Month: February 2026

By John Dodge, Alvieann Chandler

Click here for updates on this story

    ATHENS, Ga. (WXIA) — The trial for a man accused of the brutal killing of a UGA law student in 2001 began Monday with the lead prosecutor warning jurors that the evidence in “a heinous crime” will be difficult for them to hear and watch.

Assistant District Attorney Kris Bolden began to detail for the jury what he called “very grisly evidence” in Tara Baker’s death that will lead them to conclude the defendant Edrick Faust is guilty of her murder.

“Edrick Faust killed Tara Baker. Edrick Faust set her house on fire,” Bolden said.

Bolden told jurors how firefighters responded to a fire at her home on Jan. 19, 2001, opened her bedroom door to extinguish the blaze and discovered her naked body wedged between the footboard and mattress. When police arrived, they found Baker had been stabbed in the neck with a computer printer cord around her neck. They also found the knife used to kill her.

The autopsy was done the next day, which was Baker’s 24th birthday. The medical examiner found the stab wound severed her jugular vein, and that she was strangled and hit on the head. There was also evidence of a sexual assault.

Bolden made several points to rule out Baker’s boyfriend as a suspect, saying Chris Melton’s whereabouts were accounted for in the night before and day of the killing. He added that Melton has cooperated with investigators.

Initially, the rape kit did not find any evidence of semen or other male DNA. However, in 2023, the rape kit was resubmitted, and a few months later, a DNA profile was found to match Faust. The odds that the DNA belongs to another person, Bolden said, were 1 in 800 quadrillion.

Defense attorney Ahmad R. Crews told the jury that prosecutors won’t be able prove how Faust got into the home or how he was able to leave the home without any witnesses seeing him.

“How did Mr. Faust get away without being seen in the middle of the morning?”

Crews also laid out a strategy to raise questions about Baker’s relationship with her boyfriend. He also questioned why the hair around her body was not that of a Black person and that this client’s fingerprints or handprints were never discovered.

Crews showed the jury photos of Melton’s hands, which appeared to be red and bruised, taken a few days after Baker’s death. He suggested to jurors that Baker’s and Melton’s relationship was coming to an end in the days before her death.

23-year-old Baker, a first-year student, was found dead inside her burned apartment off Fawn Drive in Athens, Georgia, just one day before her 24th birthday on January 19, 2001.

According to the Georgia Bureau of Investigation, Baker was last seen by a friend outside the library at around 7:30 p.m. on January 18, 2001. That same friend received a call from Baker, who said she was planning to leave the library at 10 p.m. This phone was the last time anyone heard her voice.

Athens Police determined that the fire was set on purpose and ruled her death a homicide, but a suspect was never arrested until 2024, when police took Faust into custody.

Until today’s opening statements, authorities have not provided details about the evidence they gathered that led to Faust’s arrest. However, his arrest is the result of the Coleman-Baker Act, which encourages law enforcement agencies to reexamine cold cases and is named in part for Baker.

Opening statements for the trial were delayed on Monday morning as lawyers argued over the admissibility of certain phone records.

Please note: This story was provided to CNN Wire by an affiliate and does not contain original CNN reporting. This content carries a strict local market embargo. If you share the same market as the contributor of this article, you may not use it on any platform.

By Emma Benson

Click here for updates on this story

    SOUTH JORDAN (KSL) — For most people, food is fuel. But for ShayLee Hunter, survival comes another way.

“At 6 months old, I had my first surgery and had a third of my large intestine removed,” she said. “By the time I was 2, I got my first feeding tube.”

Hunter was born with a rare digestive disorder called chronic intestinal pseudo-obstruction, a condition where the nerves and muscles of the gut don’t work properly. Food and fluid can’t move through her body as they should.

At age 16, she underwent ostomy surgery. Hunter relies entirely on Total Parenteral Nutrition — liquid nutrition delivered directly into her bloodstream through an IV line.

“My life expectancy was not to surpass 20 years old,” said now-27-year-old Hunter. “I was told I probably would never graduate high school, I probably would never get married or have kids.”

But Hunter refused to accept that prognosis.

“I was like, well, I’m gonna show them that they’re wrong,” she said.

For 25 years, one person has helped make that possible: Paul Wolford, a clinical pharmacist with Intermountain Health Home Services.

“We want them to be home and be as independent as possible and live as normal a life as possible,” Wolford said.

Wolford helps manage Hunter’s complex care — overseeing her customized IV nutrition, adjusting prescriptions and working closely with her doctors.

“We’re always in touch,” Wolford said. “We always work with her providers to try and coordinate care and make sure she’s getting the best care possible.”

To Hunter, that consistency has meant everything.

“He’s always right there, ready to answer any questions and just be there for you and his patients,” she said.

Despite decades of weekly calls and constant coordination, the two had never met in person — until Jan. 27.

“In a lot of ways, they sort of become like a second family,” Wolford said.

Hunter said that support has helped her live far beyond what doctors once predicted. She’s earned a college degree, traveled internationally and even competes in pageants to raise awareness for invisible disabilities. She has also worked as a child advocate for a domestic abuse shelter and is currently a chapter coordinator for a nonprofit that preserves the arts.

“I love that they’re willing to explore those options and help me with my dreams,” she said. “This is my life, and I think I should have that option to live it fully — I don’t think just a medication should hinder me from that.”

Hunter recently nominated Wolford for Intermountain Health’s L.OV.E. Award, recognizing exceptional caregivers. He received the award on the same day the two met face-to-face for the first time.

Intermountain Health Homecare Services includes home infusion therapy, infused specialty pharmacy medications and digestive health IV nutrition therapy. Nutrition therapy helps to deliver essential nutrients when a person cannot consume food orally or absorb nutrients through the digestive system. These therapies ensure that the body receives the necessary vitamins, minerals, carbohydrates, proteins and fats needed for energy, growth and healing.

In 2025, Home Services delivered high‑quality care to more than 135,000 patients across eight medical specialty service lines. Nearly 2,000 caregivers, including over 100 providers, traveled 8.5 million miles across five states (Utah, Idaho, Colorado, Montana and Nevada) to meet patients where they are.

This story was reported on-air by a journalist and has been converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. ­­­KSL verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy.

Please note: This story was provided to CNN Wire by an affiliate and does not contain original CNN reporting. This content carries a strict local market embargo. If you share the same market as the contributor of this article, you may not use it on any platform.