afternoon of December . He become wrapped in a absolute and coated with debris, native outlet Barnesville celerity mentioned on the time.
“He had a artificial bag over his arch. Of direction his arch become simply ... aged. That changed into a transparent indication that not best changed into he hit with a edgeless object actual complicated, he become hit dissimilar instances. It was an unpleasant blend,” above prosecutor Richard Milam informed producers.
Jennifer Clark and Michael Yost were arrested and answerable with homicide after the invention. They instantly grew to become on each other.
each is saying the other hit Donald in the arch with the bat,” lead investigator Rick McCreary explained to Barnesville dispatch afterwards taking them into custody Christmas Eve.
Jennifer claimed she changed into asleep in bed with Donald when she heard the returned door commence. Yost entered the bedroom and she or he ran to give protection to her sons, she talked about. after Yost exhausted Donald to loss of life with the baseball bat, he forced her to help him clean up.
In a further interview allowance, Yost became cogent a very distinct anecdote. He said that his relationship with Jennifer had persisted even after she confused back in along with her ex-bedmate. On the night of the homicide, Yost claimed, Jennifer called him around a.m. and asked him to come over. when he got there, he become surprised to find Donald Clark at home asleep in his bedroom.
“Michael Yost’s yarn is that Jennifer Clark then hits Donald Clark within the head with the baseball bat,” Ingalls informed producers. “Michael again recalled that Donald fabricated gurgling noises at which period he heard Jennifer hit Donald Clark about two extra instances.”
while Jennifer stayed at the residence cleansing up the homicide scene, Yost observed he dumped the physique and homicide weapon and acclimated Donald’s mobilephone to ship a textual content bulletin.
“At this element it becomes inappropriate who definitely hit Donald with the bat. They formulated a plan together. They both conspired to annihilate him,” Webster informed “airtight.”
along with his trial looming, Yost pleaded responsible in October to felony homicide, concealing the dying of a different, and analytical with facts, in accordance with the Henry herald. He changed into sentenced to existence in jail and isn t eligible for parole unless when he should be fifty three years old. He also agreed to testify towards Jennifer.
Jennifer Clark went on balloon in early . She testified on her personal account. It wasn’t a good idea.
“She had an outburst. She jumped up and noted that the only decent aspect about Michael Yost changed into what become between his legs. Screamed it in the middle of the courtroom,” Nalley informed “snapped.”
afterwards contemplating for under an hour, a jury found Jennifer Clark responsible on all counts on Feb. four, . She turned into sentenced to existence in penal complex plus years.
For extra on this case and others adore it, watch “airtight,” airing Sundays at c on Oxygen, or circulate episodes any time at Oxygenm.