New Jersey man charged with murder after strangling disabled daughter
Hall's wife Jan, says she wants her husband to explain why he killed their daughter
A 71-year-old New Jersey man has been charged with first-degree murder after allegedly strangling his 40-year-old daughter, who had disabilities, at the family home in Franklin Township — and admitting to the act both during his emergency call and when police arrived.
PEOPLE reported that Dennis J. Hall was taken into custody following the death of his daughter, Devin Hall, who was found unresponsive at their East Avenue home at 6:16 a.m. on Thursday, 11 June.
What police say happened
Officers from the Franklin Township Police Department responded to the home after Hall called to report his daughter was not breathing. A press release from the Gloucester County Prosecutor's Office alleged that Hall did not attempt to conceal what had happened.
"Hall admitted to strangling the victim both on the call to emergency services and to officers when they arrived," the release states. "A witness also told police that Hall had woken them up and admitted to strangling the victim."
Devin was rushed to hospital but died on 12 June after being removed from life support. An autopsy confirmed the cause of death as asphyxiation.
A mother's anguish
Devin's mother, Jan Hall, told ABC6 that her husband had been suffering from depression in the period before the killing. She described the moment he woke her to tell her what he had done.
"When he woke me up, I asked him what was wrong, and he said, 'I strangled Devin. She's dead.' And I thought I didn't hear him right," she said. Jan then attempted to perform CPR on her daughter before emergency services arrived.
She said she believes her husband had other options available to him that night. "He had an opportunity to come in and get me when he went in there and she had wet the bed. He could've came and woke me up. I could've helped him," she told the outlet.
Jan said she is desperate for answers. "I want him to tell me why he did it," she said, describing the experience as feeling like "walking in a nightmare."
Who Devin Hall was
Devin Hall's obituary paints a picture of a life full of curiosity and joy. She had visited 32 states and was a devoted fan of country music star Toby Keith, whom she saw perform in concert at the age of 25. The obituary notes that she visited Graceland and "was treated like a princess by the staff," and that among her greatest pleasures were long walks with her mother and rides on her bike.
Hall is currently being held at Salem County Jail. A detention hearing is scheduled for 23 June. He has not yet entered a plea.