ZAHRA CLAIRE BAKER - Aged 10 years - Hickory, North Carolina (USA)

The Examiner

November 30th, 2010 5:46 pm ET

Zahra Baker’s public memorial cancelled, family wants private service

Zahra Clare Baker, the 10-year-old North Carolina girl, who was confirmed dead by authorities in mid-November, was scheduled to be memorialized this week during a public service in Hickory at Drum Funeral Home. That service has now been cancelled per the family’s request, according to NBC 17.

Rather than hold a public memorial on December 2, the report indicates the family wants to hold a private service at a later date for the young girl.

Zahra was reported missing on October 9 by her father, Adam Baker. Human remains identified as Zahra’s were discovered on November 16.

To see photos regarding Zahra's case, click here.

Her stepmother, Elisa Baker, sits behind bars, charged with obstruction of justice for penning a bogus ransom note related to the case.

No one has been named a suspect or charged in the disappearance or death of Australian-born girl.

Zahra’s obituary can still be found on the funeral home’s Web site, which notes that those who wish to memorialize the girl can “…view a memorial tribute of Zahra on Thursday evening, December 2, 2010 from 5:00 to 7:00 p.m., and on Friday, December 3, 2010 from 1:00 to 4:00 p.m.”

It should be noted that Zahra’s obituary lists a number of relatives, including her step-sisters, however, leaves out the name Elisa Baker, her stepmother.

To read Elisa's alleged jailhouse letters, click here.

http://www.examiner.com/crime-in-national/zahra-baker-s-public-memorial-cancelled-family-wants-private-service

Hickory Daily Record

Judge overrides DA's request; warrants unsealed

The search warrants in the Zahra Baker investigation were unsealed Tuesday.

NEWTON --

Judge Nathaniel Poovey ordered that all sealed warrants related to the Zahra Clare Baker investigation be unsealed on Tuesday.

The warrants that have been sealed include one each for Elisa Baker’s MySpace account, Facebook account and America Online email account, and others for Elisa and Adam Baker’s cell phones and their house at 21 21st Avenue, NW, in Hickory. The search warrants were from Oct. 11-Oct. 29.

The Hickory Police Department asked for the search warrants to be sealed. On each search warrant, judges stated “the release of information contained in said search warrant and its return will potentially undermine an ongoing investigation or jeopardize the right of the state to prosecute a defendant or defendants or jeopardize the rights of a defendant or defendants to receive a fair trial.”

Catawba County Superior Court Judge Timothy Kincaid issued an administrative order stating if warrants are sealed, as the search warrants in the Zahra Baker case were, they “shall expire in 30 days unless a different expiration date is specified in the order.”

The district attorney’s office fought to keep the warrants sealed. The earliest the first warrant could have been unsealed was Nov. 11. The district attorney’s office did not file a motion to extend the sealed order until Monday, stating again that unsealing the warrants and the search return could jeopardize the case.

The order also asked for a hearing on Dec. 13 to determine if the orders could remain sealed.

Attorney C. Amanda Martin said the warrants should be public. An attorney with Stevens, Martin, Vaughn and Tadych in Raleigh, she is also general counsel for the North Carolina Press Association, she worked with the Hickory Daily Record to gain access to the sealed warrants. Martin spoke with Kincaid and Poovey, who agreed with her that the warrants should be unsealed.

Monday afternoon, Poovey told the clerk’s office the warrants should be unsealed. However, the clerk of court’s office said they needed the motion in writing.

Poovey signed an order Tuesday morning, stating “since the sealing orders were signed, the state did not file a motion for their extension. On Monday, Nov. 29th, after media organizations renewed their requests for copies of warrants that were more than 30 days old, the state filed a motion to extend the sealing orders….The court offered to hear that matter on Monday, Nov. 29th, but the state declined and indicated they would not be prepared to have it heard until the week of Dec. 13.”

In the order, Poovey ordered the clerk’s office to make copies of the warrants immediately available to the public if the warrants were at least 30 days old. If they did not, they would be held in contempt of court.

Prosecutor Clifton Smith spoke with Poovey briefly in Poovey’s chambers Tuesday, before being heard in open court. Smith asked that Poovey’s order be delayed.

The district attorney’s office was asking Poovey to stay the order that he filed so the N.C. Court of Appeals could review it.

Poovey denied the district attorney office’s request.

“All of the sudden, to make a motion to file a request, is untimely,” Poovey said. “Your request to stay the order is denied.”

District Attorney Jay Gaither would not comment on whether he thought unsealing the search warrants would hurt the case, should an arrest be made and the case brought to trial.

“It was his decision, and he choose to go ahead and release them,” Gaither said about Poovey’s decision. “He came down on the side of the media.”

http://www2.hickoryrecord.com/news/2010/nov/30/judge-overrides-das-request-warrants-unsealed-ar-579815/

The Examiner

November 30th, 2010

Zahra Baker latest news: Read unsealed warrant regarding rape allegation

One of the warrants released in the Zahra Clare Baker case on Tuesday, revealed the 10-year-old girl may have been raped prior to her death.

Authorities received a tip from a credible source indicating two men -- one of whom may have been involved with the girl’s stepmother, Elisa Baker -- raped Zahra.

One of the men told the source he’d done something “very bad” and had to leave town. At one point the warrant states “the little girl [Zahra] had blood on her private area and legs and they [the two men] raped her.”

The Hickory Police Department and the State Bureau of Investigation followed up on the claim and found a mattress lying in front of the home where the rape allegedly took place. The Hickory Daily Record reports that the resident told them he was airing it out after urinating on it. He also admitted to knowing Zahra, but did not believe she had ever been to the house.

Zahra was reported missing by her father Adam Baker on October 9 and her remains were discovered weeks later on November 16.

To read the entire warrant including the rape allegations, click here.

http://www.examiner.com/crime-in-national/zahra-baker-latest-news-read-unsealed-warrant-regarding-rape-allegation

UPI.com

Published: Dec. 8, 2010

Two N.C. men deny raping Zahra Baker

CHARLOTTE, N.C., Dec. 8 (UPI) -- Two North Carolina men deny having raped Zahra Baker, a 10-year-old disabled girl found slain and dismembered, and say they passed a lie detector test.

"I've never done anything inappropriate with Zahra," James Young told The Charlotte Observer.

Young said police cleared him and that he has met with no investigators since October, the newspaper reported Wednesday. His cousin, Timothy Young, also said the allegations are false and he also passed a polygraph.

James Young's brother was once married to Elisa Baker, Zahra's stepmother. Young lived across the street from Elisa, Zahra and her father, Adam Baker, in Caldwell County before the Bakers moved to Hickory.

An unnamed source told police the Youngs might have raped and physically assaulted Zahra, who had lost part of a leg to cancer, search warrants unsealed last week said.

The Youngs have not been charged with any crime, but Hickory police declined to say whether they are still under investigation.

No one has been charged in the death of Zahra, who has been missing since Oct. 9. Both Elisa Baker and Adam Baker have denied any wrongdoing.Elisa Baker is jailed on obstruction of justice charges, however, and Adam Baker faced unrelated charges for bad check and missing court dates.

http://www.upi.com/Top_News/US/2010/12/08/Two-NC-men-deny-raping-Zahra-Baker/UPI-20401291839170/

Digtriad

9th December 2010

Prosecutor's In Zahra Baker Case File New Motion Concerning Warrants

Hickory, NC -- Prosecutors have filed a motion for a January hearing to discuss six sealed search warrants in the investigation into the death of a 10-year-old North Carolina girl who authorities believe was killed and dismembered.

The Hickory Daily Record reports that the warrants include Elisa Baker's medical data and information about a website where she and Zahra Baker's father met.

Three of the warrants would have been unsealed on Wednesday if Catawba County Assistant District Attorney Sean McGinnis hadn't filed a motion on Nov. 29 to extend orders on all sealed documents relating to the Zahra Baker case. The other three would have been unsealed on Friday.

A hearing on whether two search warrants should be unsealed is scheduled for Dec. 13. The next hearing would be held Jan. 3, 2011.

http://www.digtriad.com/news/local/story.aspx?storyid=151562&catid=57

News Observer

15th December 2010

Media ask Zahra warrants be opened

Regional media outlets on Monday sought access to more than 20 sealed search warrants in the investigation into the death of 10-year-old Zahra Baker.

The documents include medical records for Elisa Baker, Zahra's stepmother, and Department of Social Services files in seven counties on Elisa Baker and three of her biological children.

In a motion filed in Catawba County, an attorney representing The Charlotte Observer and several other media outlets said prosecutors haven't sufficiently justified why the documents need to be sealed.

"The use of search warrants is an incredible exercise of the state's police authority," Amanda Martin, general counsel to the N.C. Press Association, told The Observer. "Transparency and public oversight can be the only check on the exercise of that power."

Search warrant documents are public records but can be sealed under certain circumstances. Typically, they spell out what evidence investigators are looking for during a search, and also include an inventory of items seized.

About 37 warrants have been filed since Zahra Baker was reported missing Oct. 9. A judge has already unsealed 11 of the earliest warrants issued in the case. Those still under seal were issued in October and November, and prosecutors want to keep them private.

The Catawba County District Attorney, James Gaither Jr., has argued that unsealing warrants could jeopardize the state's prosecution and the right of a defendant to receive a fair trial. But his motion does not spell out how those rights might be compromised.

DA wants seal extended

His office recently filed a motion to extend the seal on the warrants. A hearing has been requested for the week of Dec. 20, but no date has been set.

No charges have been filed in the death of Zahra Baker, whose tragic story has captured worldwide attention. Much of investigators' focus has been on her father, Adam Baker, and stepmother, Elisa Baker.

Elisa Baker is in jail after police say she admitted writing a fake ransom note to thwart investigators looking into Zahra's disappearance.

The sealed warrants were signed by five judges between Oct. 15 and Nov. 30. Each is in a manila envelope sealed with packaging tape and kept in a box at the Catawba County Courthouse.

Inside the envelopes are details uncovered from searches at the Baker's Hickory house, Elisa Baker's medical records, and information about the website where Elisa and Adam Baker met. They also include Elisa Baker's phone records and family records with the Department of Social Services in Alexander, Burke, Caldwell, Catawba, Cleveland, Lincoln, and Gaston counties.

Some warrants opened

On Dec. 2, Superior Court Judge Nathaniel Poovey unsealed 11 warrants, noting that a 30-day limit on seals had expired.

Those documents revealed a substantial amount of information about the case. They describe how Elisa Baker rode with police and directed them to locations where evidence had been discarded. Through her attorney Lisa Dubs, Baker told an investigator that Zahra's body had been dismembered.

Rape allegation

The warrant documents also contained a statement from an unnamed source claiming that two men may have raped Zahra before she died. The men, who have not been charged, have denied the allegations and told The Observer that they passed a polygraph test.

Elisa Baker also took a polygraph test, the documents show. When asked "Did you hurt Zahra?" and "Do you know if anyone has done harm to that child?," she showed deception in her answers, according to the documents.

http://www.newsobserver.com/2010/12/16/864693/media-ask-zahra-warrants-be-opened.html#ixzz19dcuuPgL

Hickory Daily Record

December 18, 2010

By Richard Gould

Zahra Baker investigation file delivered to DA
Elisa Baker’s bad checks court date continued

Hickory --

Progress is being made in the Zahra Baker case.

Hickory police investigators have worked steadily since 10-year-old Zahra was reported missing on Oct. 9, and they delivered their findings to the District Attorney’s Office Thursday.

“Yesterday, we turned over a preliminary case file to the District Attorney’s Office for him to start reviewing and consider what course of action he wants to take concerning who he wants to charge and what charges he wants to pursue,” said Chief Tom Adkins of the Hickory Police Department.

Though Adkins did not provide details of his investigators’ findings, he did say their investigation is ongoing and additional information will be turned over to the District Attorney’s office as it is uncovered.

Adkins would not say whether his investigators had received any lab results back from the SBI lab or the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner.

Zahra’s stepmother has been in the Catawba County jail since Oct. 10 when she was arrested on several outstanding warrants unrelated to Zahra’s disappearance. She was also charged with obstruction of justice two days later when she admitted to police that she’d written a ransom note demanding $1 million that was found Oct. 9 at the Bakers’ house at 21 21st Avenue NW in Hickory.

Elisa Baker was scheduled to be in a Newton courtroom Friday on four charges of worthless checks.

She did not appear in court and her case was continued until April 22.

Her next court date is scheduled for Jan. 27 in Lenoir on more than a dozen charges.

Her charges include fictitious tag, driving while license revoked, operating a vehicle with no insurance, unsafe tires, fraudulent disposal of rental property, failure to return rental property, four counts of communicating threats and six counts of worthless checks.

Zahra’s father, Adam Baker, cooperated with investigators throughout the early weeks of the investigation into his daughter’s death and dismemberment.

On Oct. 25, he was arrested on outstanding warrants for bad check charges and bonded out of jail two days later.

He, too, is scheduled to appear in a Lenoir courtroom Jan. 27, on charges of failure to return rental property, two counts of communicating threats, assault with a deadly weapon and four counts of worthless checks. He’s scheduled to be back in a Newton courtroom Jan. 21 on four worthless check charges.

These days Adam Baker is keeping a low profile.

“We have not requested any further information from him within the last month,” Adkins said.

http://www2.hickoryrecord.com/news/2010/dec/18/zahra-bakers-investigation-file-delivered-da-ar-627244/

ABC News

Dec. 19, 2010

By KEVIN DOLAK, DEAN SCHABNER, LEE FERRAN and YUNJI DE NIES

Evidence in Zahra Baker Case Given to Prosecution
No Arrests Have Yet Been Made in Murder and Dismemberment of 10-Year-old Disabled Girl

Police in North Carolina investigating the death of 10-year-old disabled girl Zahra Baker have handed the case over to prosecutors, leading to speculation that a suspect in the young girl's murder will be arrested imminently.

According to the Hickory Daily Record, Hickory, N.C. police Chief Tom Adkins said the district attorney will review the case and make a decision.

"We turned over a preliminary case file to the District Attorney's Office for him to start reviewing and consider what course of action he wants to take concerning who he wants to charge and what charges he wants to pursue," Adkins told the newspaper.

Baker's dismembered remains were found early last month after a month-long search. Though no one has been arrested in connection with her death, her stepmother Elisa Baker has been jailed on obstruction of justice charges. Police say she wrote a fake $1 million ransom note, which was discovered at the family's home the day Zahra was reported missing.

The remains of Baker, whose struggle with cancer left her wearing a prosthetic leg and hearing aids, were discovered scattered in rural areas during a search in Caldwell County, N.C., where the Baker family previously lived. Police had looked through the area earlier while accompanied by her stepmother.

Two weeks before police announced they had discovered Zahra Baker's remains, Elisa Baker indicated in a jailhouse letter that the child was dead, but expressed no remorse or guilt -- only self-pity and vague accusations against her husband, Adam Baker.

In the letters -- written to crime memorabilia dealer Eric Gein while she was in custody -- Elisa Baker said Adam did something "horrifying" to Zahra after she was dead. Adam Baker's attorney told ABC News in November that those claims were nothing more than a "desperate" attempt at distraction.

In an earlier letter Elisa Baker wrote, "We really didn't kill her, but what he [Adam Baker] did after the fact is kinda horrifying ... [It] makes me scared of him. So I probably am gonna go ahead and file [for divorce]. I have lost my whole life anyway."

Police have said that Elisa Baker has consistently cooperated with their probe.

Gein, who runs the website SerialKillersInk.net, told ABC News he contacted Elisa Baker by letter weeks ago under an assumed name. The letters he received in return describe strained life in the Baker home. She allegedly signed one letter, "Dark Love Always, Elisa."

Adam Baker, 33, is free on bail after he was arrested last month on unrelated charges, including five counts of worthless checks, two counts of communicating threats, one count of assault with a deadly weapon and one count of failure to return rental property.

Mark Killian, an attorney for Adam Baker, said news of the letter is just another painful hit for the man who recently learned that his daughter is dead.

"These accusations are ... I don't know what to say," Killian told ABC News. "Mr. Baker obviously categorically denies any of this. ... We just see these writings as desperate attempts of someone incarcerated to divert attention away."

Killian said Adam Baker took the news of his daughter's death as "shock ... just the worst nightmare."

Zahra was reported missing by her stepmother and father on Oct. 9, but police say no one outside of the family has reported seeing her since Sept. 25.

The girl had a grueling life. Stricken with bone cancer, she lost her left leg and much of her hearing. Relatives and neighbors said Elisa Baker was abusive to Zahra, who was often bruised.

Zahra's birth mother, Emily Dietrich, flew from her home in Wagga Wagga, Australia, last month and visited the Hickory, N.C., house where Zahra had been living with her father and stepmother.

Dietrich had given up custody of her daughter when she was a baby. Zahra later moved with her father to America when he decided to marry Elisa Baker, who he had met on the Internet.

Dietrich, who hadn't seen her daughter since the girl was 8 months old, has since expressed hope that Adam Baker was not involved in her murder.

"I have to take a step back and think of the possibility that maybe Adam [Baker] wasn't involved and maybe he is hurting as well," Emily Dietrich told the Australia-based Seven Network.

http://abcnews.go.com/US/prosecutors-receive-evidence-zahra-baker-case/story?id=12436174&page=3

WBTV

Posted: Dec 22, 2010

Charges in Zahra Baker case on hold until after the New Year

HICKORY, NC (WBTV) – Despite giving a preliminary investigation report on the Zahra Baker case to the District Attorney last week, Hickory Police officials do not expect any decision on possible charges to come quickly.

On Tuesday, Dec. 21, Hickory Police Chief Tom Adkins would not go into details, but would only say, "the investigation is not over."

Due to the approaching holidays, many of the principals that would be involved in any decision on possible charges would not be able to get together until after the first of the year.

The Catawba County Grand Jury meets on January 3rd and sources tell WBTV News that it would be difficult to have a presentation ready by that session.

In the past, District Attorney James C. Gaither has said there would be "No rush to judgment in this case, that officials would wait until all the evidence is in before deciding what to do next."

Police sources confirmed on Tuesday that not all of the lab results on evidence are back yet.

In Caldwell County, near the places where remains of Zahra Baker were found, memorials continue to grow.

New flowers could be seen on Tuesday as well as more letters, signs and stuffed animals.

Along Christie Road where Zahra's prosthetic leg was found along with a bone, a logging crew is now cutting trees and clearing a hillside. The project was planned before the search for Zahra's remains began and was put on hold, say officials, until police gave the okay.

At a nearby convenience store, Heather Williams said she hoped there would be a resolution soon, but also thinks police need to be careful.

"I hope they cross their T's and dot their I's and charges are filed," Williams said.

Others said they just hope justice is served in Zahra's case and that they are still thinking of the little girl.

http://www.wbtv.com/Global/story.asp?S=13726990

The Sydney Morning Herald

Zahra's parents 'went wild' with body:aunt

Tom Breen

January 6, 2011 - 2:39PM

http://news.smh.com.au/breaking-news-world/zahras-parents-went-wild-with-bodyaunt-20110106-19h3j.html

Hickory Daily Record

6 January 2011

Updated: Elisa Baker says Zahra died Sept. 24‎

Zahra Baker was likely killed on Sept. 24, and her body disposed of the following day, according to new search warrants released Tuesday. She was not reported missing until about two weeks later.

Elisa has also been arrested on several other charges unrelated to Zahra's disappearance. Adam was arrested, as well, on several charges unrelated to the case, but is out of jail on bond.

The Associated Press is reporting that Elisa Baker told a relative that Zahra died of natural causes.

http://www2.hickoryrecord.com/news/2011/jan/04/25/judge-unseals-all-warrants-baker-case-ar-666013/

WBTV

7 January 2011

Bakers held 'chainsaw massacre' on web days before Zahra disappeared, warrant says

Click to read warrants, 1-10, 11-20, 21-28

http://www.wbtv.com/Global/story.asp?S=13799829

News Channel 7

8 January 2011

Warrants: Zahra Baker's Parents Created "Chainsaw Massacre" With Online Family

http://www2.wspa.com/news/2011/jan/08/warrants-zahras-baker-created-chainsaw-massacre-on-ar-1318434/

Hickory Daily Record

9 January 2011

Documents: Elisa Baker had ongoing relationship with ex-husband, his cousin

http://www2.hickoryrecord.com/news/2011/jan/09/documents-elisa-baker-had-ongoing-relationship-ex--ar-677965/

Charlotte Observer

10 January 2011

Zahra's case is more horrific with each detail‎

http://www.charlotteobserver.com/2011/01/10/1967983/zahras-case-is-more-horrific-with.html

msnbc

18 January 2011

Briefcase found may hold clue to missing N.C. girl‎
Loggers discover bag near same spot where Zahra Baker's prosthetic leg was found

Loggers working in Caldwell County, N.C., discovered on Tuesday a briefcase containing what appears to be a blanket or clothing related to the case Zahra Baker, a 10-year-old girl missing since October.

The briefcase was found off Christie Road, which is where investigators found Zahra's prosthetic leg on Oct. 26, reported NBC station WCNC of Charlotte.

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/41139892/ns/us_news-crime_and_courts/

Examiner

18 January 2011

Zahra Baker case update: Elisa Baker indicted on bigamy charges‎


Elisa Baker, the North Carolina woman who’s been at the center of the investigation into the disappearance and death of her stepdaughter, Zahra Claire Baker, 10, was indicted on bigamy charges Tuesday.

....
Elisa and Adam were married in July 2008 in Australia. Nonetheless, court documents indicate that Elisa and Aaron Young, her ex-husband, were married for 10 years and did not officially divorce until August 21, 2009 -- over a year after Elisa and Adam married, according to the Charlotte Observer.

The report also indicates that Elisa remained in contact with Young and even told Adam that Young was her brother, according to police.

Family members told the Observer that Zahra was sick before she died and that her father and stepmother didn’t take her to the hospital because they feared authorities. The Observer reports that Adam was in the country illegally and Elisa had already been investigated by DSS.

http://www.examiner.com/crime-in-national/zahra-baker-case-update-elisa-baker-indicted-on-bigamy-charges

CBS News

19 January 2011

Zahra Baker Update: Possible Evidence Found Near Where Body Parts Were Found

http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-504083_162-20028914-504083.html

abc 11

21 January 2011

Bigamy court date for Zahra Baker's stepmom‎

The stepmother of a disabled girl who died under mysterious circumstances is scheduled to be arraigned on charges of being married to more than one man at the same time.

Elisa Baker is scheduled to be arraigned Friday in District Court in Newton. The 42-year-old is currently jailed on charges of obstructing the investigation into her stepdaughter’s disappearance last fall.

http://abclocal.go.com/wtvd/story?section=news/local&id=7911138

Morganton News Herald

1 february 2011

Hickory police turn over Zahra evidence to DA‎

The district attorney's office is reviewing more than 11,000 pages from the Hickory Police Department's investigation into the death of Zahra Clare Baker.
The police department turned its investigative file over to the district attorney's office late Wednesday afternoon, said Eric Farr, spokesman for the district attorney's office.
"What we've done is sent everything, in an organized fashion, that we have to make a decision on charges," said Maj. Clyde Deal with the Hickory Police Department, one of the lead investigators in the case.
He said it is one of the most comprehensive, exhaustive investigations the area's been involved in.
"I've been with the Hickory Police Department for almost 26 years, and I don't recall any case file being this large," Deal said. "It's the biggest case I've worked on."
The case file submitted to the district attorney's office fills two 5-inch-thick notebooks. It includes 117 DVDs of interviews and 65 DVDs with phone records and photos, Deal said. There are 11,000 pages on discs.
The file doesn't include what the N.C. State Bureau of Investigation will submit to the DA.
Farr said, "It is an exhaustively thorough investigation, and we applaud the Hickory Police Department and the cooperating agencies for their work. Now we begin the process of evaluating it and determining what charges will be filed."
He said that decision will take some time.

http://www2.morganton.com/news/2011/feb/01/hickory-police-turn-over-zahra-evidence-da-ar-742449/

Atlanta Journal Constitution

3 February 2011

Dismembered NC girl's stepmom led a troubled life‎

http://www.ajc.com/news/nation-world/dismembered-nc-girls-stepmom-826800.html

The Australian

4 February 2011

Zahra's stepmum Elisa Baker married seven times including bigamy, investigation claims

THE American stepmother of murdered Australian girl Zahra Baker was married seven times, and was wed to more than one man on several occasions, according to an Associated Press investigation.
Elisa Baker was indicted last month on a bigamy charge involving her marriage to Zahra's Australian father, Adam Baker, and another man, but an AP investigation has found that Elisa Baker had multiple overlapping marriages starting in the 1990s.

AP found documents at half a dozen US county courthouses that showed at one point she was married to three men at the same time, calling into question the single charge.

http://www.theaustralian.com.au/news/world/zahras-stepmum-elisa-baker-married-seven-times-including-bigamy-investigation-claims/story-e6frg6so-1226000054921

Hickory Daily Record

3 February 2011

Zahra memorial on Christie Road to become permanent‎

http://www2.hickoryrecord.com/news/2011/feb/03/zahra-memorial-christie-road-become-permanent-ar-752258/

Winston-Salem Journal

4 February 2011

Elisa Baker married seven times, including overlapping marriages‎

http://www2.journalnow.com/news/2011/feb/04/wsmet01-elisa-baker-married-seven-times-including--ar-752963/

Sydney Morning Herald

5 February 2011

Zahra's stepmother 'hurt a lot of people' before wedding No.7‎

.... AP constructed its profile through interviews with former husbands, relatives and acquaintances, while also drawing on county documents including divorce records and marriage licences. The records show that when she married Mr Baker, in July 2008, she was already married to Jeffrey Allred (October 1997) and Aaron Young (August 1998). She divorced Mr Young a year after marrying Mr Baker, but her marriage to Mr Allred was never dissolved.

''This is a woman who thought she could talk her way out of anything, that she was smarter than everybody else. But she never told the truth,'' Andrew Harris, her third husband, told AP. ''She hurt a lot of people.''

http://www.smh.com.au/world/zahras-stepmother-hurt-a-lot-of-people-before-wedding-no7-20110204-1agut.html