FULTON COUNTY, Ga. — A jury has found Christopher Wolfenbarger not guilty of his wife’s 1998 murder.
The Fulton County jury began deliberating on Friday afternoon and returned a not guilty verdict just a few hours later.
Christopher Wolfenbarger appeared visibly relieved upon hearing the verdict.
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Melissa Wolfenbarger, 21, disappeared in 1998, not long after Thanksgiving. In April and June of 1999, detectives found dismembered human remains in trash bags not far from her home.
Her remains were identified via dental records in March 2003.
Christopher Wolfenbarger was arrested for Melissa Wolfenbarger’s murder in 2024 because of new DNA evidence.
Defense attorney Don Samuel told Channel 2 Investigative Reporter Mark Winne after the verdict was announced that the case was “unusual” because all of the scientific evidence pointed to his client’s innocence. He says the hair and DNA found on the bags where Melissa Wolfenbarger’s body was found do not match Christopher Wolfenbarger.
He added that he expects Christopher Wolfenbarger to be processed out of the Fulton County Jail in time to eat dinner at home.
A spokesperson for the Fulton County District Attorney’s Office said, “We always respect the jury’s verdict.”
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Defense attorneys admitted the couple had a tumultuous relationship, but said Christopher Wolfenbarger did not kill his wife.
And they said he didn’t report her missing for nearly two years because she had already moved out and given up parental rights to their children.
“Christopher could safely assume she decided to live her life on her own terms,” said attorney Joel McDurmon.
Melissa Wolfenbarger’s father, Carl Patton Jr., is a serial killer accused of a string of murders in the 1970s.
Channel 2 Action News was there in 2003 when Patton Jr. was turned over to the custody of the Fayette County Sheriff’s Office, already suspected of four killings known as the Flint River Murders, because the first two bodies discovered were found in or by the Flint River.
When Patton was captured, he reportedly told police he did not kill his daughter, but asked them to put as much effort into finding her as they did into finding him.
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