WHITE CLOUD, Mich. (WZZM) The preliminary hearing of two brothers accused of a murder from 1989 entered its second day Thursday.
Matthew and Paul Jones are accused of killing Shannon Siders, then 17, in June of 1989.
The former Medical Examiner for Newaygo County testified Thursday afternoon that Shannon Siders' body was found with her shirt and bra up around her neck and her underwear at her ankles. He said that Siders had two broken ribs, a fractured shoulder bone, a broken nose and was missing part of her skull. He testified that Siders body was bruised from injuries that occurred while she was alive. Dental records were used to identify her body. He testified that Siders was probably arrived for about five minutes while being beaten.
Photos were shown in court today of Siders' body. Siders' father, Bob, has been in court throughout the hearings, but left the courtroom while the photos were displayed.
The first witness Thursday, Judith Decan, described hearing a girl's screams and male voices at about 2:30am, but was unsure of what night they occurred. Decan's home at the time was surrounding by the Manistee National Forest and close to an area where a witness on Wednesday testified she saw Paul Jones dragging a girl. Decan says she didn't call police because she didn't have a phone.
The second witness was a retired Michigan State Police Detective who interviewed Matt Jones in November of 1989 about the case.
The hearing will continue on Friday. After all the evidence is presented, the judge is expected to take several days, if not weeks, to decide if the murder charges should be heard by a jury at a trial.
Wednesday, Jenny Corrigan, who was 14 at the time, testified that she was riding on two-track trails that day with a 19-year-old man and they came across another car back in the woods. After driving around some more, she saw a lifeless girl on the ground near Jones' car. Corrigan then said she was made to promise to never tell anyone what she saw.
WZZM 13's Jon Mills will have more from court on WZZM 13 News at Noon. You can follow him on Twitter from the courtroom below.
