Dale Warner sentenced to up to 70 years in prison for murder of wife, Dee Warner
LENAWEE COUNTY, Mich. (FOX 2) - Dale Warner will spend up to 70 years in prison for murdering his wife, Dee Warner, after a judge decided that a consecutive sentence was appropriate in the case.
A jury found Dale Warner guilty of second-degree murder and tampering with evidence in March stemming from the 2021 murder of his 52-year-old wife in Lenawee County.
Dale Warner was sentenced to 31 ¼ to 60 years in prison for murder, and 17 months to 10 years for tampering with evidence.
Dale Warner gets decades behind bars for murdering wife
Dale Warner will spend up to 70 years in prison for murdering his wife, Dee Warner, after a judge decided that a consecutive sentence was appropriate in the case. A jury found Dale Warner guilty of second-degree murder and tampering with evidence in March stemming from the 2021 murder of his 52-year-old wife in Lenawee County.
Judge Michael Olsaver handed down the sentence after hearing tearful testimony from those who loved Dee Warner, including her adult children.
"His actions weren’t just violent, but calculated and self-serving," TJ Bock said. "Dale does not hurt people out of anger. He hurts them out of control."
Dee's daughter Rikkell Bock spoke about how her mother never got to meet one of her children.
Dee Warner was a mother to four adult children, one young child, and seven grandchildren.
The backstory:
"Dee Warner was reported missing in April 2021 after her children went to her Tecumseh home, and she wasn't there. According to testimony during trial, her disappearance came amid marital problems, and Dale Warner tried to claim that Dee Warner must have left on her own while he was out working on their farm.
In 2023, while Dee Warner was still missing, Dale Warner was arrested and charged following a declaration of death trial.
Dee Warner's body was found a year later in an anhydrous ammonia tank on her husband's farm.
What they're saying:
After the decision was announced, Dee Warner's brother, Gregg Hardy, spoke about the years and months that led up to the trial, as well as his feelings directly after the guilty statement came through.
"He is an atrocious piece of human trash, in my opinion," he said of Dale Warner.
He added he was disappointed the jury didn't agree on a first-degree murder decision, but said he was exuberant for his sister.
"Victory for her," he said.
The Source: Previous reporting was used in this story.