David
David Thorne was a high school graduate. He worked for an auto detailer and lived with his grandparents. He had worked at his job for 6 years. His father committed suicide when he was 5 or 6, and he doesn’t have much of a memory of him. His mother was a long distance truck driver and was gone a lot; therefore, David was brought up by his grandparents. David does not have a history of violence. He is known as a hard working man. David owned and trained one cougar. Additionally, he enjoyed occasionally “babysitting” cubs for Ben’s Exotics wild animal habitat. David was also involved with shoot fighting, which is a mixed martial arts sport. At the time of Yvonne’s death, David was in a relationship with Amy Davis. They had been dating for about two years. Amy learned that David and Yvonne conceived their son, likely while David and Amy were already dating. Amy was not too happy about that, however, stayed with David.
The police alleged that David was involved in Yvonne’s murder because he did not want to pay child support for his son. They alleged that he preferred to care for his son himself and therefore wanted to get rid of Yvonne. The police alleged that he hired Joe Wilkes to murder Yvonne and paid him $300.
On the night of Yvonne’s murder, David was more than an hour out of town at a shoot fighting class. His classmates have all confirmed he was present at class that night.
Message from David:
When Yvonne was killed, the Layne family lost their daughter. I lost a good friend and the mother of my son. Yvonne and I got along well. She contacted me to tell me that she had a child, possibly mine, just before I was contacted by the court for paternity testing. I met Brandon for the first time when I went in for testing. I knew he was mine instantly, because he looked just like me. Even though the results weren't back, I started going to Yvonne's house to spend time with my son there. I thought that way he could get used to being with me before I took him to visit for the first time away from his mother's home. Within a week, Brandon was comfortable enough with me to stay his first weekend.
When the paternity results were in, a court date was set. Yvonne told the court how well we got along. She told them that she hadn't notified me that she'd had my son. Because of this the court waived the birthing costs. She told the court that even before the results were in, I'd already started supporting my son.
I was at work when my grandfather paged me to tell me that Yvonne had died. Her mother had called to tell him what had happened, and to have him contact me to come and get Brandon. I immediately left work and went to the Layne's. I expressed my condolences and took my son to my home. I picked him up wearing a diaper and one sock. I went shopping and bought the things he would need, to add to the things I already had.
Detectives told my grandmother that I was a person of 'extreme interest'. That in cases like this, it's always the family or boyfriend. I went to the Alliance Police Station to speak with detectives. I wanted to help them find who had done this. Instead they were rude and verbally insulting. They repeated, "Help us help you". They repeatedly asked me "why I had done this". I repeatedly told them "I didn't do this". The truth didn't matter to them, and it didn't matter to the court. I was convicted of a crime I did not commit.
I would never hurt Yvonne. She was the mother of my son. My ex-girlfriend, but still my friend. My son not only lost his mother, he lost his father due to the incompetence, laziness and ignorance of the people charged with solving the crime and those responsible for convicting an innocent man.
David Thorne
2007
