ABC News Correspondent
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78 appearances
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2 series
first heard Dec 2024
last heard Jun 2025
ABC News Correspondent’s voice in public audio — every appearance, attributed to the second.
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Thompson also said prosecutors had a terrible problem. They did not have physical evidence tying Zach Adams to Holly Bobo. Investigators had searched Zach's house and the nearby house of his grandpa, Dick Adams.
She closed with a straightforward declaration.
After opening statements, the prosecution called their first witnesses, Dana, Karen, and Clint Bobo. Karen Bobo's testimony encapsulated all the emotions that had built up for years around the case. Prosecutor Jennifer Nichols asked Karen about the details of the morning Holly disappeared, like what Holly was wearing and their last interactions.
And then she had Karen unzip Holly's lunch bag, the one that had been found during the search.
Yes, ma'am. Next, the prosecutor had Karen identify Holly's purse, her keys, her wallet. Karen sounded like she was holding back tears. And eventually, she turned to the judge and said... Everyone in the courtroom stood up to see what was going on. The judge stood up, too, to maintain order. Karen had fallen to the floor. She was sobbing and had trouble catching her breath.
The judge said Karen suffered a panic attack that required medical attention. The defense was worried that Karen's distress would make it impossible for the jury to listen to her testimony objectively and asked for a new jury to be called. The judge did not agree. Once Karen had recovered, he asked the jury to come back in and ordered the trial to continue.
After Karen Bobo's testimony, Clint Bobo was called to testify. He gave the account that had been so central to the investigation, describing what he had heard and seen as Holly was kidnapped and what the man who took her looked like and sounded like. 5'10", 200 pounds, dark hair, gravelly voice. In the next couple of days, the prosecution called a range of other witnesses.
A forensic pathologist testified that Holly was shot in the back of the head, likely at close range and likely by a .32 caliber bullet. The defense challenged this by asking the pathologist about some unknown variables in his analysis, like how far away the person who shot Holly was from her and whether the bullet fractured before hitting her.
In response, the pathologist said it was true that because of those factors, he could not know for certain the size of the bullet that killed Holly. Zach's ex-girlfriend also took the stand. She had previously verified Zach's alibi, telling authorities that she was at his house the morning of Holly's kidnapping and he was sleeping. But she testified that she wasn't sure what he did that morning.
She also testified that when she saw him the next day, he had scratches on his neck that she hadn't seen before. She said she did not ask Zach about them. When defense attorney Jennifer Thompson cross-examined her, she asked whether her statements in the case had changed over time.
Zach's ex-girlfriend said yes and later admitted that she had previously told investigators she believed the scratches on Zach were from being chased by a police officer through the woods in an unrelated incident. Overall, a total of nine witnesses, including Zach's ex-girlfriend, testified that over the years, Zach, often while on drugs or in jail, made incriminating statements.
By the prosecutor's count, at least 10 were shared in court. They include statements like, I couldn't have picked a prettier It sure was fun. If he doesn't keep his mouth shut, I'm going to plant him next to that. And I'll kill you like I did Holly Bobo. One person testified that Zach asked if God would ever forgive him.
The first few days of the trial were all building towards the testimony of Jason Autry. He was about to take the stand and share what he claimed was an eyewitness account of Holly's murder.
Jason Autry entered the Hardin County Courthouse wearing a white prison jumpsuit. He was now 44 and had gray hair, a gray beard, and reading glasses with him. He was charged with the murder, kidnapping, and rape of Holly Bobo. Jason's time on the stand would go on for nearly six hours. The weather had been warm during the whole trial, but on that particular day, it was hot.
The high reached the mid-80s. The courtroom did not have air conditioning. And as it got hotter and hotter, people were sweating and fanning themselves trying to cool off. Most of Jason's testimony detailed everything he says he witnessed on April 13, 2011. Prosecutor Jennifer Nichols put Jason on the stand. Zach's defense attorney, Jennifer Thompson, cross-examined him.
Jason said the morning of April 13th he wanted to buy morphine, so he called Shane Austin and Zach Adams. After 8 a.m., Zach called him back and said he needed Jason's help. He told Jason to meet him at Shane Austin's house. Jason said he assumed Zach needed help cooking meth.
Jason said he bought a morphine pill, got high, and then Zach told him.
Jason said Zach told him it was Holly Bobo's body.
Jason testified that Zach drove the two of them to a spot under a bridge on the Tennessee River, not far from a boat marina, and backed his truck up to a pile of rocks. Jason said he and Zach then took Holly's body out of the car and put her on the rock pile.
Jason spoke slowly, but he moved a lot on the stand. He made big hand gestures and even tried to act out the scenes he was describing. The courtroom was captivated.
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