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Find out more about Cindy: Cindy Adams is an experienced freelance writer who has a Juris Doctor in Law. She has made several appearances on "Issues with Jane Velez-Mitchell", reporting on current criminal cases, including the latest in the Casey Anthony case and the Haleigh Cummings' disappearance. She wrote dozens of legal motions to assist in the collection of support for children while working for the Department of Child Support Services in Orange County, California. During her time in law school, Cindy also served as the Copy Editor of the Chapman Law Review and Co-Chair of the Woman’s Law Forum. |
On Jan. 20, 2008, Brianna Denison, 19, was abducted from a friend's house in Reno, Nevada. She was on winter break from Santa Barbara City College in Santa Barbara, California. Brianna and her friends had attended a party the night before and she had slept on her friend’s couch.
At 9 a.m. when her friends awoke, Brianna was gone. There was a bloodstain on the pillow she used, which alarmed her friends who immediately called Brianna's parents and the local police.
DNA was found near where Brianna was sleeping that belonged to an unidentified male. The DNA was also linked to a sexual assault on Nov. 13, 2007, of a University of Nevada-Reno student. Police believed the attacks were also linked to an attempted burglary at Brianna's friend's home on Jan. 19, 2008.
On Feb. 15, 2008, Brianna's body was found in a field near a Reno business complex. Police estimate she had been deceased for 2 weeks.
Hundreds of registered sex offenders living near the site of the abduction were interviewed, but Washoe County had fallen behind in processing DNA samples and the investigation came to stand still.
James Michael Biela, 27, was finally arrested in Nov. 2008, after a call to an anonymous tip line directed police his way. Biela had left Nevada in March for a job in Washington and when his girlfriend paid him a visit, she found women's underwear in his vehicle, which made her suspicious. She confided in a friend, and the friend anonymously alerted authorities.
Police received permission from Biela's girlfriend to take a DNA sample from Biela's son. The DNA sample linked Biela to Brianna's murder and the attack in Nov. 2007.
On Dec. 31, 2008, Biela entered a plea of not guilty to charges of murder, sexual assault, and kidnapping.
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