Kansas woman guilty of 2002 double homicide, again

A Kansas jury has found Dana Chandler guilty of murdering her ex-husband and his girlfriend, more than two decades after the killings and following two previous trials that failed to secure a lasting conviction. Chandler was convicted of shooting Mike Sisco, 47, and Karen Harkness, 53, at Harkness's home in Topeka in July 2002. The pair were discovered dead in bed by Harkness's father, who had gone to check on them after they failed to answer the door for a planned family gathering.

The latest trial, held in Westmoreland after a change of venue, saw Chandler dismiss her legal team on the morning of opening statements and choose to represent herself. She went on to testify for around 20 hours across seven days, denying any involvement and telling jurors the prosecution had failed to prove its case.

Prosecutors pointed to Chandler's history of harassment and stalking following her bitter divorce from Sisco, along with hundreds of phone calls made to the couple in the months before the murders. Central to the case were secret recordings made by Chandler and Sisco's daughter, Hailey Seel, in which her mother appeared to admit having considered killing Sisco.

No forensic evidence, murder weapon or eyewitness ever placed Chandler at the crime scene, and the defence argued throughout that the case rested on speculation rather than proof.

Chandler's first conviction, secured in 2012, was later overturned by the Kansas Supreme Court after the prosecutor was found to have made misleading statements to jurors. A second trial in 2022 ended in a hung jury. Following the latest guilty verdict, Chandler is reported to be pursuing an appeal. She has consistently maintained her innocence throughout more than two decades of legal proceedings.