October 31, 2014
The body of a 3-year-old girl was found dismembered and abandoned in Kansas City in 2001. Referred to as “Precious Doe” by law enforcement and the media, the child remained unidentified for years despite numerous computerized sketches and a nationwide search.
Some four years later, Precious Doe was identified as Erica Michelle Marie Green. Her mother and stepfather, Michelle and Harrell Johnson, were charged in the murder of their daughter. Attorney and former prosecutor Tim Dollar agreed to handle the high-profile murder case for the Jackson County Prosecutor’s Office. Six years after Erica’s death, Michelle Johnson was sentenced to 25 years in prison in exchange for her guilty plea to second-degree murder and testimony against her husband, who was convicted of first-degree murder and is serving a life sentence.
The case of Precious Doe had an enormous effect on the Kansas City community and those involved in solving her murder. Former police Sgt. Marla Bernard, with the assistance of her husband, police Sgt. Dave Bernard, chronicled the case of Precious Doe in the 2014 book “Through The Rain.” The memoir includes court transcripts and Dollar’s closing statement to the jury.
“The following is the transcript of Tim Dollar’s powerful closing statement to the jury:
What will the correct verdict, the right verdict mean? It will mean that there will be a public and permanent record for all eternity as to what happened in this case … It will mean that Kansas City’s long nightmare was over; that a little three-year-old girl can rest in peace, and that finally someone, someone stood up for “little E”, someone stood up for Precious Doe, someone stood up for Erica Michelle Marie Green.”
Additional press about “Precious Doe” Case:
Kansas City Star – Precious Doe’s Mother Pleads Guilty to Felony Murder
New York Times – Missouri: Woman Pleads Guilty in Daughter’s Death