Confessed killer remains free while discussions continue

Connie McCarthy's remains were found buried underneath concrete stairs of a vacant home Dec. 19, 2009. Her alleged killer has confessed to police but has yet to be charged with a crime.

Submitted Connie McCarthy's remains were found buried underneath concrete stairs of a vacant home Dec. 19, 2009. Her alleged killer has confessed to police but has yet to be charged with a crime.

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By Doug Page and Lucas Sullivan
Staff Writers Updated 9:05 AM Tuesday, June 29, 2010

DAYTON — A man who told police he killed a woman remains free seven months after his confession.

Connie McCarthy’s remains were found under concrete steps of a vacant house Dec. 19 after her alleged killer told police where to find the 54-year-old woman’s body.

Police said the public is not in danger as they await results of ongoing discussions between the Montgomery County Prosecutor’s Office and the confessed killer’s attorney before making an arrest. The man’s identity has not been released pending criminal charges.

Prosecutor Mat Heck’s spokesman said the case has been turned over to a grand jury for investigation, meaning jurors will decided if McCarthy’s confessed killer will face charges. It’s likely an arrest will not be made until the grand jury decides on the case.

A date to gather jurors has not been set.

McCarthy's cause of death is listed as “homicidal violence” of an unknown type, said Ken Betz, coroner’s director.

“There was no evidence of a gunshot or a stabbing,” he said. “There were no defects in the bones. We had a full skeleton.”

Missing since late 1996, McCarthy was found after the alleged killer walked into the Montgomery County Jail on Dec. 19, 2009 and confessed to causing her death, police said.

Detectives responded to a vacant home at 1124 Wyoming St. in the early morning Dec. 19 after the man told them where her body was, police said. They found her bones in a shallow grave outside the home.

McCarthy and the confessed killer knew each other before her death, though it is not clear how she died, police said.

Police have been awaiting DNA tests to positively identify McCarthy. Her family recently met with prosecutors and were briefed on the status on the investigation, but declined comment about the case.

Sgt. Gary White, head of the homicide squad, declined to comment on the investigation, referring all questions to Heck’s office.

It is unclear if McCarthy had children, but has numerous relatives living in the area. She had no criminal history, court records show.

Contact this reporter at (937) 225-2290 or dpage@DaytonDailyNews.com.

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