By The Oregonian/OregonLive
Aggravated murder charges against two women linked to the killing of a 9-year-old girl whose remains were dumped along a muddy riverbank two years ago along Oregon Highway 18 east of Lincoln City were dismissed Friday, according to Lincoln County court records.
The stunning development came three months after Shawna Browning, 28, and Lauren Harrison, 33, were arrested in connection with the death of Hayley Mae Coblentz. Browning was Hayley’s mother.
The women were arrested in December during a traffic stop in Detroit, Mich. and were held in a local jail, pending extradition to Oregon.
Browning arrived in Lincoln County last weekend and made a court appearance Monday. Harrison had yet to arrive.
Lincoln County District Attorney Lanee Danforth said in a text message to The Oregonian/OregonLive on Saturday that the Oregon Department of Justice, which she asked to prosecute the case, dismissed the charges before presenting the case to a grand jury, “pending further investigation.”
She referred questions to the Department of Justice. Kristina Edmunson, an agency spokesperson, said Danforth asked for the agency’s help in late February.
“Upon review of the investigation to date, we determined that additional investigation was warranted before proceeding to present the cases to the grand jury,” Edmunson said in an email.
Court records in the case shed little light on the apparent collapse of the case, which was investigated by the Oregon State Police.
The women had faced allegations of aggravated murder, the only crime punishable by death in Oregon.
Kurt W. Miller, a senior assistant attorney general, on Thursday filed motions to dismiss the charges against both women. The state could in theory file charges against the pair in the future.
An arrest warrant for Harrison was withdrawn Friday, the same day Browning was released from the Lincoln County Jail. Browning identified Harrison as her wife in a 2015 Facebook post.
Their arrests late last year capped a nearly yearlong effort by the Oregon State Police to identify the girl and determine the circumstances of her death. She appeared to have no record of schooling or involvement with Oregon’s child welfare system, authorities said.
She was never reported missing.
Hayley’s body was first discovered on Dec. 10, 2020, by a driver who had stopped at an Oregon 18 rest area in the H.B. Van Duzer Forest State Scenic Corridor. Police said the girl’s remains had been there for 30 to 60 days. Her body had been placed in a duffel bag and left along the banks of the Salmon River, about 75 to 100 yards from the rest area parking lot on the eastbound side of the highway.
— Noelle Crombie; ncrombie@oregonian.com; 503-276-7184; @noellecrombie
