LIBERTY, Mo. (Sept. 17, 2024) – Timothy Haslett Jr. appeared in Clay County Court on Tuesday as the court addressed the preservation of key witness testimony and scheduled important trial dates.
The prosecution, concerned about securing testimony from the case’s main witness, requested a court-supervised deposition as soon as possible. The witness had been found by Haslett’s neighbors on October 7, 2022, claiming she escaped from his home after being held against her will in his basement “dungeon” for over a month, where she was repeatedly abused. According to reports, she told her rescuers, “My friends didn’t make it out.”
On July 9, 2024, Haslett was charged with the murder of Jaynie Crosdale, who had been identified as a potential witness or victim in the case. Kayakers found Crosdale’s decomposed body on the Missouri River in a blue barrel, similar to those seen outside Haslett’s home when police executed a search warrant on his property in October 2022. The charge of Crosdale’s murder, a Class A felony, brought the total number of charges against Haslett to ten, adding to the existing charges of rape, sodomy, kidnapping, assault, and endangering the welfare of a child.
The prosecutor stated that the witness is homeless and was recently located living in a tent in downtown Kansas City, raising concerns about the challenges of securing her testimony for future court appearances.
Public Defender Tiffany Leuty Winningham countered the request, explaining that she needed more time to review the extensive evidence to properly prepare for the witness’s cross-examination. Winningham cited more than four terabytes of digital evidence she was still working through and requested that the deposition be delayed until the spring of 2025.
While the prosecution agreed to allow the defense additional time, they urged that the deposition be scheduled as soon as possible. Judge David Chamberlain sought a compromise and set the deposition for December 30, 2024, at 9:00 AM, with the court presiding over the proceedings. The judge also ruled that the state must provide all discovery related to the witness at least ten days before the deposition.
Judge Chamberlain emphasized that this deposition would not preclude additional discovery depositions from being conducted either before or after the scheduled date.
After addressing the deposition, Judge Chamberlain worked with both parties to establish key trial dates. Jury selection is set to begin in the summer of 2025. The pre-trial conference is scheduled for October 24, 2025, at 9:00 AM, with pre-trial motions due by September 2, 2025. A two-week window has been reserved for the jury trial, which is slated to begin on December 1, 2025, at 9:00 AM.
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