Trial begins in Henslee-Howarth murders

PAW PAW, Mich. (WOOD) - On January 24, 2011, Amy Henslee disappeared from her home in Hartford Township. Her husband, James - who was working when she went missing - searched on his own before he called police that night.

Days later, Junior Lee (BJ) Beebe Jr. was arrested and charged with killing the 30-year-old mother of two and his girlfriend, Tonya Howarth, then waiting two days before burying their bodies in a shallow grave near a small trailer on his family's property.

Jury selection begins Tuesday in a Van Buren County courtroom in the case that shook a tiny town in southwest Michigan.

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24 Hour News 8 will follow each moment of the trial once the jury is chosen with a live stream on woodtv.com and a CoverItLive session for you to share your thoughts of the moment.

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In February, Beebe, 34, was ordered to stand trial despite his claim that it was Howarth who shot Henslee and that he shot Howarth in response.

Beebe is the second cousin of Amy Henslee's husband, James.

In a preliminary exam in February, James Henslee testified he spoke to Beebe twice on the day of the disappearance -- after a neighbor told him she had seen a black pickup truck, similar to Beebe's, in the Henslee driveway that morning. The neighbor said she saw a woman, whom she believed was Amy Henslee, walk willingly into the truck.

That's the last time anyone else saw Henslee.

Beebe told James Henslee a different story -- that he'd knocked on the Henslee door but that nobody answered, so he left, Henslee said.

Beebe called James Henslee later that day to see if Amy Henslee was still missing, the husband said.

Three days later, police found blood near a trailer owned by Beebe's uncle, and asked Beebe if he knew anything about it.

That's when, police said, Beebe told them, "I know what happened to Amy," and told them where to find the bodies.

State Police Sgt. James Campbell said the bodies were buried so close to the trailer, police had to move it with a forklift and chain.

In a police interview, Beebe said he was a cage fighter who had recently won a bout. Beebe told police Henslee went willingly with him to the trailer that morning to watch a videotape of that fight and "also engage in smoking a joint," police said. He said she knew she had to return home by 10 a.m., when her husband would be calling from work.

But, at 9:45 a.m, he told the detective, Howarth flung open the trailer door, "screaming at them, yelling, 'I knew this was going on." The detective said Beebe's story continued this way: That Howarth grabbed a loaded .410 shotgun near the door, and that it "went off," striking Henslee. "Then Tonya shot another round point blank into her chest," State Police Detective Sgt. Diane Oppenheim quoted him as saying.

When he jumped up, Howarth went to rack another round into the shotgun and told him, "You're next," the detective testified. After the gun jammed, they started wrestling and the gun went off.

He wasn't sure if that shot hit her, so "he cocked another round and shot her down," Oppenheim testified.

The defense argues it's fair to charge Beebe with Howarth's death, but there's no evidence outside of his statement that links him to Henslee's death.

However, Prosecutor Juris Kap said the evidence shows Beebe's version is nothing more than a story.

"We've got two females who each have two gunshot wounds who are then buried by the defendant, who then hides the gun, who then proceeds to lie about any knowledge about the disappearance of Amy Henslee," Kap said. "So we know that he's a liar."

Prosecutors also laid out on the courtroom floor a taped lifesize outline of the trailer where the shootings took place. They claimed the trailer is too small for the shootings to have taken place in the manner Beebe claims.

24 Hour News 8 will continue to follow this story.