Missing Evidence May Hamper Trial of Man Charged With 1981 Murder

The Cold Case unit at the Hamilton county district attorney general’s office may have trouble with a case it reopened
last September.
Investigators got an indictment against William Frank Hawk in the 1981 death of Johnny Mack Salyar.
But some of the strongest evidence apparently is missing.
Sixty one year old Billy Hawk was in Judge Don Poole’s criminal court in the morning for his first preliminary hearing on a first degree murder charge.
The district Attorney’s Cold Case unit turned up evidence last September they say ties Hawk to the murder of Johnny Mack Salyar 34 years ago.
Salyar’s body was found in a steel drum floating in the Tennessee River.

NEAL PINKSTON, 9/22/15, DISTRICT ATTORNEY GENERAL “If you don’t give up, and keep looking ..you’re bound to find interesting things.”

But older cases have built-in problems for prosecutors.

Hawk’s defense attorneys at the morning appearance, were quick to point out that the steel drum that held the body is missing.
And so is a chest x-ray of the victim that taken after Salyar’s body was exhumed. That x-ray is said to show a bullet wound to the chest .

BILL SPEEK, DEFENSE ATTORNEY “This is a really old case. The state has had a long time to work on it …we’re being thrown into a pretty quick trial track, we need the state to provide the evidence…or explain why they are missing key pieces of evidence in this case.”

Speek and co-defense attorney Jim Logan say they are looking for evidence that didn’t change over the years. .

JIM LOGAN, DEFENSE ATTORNEY ” If we could find that barrel, it may be that there’s evidence available to exonerate our client.”

The prosecutor’s office claims Hawk knew Salyar and in fact was awaiting trial in 1981 on a cocaine distribution charge with him.

Judge Don Poole granted Hawk’s request for the state to produce the X-ray and barrel as evidence.

What happened to the missing evidence? Pinkston thinks the sheriff’s department failed to preserve the evidence back in 1981.

BILL SPEEK ” Witnesses that could testify to that are no longer with us. That’s an inherently unique problem when you try to prosecute a case 35 years old.”

Hawk has been in jail on 500-thousand dollars bond since his September arrest.

Judge Don Poole set another pre-trial hearing for February 22nd.
That court appearance will set guidelines for evidence that can be used against Hawk.
A jury trial is set for April 5th.