Haun Pleads Not Guilty

Diana J. Haun pleaded not guilty Thursday to the abduction and murder of Ventura homemaker Sherri Dally and denied a special allegation that she plotted the killing--a charge that would make her eligible for the death penalty if convicted.

Haun, 35, who has admitted she had a love affair with Dally’s husband, is charged with stabbing the mother of two and bludgeoning her to death with a hatchet or other blunt object. Her trial has been set for Feb. 3.

During her arraignment, Haun appeared relaxed in an olive-green dress and sat quietly between her two public defenders as Deputy Dist. Atty. Lela Henke-Dobroth read the charges against her.

“Ms. Haun, in count one of the indictment the Ventura County Grand Jury accuses you of committing the crime of murder,” Henke-Dobroth read as newspaper photographers snapped Haun’s picture and television crews watched in frustration after being banned from filming the proceedings.

After the charges were read, Ventura County Superior Court Judge Frederick A. Jones asked Haun if she waived her right to a speedy trial.

The former Port Hueneme grocery clerk looked to her attorneys for guidance and then meekly answered, “Yes.”

Haun was arrested Aug. 1 after a three-month police investigation and has been held without bail since then at Ventura County Jail.

Haun was romantically involved with Michael Dally, Sherri Dally’s husband of 14 years, for the past two years. Police have considered them both suspects in the killing, but have never arrested or charged Michael Dally.

Sherri Dally, 35, was abducted May 6 from the Target store parking lot in Ventura. Her skeletal remains were found by a search party of friends June 1 in a ravine north of Ventura, nearly a month after she disappeared.

The grand jury indicted Haun last month on charges of kidnapping and first-degree murder under the special circumstance of lying in wait, which would allow her to be executed, if convicted.

But Haun’s attorney, Deputy Public Defender Neil Quinn, filed a motion Thursday asking that the special allegation of lying in wait be dismissed on grounds that it fails to meet the narrow scope identified by the courts for death penalty cases.

Quinn argues that premeditated murder and lying in wait are essentially the same thing and, therefore, the special circumstance should be dropped.

“In my mind, there is not much of a difference,” he said outside the courtroom. The motion is scheduled for a hearing Sept. 26.

Prosecutors have not decided whether to seek the death penalty in Haun’s case.

“We will make a decision on penalty a month or two down the road,” Deputy Dist. Atty. Kevin J. McGee said.

Dist. Atty. Michael D. Bradbury was considering trying the case personally, but has decided not to, McGee said.

“He has been interested in the case all along,” McGee said. “But it just became obvious that there are far too many cases going on to do this and also be the district attorney.”

Most of the hourlong arraignment was centered on a motion filed by an attorney representing a local newspaper to unseal the grand jury transcripts.

Glen Smith asked the judge to make available the transcripts and three search warrants that have been sealed from public view.

But prosecutors and defense attorneys argued that the documents should remained sealed to ensure that Haun receives a fair trial. Quinn took his complaint a step further by suggesting that the transcripts of the grand jury proceedings would favor the prosecution and hurt his client.

“What is being asked here is to unveil to the public one side of the case,” Quinn said during the arraignment. “A defendant’s interests are not always harmed by having the facts in the case made public, if all the facts are made public.”