GALVESTON \u2014 A Galveston County grand jury has indicted a Bacliff man in connection with two murders tied to the long-unsolved \u201cTexas Killing Fields\u201d cases, as prosecutors reveal a key suspect in the decades-old investigation has died.<\/p>\n
James Dolphs Elmore Jr. has been indicted on manslaughter and felony tampering with evidence in the death of Laura Miller, along with an additional tampering with evidence charge in the murder of Audrey Cook, according to the Galveston County Criminal District Attorney\u2019s Office.<\/p>\n
The indictments come as part of a renewed push by investigators to solve multiple killings linked to the \u201cTexas Killing Fields,\u201d where authorities believe the remains of dozens of women have been discovered over the years.<\/p>\n
The Texas Killing Fields refers to a 25-acre area in League City, off Interstate 45.<\/p>\n
More than 30 bodies\u2014mostly young women\u2014were discovered between the 1970s and 1990s. <\/p>\n
This corridor, specifically a patch near Calder Road, has been the focus of unsolved murders and the subject of the 2011 film “Texas Killing Fields.”<\/p>\n
Hedrick dies before indictment<\/p>\n
Prosecutors say longtime suspect Clyde Hedrick recently died before he could be brought before a grand jury on new charges connected to the Killing Fields cases.<\/p>\n
Despite his death, the District Attorney\u2019s Office still presented evidence of Hedrick\u2019s alleged involvement in the killings to the grand jury in an effort to maintain transparency and provide some closure for victims\u2019 families.<\/p>\n
Hedrick had long been considered a prime suspect. He was previously convicted of manslaughter in the death of Ellen Beason and served prison time before being paroled.<\/p>\n
Charges follow renewed investigation<\/p>\n
The new indictments stem from a reinvigorated investigation that began in 2024 and expanded after District Attorney Kenneth Cusick took office. A multi-agency task force reexamined evidence and re-interviewed witnesses in cases tied to the Killing Fields.<\/p>\n
Following that work, prosecutors sought indictments against both Hedrick and Elmore. The grand jury ultimately indicted Elmore for his alleged role in the deaths of Cook and Miller.<\/p>\n
Press conference scheduled<\/p>\n
Officials are expected to release more details during a 10 a.m. press conference tomorrow.<\/p>\n
Decades-old cases<\/p>\n
The Texas Killing Fields are located near Calder Road and Ervin Street in League City, where the bodies of four young women were found between 1984 and 1991:<\/p>\n
Heidi Fye-VillarealAudrey CookLaura MillerDonna Prudhomme<\/p>\n
Investigators say the broader area is tied to many more unsolved cases.<\/p>\n
Ongoing investigation<\/p>\n
Officials say they have met with victims\u2019 families to discuss the indictments and stress the investigation is ongoing.<\/p>\n
Multiple agencies, including local police departments across Galveston County and the FBI, continue working together to bring answers in the decades-old cases.<\/p>\n
“The Galveston County Criminal District Attorney commends the League City Police Department, Hitchcock Police Department, Galveston County Sheriff\u2019s Office, Texas City Police Department, Federal Bureau of Investigation, Dickinson Police Department, Galveston Police Department and Santa Fe Police Department for their ongoing assistance into these difficult cases,” the Galveston County District Attorney’s office said.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"GALVESTON \u2014 A Galveston County grand jury has indicted a Bacliff man in connection with two murders tied…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":229887,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[27,29,28],"class_list":{"0":"post-229886","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-texas","8":"tag-texas","9":"tag-texas-headlines","10":"tag-texas-news"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/229886","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=229886"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/229886\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/229887"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=229886"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=229886"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=229886"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}