The shocking death of Karen Swift, her husband’s trial and the search for answers

On the night of October 29, 2011, the small town of Dyersburg, Tennessee came alive for Halloween. This spirit became truly dark when Karen Swift, a 44-year-old mother of four, disappeared. All that remained were her car, found abandoned the next morning by two hunters on a country road, and two broken cell phones, found near a neighbor’s house.

Six weeks later, what began as a missing persons case became a murder mystery when a caretaker near Bledsoe Cemetery in Dyer County found Karen’s body hidden under a tangle of vines. An autopsy revealed that she had suffered blunt force trauma to the head.

The case was closed, with no arrests made for over a decade, leaving a shadow over Halloween in Dyersburg and haunting the community. On August 8, 2022, the cold case was thawed when police announced the arrest of Karen’s husband, David Swift. After being indicted by a grand jury, David was charged with first-degree premeditated murder. He pleaded not guilty to committing the offense he was accused of.

Watch the “20/20” episode “Her Last Halloween” airing Friday, November 1 at 9 p.m. on ABC and streaming on Hulu beginning November 2.

The arrest came as a shock to many, including David and Karen’s then 20-year-old daughter, Ashley.

“You know, I remember trying to understand why,” Ashley Swift said in a new interview with “20/20.” “Why now? Why is this happening after so many years?”

David’s trial began on May 28, 2024. Community members wondered what evidence would explain his sudden arrest after 11 peaceful years.

On the first day of the trial, the prosecutor’s office told the jury that it would not present the case as a DNA case or that its key evidence would not include fingerprints or ballistics tests.

Instead, District Attorney Danny Goodman painted a portrait of a troubled marriage when Karen filed for divorce three weeks before her disappearance. The two have separated in the past, even getting divorced in 2000, and getting married again the same year, but the prosecution suggested that this time it was a more final moment.

On the morning of October 29, 2011, the eve of the evening of the disappearance, Karen declined David’s conciliatory offer to have dinner with him later that evening. The state’s theory was that rejection meant “eating”.(ing)“at David,” as Assistant District Attorney Tim Boxx put it during the trial, and Boxx speculated that David was beginning to realize that Karen was truly leaving him, “and this time for good.”

Daniel Taylor, David’s defense attorney, argued that David’s attempts to reconcile with Karen should not be read as a sign of feelings of rejection, but rather as evidence of his hopes for a rekindled relationship.

“Did David think maybe they could work it out again like they did the first time?” Taylor asked during David’s trial. – Was he hopeful about it? Yes.

The prosecution also alleged that David sought to control and supervise his wife’s movements in the later days of their marriage.

In response, the defense sought to convince the jury that David’s alleged actions did not exist in a vacuum.

Karen’s friends and family maintained that Karen had assumed some sort of new identity in the period leading up to the murder. She formed a new circle of friends who often went to parties at The Farms Golf Club in Dyersburg. It is also said that she started drinking and going out more often.

“Karen’s behavior has changed with this new group,” David’s friend Kim Greene told “20/20” in an exclusive interview. “She was determined to play with them instead of staying at home with the children where she belonged… (David) He only went out to see where his wife was.

Taylor also questioned the prosecution’s assumption that David “controlled” his wife. Taylor indicated that she had access to their joint bank account and that Karen could go wherever she wanted. He also emphasized that David visited Karen frequently and “it got on her nerves,” but there was no violence involved.

David echoed this sentiment in an interview with “20/20.”

“I have never raised a hand to anyone, not now or ever,” David told ABC News’ Juju Chang. “And I certainly wouldn’t do that to my wife or the mother of my children… It’s just not my character.”

Ultimately, David’s trial ended on June 6 with a not guilty verdict on the charges of first-degree premeditated murder and the lesser charge of second-degree murder. However, the jury was unable to reach a verdict on the lesser offense of voluntary manslaughter – a deadlock that led to a mistrial on that charge.

The jury was unable to hear about the stalking charges David faced in Jefferson County, Alabama, related to his ex-wife, Kelly Essman. He met Essman on the dating site Christian Mingle in 2014, three years after Karen’s death, and they married in May 2016.

Essman, who has not previously shared her story publicly, spoke to “20/20” in an exclusive interview.

“I look at how easy it was for me to talk (David)and I believed everything he told me,” Essman said. “And I felt like he was sincere. Why didn’t I see this? How can I trust that I can see through anything else?”

“20/20” obtained footage of David at Essman’s home in the middle of the night while they were already separated.

“I turned on the channel,” Essman told “20/20.” “And he was in my yard, in the middle of the night… He had to drive 40 minutes each way to get to my house.”

David was charged with stalking in Alabama in July 2023 and has not yet entered a plea. His attorney did not respond to a request for comment on “20/20.”

Despite the charges against him, David’s friends and family said they saw a gentle person.

“David is too nice a man,” Kim Greene said of her friend. “He wouldn’t hurt anyone.”

Ashley Swift also remembered her father’s compassionate moments, speaking to “20/20” about seeing him help her mother pay for her Christmas shopping.

“She put things away when she checked out,” Ashley recalled. “And my dad took care of it all so that her children could have a good Christmas. Things like that really stand out to me.”

On October 15, the Tennessee Court of Appeals denied David’s defense team’s request to dismiss Karen’s murder case, setting the stage for a new trial on the manslaughter charge. He pleaded not guilty to the charges brought against him.

When Karen Swift first went missing in 2011, there was a deep hunger in the Dyersburg community for answers – answers that could provide them with closure and justice for Karen.

After 13 years and one attempt, this longing remains unfulfilled. But Karen’s memory – and the hope of those who cherish her – still promises to endure.

“At the end of the day, I know the truth for my family,” her daughter Ashley told “20/20.” “And I know my mom would want me to keep fighting for her.”