Colorado father convicted for killing his 13-year old son

In 2017, Mark Redwine (59) was indicted in connection to Dylan Redwine's disappearance. Redwine was on a court-ordered Thanksgiving trip to Durango with his father.

Redwine stood still with his hands in front of himself and did not react to the verdicts being read.

Dylan Redwine's remains were discovered a few miles away from his father's house in 2013. Hikers also found his skull in 2015.

After arguing over embarrassing photos showing Redwine in women's lingerie, and Redwine eating feces out of a diaper, the prosecution argued that Redwine raped Dylan. Dylan's older brother said that he found the photos before he disappeared.

Redwine, who did not testify at the trial, stated that he left Dylan at home alone to run errands, and then returned to find him missing. Defense lawyers suggested that the photos are not connected to Dylan Redwine’s death. They also suggested that Redwine ran away and could have been run over by a wild animal.

Redwine and Elaine Hall, the mother of the boy, made accusations against each other on "Dr. Phil" television program in 2013.

Judge Jeffrey Wilson stated that this was an extremely difficult case. It's been hard for the parties, the attorneys, and their staff. It was difficult for the families and the whole community.

After less than one day of deliberations, jurors delivered their verdict.

Hall testified that she drove six hours from La Plata County, Colorado to find her son. She had sent Dylan to his dad's house on November 18, 2012. He was reported missing the following day. Hall claimed she didn't know that her son had confronted his father over the photos.

Hall suspected that her ex-husband didn't tell the whole truth about their son’s disappearance. Text messages were used as evidence and Hall almost immediately believed it. Hall sent Mark Redwine a text two hours after discovering that Dylan had disappeared.

She wrote, "He wouldn’t just leave." "He would have called him. You are so suspicious of me right now. "How could he disappear?"

Justin Bogan, a public defender, suggested that Hall's account was clouded by Redwine's contentious divorce and custody battle. Bogan suggested that Hall's appearance on television turned public opinion against her husband and influenced the direction the police investigation.

Hall claimed she spoke to media and attended a protest at Mark Redwine’s house in an attempt to bring Dylan home.

She said, "I assumed he was safe because of his dad. And I was devastated that nobody knew where my son was."

Prosecutors emphasized the compromising photos of Redwine throughout the trial. They argued that the father-son relationship was in decline well before Dylan disappeared. Prosecutors also focused their attention on Dylan's comments to friends and family about fearing the court-ordered visits.

John Moran, public defender, stated that Dylan fled home during his opening statements and suggested that he might have been attacked by a bear. He described a tooth mark on Dylan's skull.

Diane France, a forensic anthropologist testified that Dylan sustained a fracture above the left eye. France stated that two marks on Dylan's skull were most likely caused by a knife, or other sharp tool near the time of his death.

Redwine's defense claimed in closing arguments that expert evidence had shown Dylan's skull in a perimortem state in 2015. Redwine explained that Dylan's skull was still in a peri-mortem state in 2015. Expert testimony had shown this.

Bogan described the investigation as biased and sloppy due to evidence destruction by an expert, who broke off Dylan's skull during their examination, and a scientist, who disclosed in court that the prosecution had given them police reports before they testified.

Fred Johnson, the special deputy district attorney, said that investigators discovered traces of Dylan’s blood in Redwine’s living room, and that a cadaver sniffing dog alerted them that there was a strong odor of human remains in Redwine’s truck.

Moran stated that the blood in the living room was likely to be found in any house, despite the fact that it is an "infinitely tiny" amount. Moran also called the dog's use "junk science."

Redwine was indicted by a grand jury in 2017 and taken into custody in Bellingham, Washington. Prosecutors stated that Redwine was accused of taking "compromising photos" against Dylan. They did not elaborate.

Redwine's sentencing hearing will be held in October.