Karyn’s Life and Disappearance:
Karyn was a devoted mother to her 3-year-old son, Kolton, who was staying with his paternal grandparents, Michael and Jeanette Slover, in Mount Zion on the day she disappeared. Despite plans to pick up Kolton after work and go shopping, Karyn never arrived. The Slovers reported that she neither called them nor answered their calls, raising concerns that something was terribly wrong.
Two days later, the nightmare began to unravel. Karyn’s remains were found wrapped in plastic bags, weighed down by concrete bricks in Lake Shelbyville. The gruesome discovery shifted the investigation from a missing person’s case to a homicide, with Karyn’s dismembered body pointing to a crime of rage and overkill.
The Investigation Begins:
The police quickly began piecing together clues. Karyn had been driving a car borrowed from her boyfriend, David Swann, because her own vehicle was being repaired. When her body was identified through dental records, the investigation focused on those closest to her. David Swann was initially a suspect due to his strange behavior and the fact that his alibi had a 40-minute gap. However, video evidence later cleared him of any involvement, as did a more thorough examination of his activities that night.
Suspicion Falls on the Slovers:
With Swann and other ex-boyfriends cleared, suspicion began to fall on Karyn’s ex-in-laws, Michael and Jeanette Slover. There were troubling signs that the Slovers, particularly Jeanette, had become possessively attached to Kolton. Friends and acquaintances described Jeanette’s behavior as obsessive, with some even recalling her saying that one day, Kolton would be “all hers.”
A significant breakthrough came in 1998 when police discovered that the concrete bricks used to weigh down Karyn’s body matched broken pieces found at Miracle Motors, a used car dealership owned by Michael Slover Sr. This evidence, along with other findings from Karyn’s car and the dealership, led investigators to suspect that the Slovers were involved in Karyn’s murder. The motive, it seemed, centered on a custody battle for Kolton, with the Slovers fearing that Karyn planned to move out of state to pursue a modeling career, taking Kolton with her.
The Trial and Conviction:
The case against the Slovers was bolstered by forensic evidence, including dog hairs found in Karyn’s car that matched hairs from a black lab owned by Michael Slover Sr. Although the reliability of dog DNA was later questioned, it played a crucial role in the arrests. In January 2000, Michael Sr., Jeanette, and their son Michael Jr. were charged with Karyn’s murder.
In 2002, the Slovers were convicted of first-degree murder. Michael Sr. and Jr. received 60-year sentences, with an additional five years for concealing Karyn’s body. Jeanette was sentenced to 60 years. The family maintained their innocence, insisting that they had nothing to do with Karyn’s death.
Challenges to the Convictions:
Despite the convictions, questions have lingered about the fairness of the trial and the validity of the evidence used against the Slovers. In 2024, the Illinois Innocence Project filed a petition with new DNA evidence that could potentially exonerate the Slovers. The petition claims that DNA from three unidentified males was found at the crime scene, none of which matched the convicted individuals. The project also argues that the Slovers were convicted based on “junk science,” including unreliable comparisons of concrete and dog hairs.
As of March 2024, Michael Jr. has been released on parole. His mother, Jeanette, remains incarcerated, with parole not scheduled until 2027. Michael Sr. passed away in prison in 2022. The case continues to draw attention as the Slovers seek to clear their names, and the truth about Karyn Slover’s murder remains elusive.
Conclusion:
The murder of Karyn Slover shocked the community of Decatur and left a lasting impact on those who knew her. As the case continues to develop, with new evidence and ongoing legal battles, the quest for justice for Karyn remains as urgent as ever. The involvement of the Illinois Innocence Project has reignited interest in the case, and it may only be a matter of time before the true story behind Karyn’s tragic death comes to light.