One of the three individuals charged with Concealment of a Homicide in connection with the death of Chase Mitchell was in court Tuesday morning. 22-year old Toria Emerson pled not guilty at her preliminary hearing. Court documents indicate probable cause was found and Emerson, who will turn 23 next week, is due back in court for pre-trial on September 22nd with her trial, as of now, set to begin on October 7th.
Chase Mitchell of Eldorado was 32 when volunteers found his body near the Saline/Gallatin County line on June 9th. Mitchell was reported missing by family to Eldorado law enforcement in early May. The charging documents allege the three defendants knowingly concealed the death by disposing of Mitchell’s body, officials say sometime between April 15th and June 9th.
The other two defendants, 30-year old Richard Emerson and 42-year old Troy Gwaltney, are due in the same Saline County court on Thursday at 12:30pm.
Illinois State Police are continuing their investigation as the family awaits the filing of official murder charges. While we have been offered additional (some gruesome) details by individuals with knowledge of the situation, we’re not sharing it at this point as ISP authorities aren’t releasing information due to the ongoing nature of their probe for answers. Despite rumors, Illinois State Police say they have found no evidence at this point that the Mitchell case is in any way connected to another recent White County death.
Find more in the original story at https://www.wrul.com/local-news/body-found-tuesday-night-in-gallatin-county/
