HOT SPRINGS — A Garland County jury took more than four hours to declare Kevin Duck guilty of first-degree murder and sentence him to life in prison Friday for the 2011 killing of his girlfriend, Dawna Natzke, a Hot Springs Village police dispatcher.
The jury, which had recessed at 6:35 p.m. Thursday, went back into deliberation at 8:30 a.m. Friday. At 9:35 a.m., they returned to the courtroom with the guilty verdict.
“We’re very thankful to the jury,” Garland County deputy prosecutor Joe Graham said after the trial. “They made the right decision. We’ve become very fond of Dawna’s family over the course of bringing this case to trial. As you can tell, when all three boys testified, Dawna raised three great young men. We’re very happy they can rest better knowing this result.”
Natzke’s body was discovered Dec. 31, 2011, in a pond in northern Garland County. She was last seen alive with Duck leaving a Christmas party Dec. 21, 2011. Her burnedout green station wagon was found Dec. 22 by a U.S. Forest Service employee in woods outside Hot Springs Village, off Arkansas 298. An autopsy determined Natzke died by blunt-force trauma and drowning.
Duck stood at the defense table, bracing himself on it with his fingertips as the verdict was read. He had no immediate reaction. But Duck burst into sobs when his father, Luther Duck, reached across a wooden divide to embrace him.
Luther Duck told police after Natzke’s disappearance her body could be found in a pond less than a mile from Kevin Duck’s childhood home. Luther Duck also showed up to help volunteers search for Natzke’s body.
Natzke’s family, which filled every bench on the right side of the courtroom, broke into sobs when the verdict was read. Tissues were passed around as family members and friends hugged one another.
Dawna Natzke’s three sons — Brandon Natzke, Arin Natzke and Ronnie Moeller — together wrote a heart-wrenching tribute to their mother and agreed Brandon, the youngest, should read it on the stand during sentencing testimony, Graham said.
Emotions were high on both sides of the courtroom as Brandon Natzke was overcome with sobs during the reading.
“The worst experience of our life was trying to act like everything was OK on Christmas back in 2011, trying to open gifts and enjoy our time together when we were all hurting on the inside,” said Brandon Natzke, who was 17 at the time of his mother’s death. “The thought of our mother not being there next to us was tearing us apart. The thought of never seeing her or finding her took its toll on us to the point that every Christmas isn’t the same anymore; that because of one man, she is gone. Christmas will forever be tarnished in our lives.”
Brandon Natzke took the media and the defense team — T. Clay Janske and Brian Johnson — to task for portraying his mother in what he maintained was a negative light during the weeklong trial.
“The lies in the news and the courtroom is not who she was. There were so many details that were left out about our mother,” he said.
She was the kind of mother who never bought herself another piece of clothing just so she could ensure her sons had what they needed, he said.
“She really is the person we strive to be like,” Brandon Natzke said. “The one who is unselfish and puts everyone first. The one who will talk to anyone to make them feel important. The lady who worked hard to make sure her sons were happy even if it brought her to exhaustion. The person who smiled and laughed and could start a party by herself. She was the kind of person who was who she was, and nobody was going to change that.”
Brandon Natzke departed from the statement at the end of his testimony, looked toward Kevin Duck and said he was touched by seeing Luther Duck embrace his son after the verdict, especially given the fact Luther Duck has “been on our side” through it all.
“Just like Luther did with his son, God is looking down at Kevin in the same manner: That he has made a mistake — a mistake he can never take back — but he still loves his son,” Brandon Natzke said, tears rolling down his face. “So I pray for Kevin. And I pray that through this decision and as he goes forward with his life that he knows there’s a father out there; that there’s a God who still truly loves him.”
Janske, in an interview after the trial, said Brandon Natzke delivered the “best victim impact statement” he has heard. Anything negative that was said about Dawna Natzke during the trial was unintentional, Janske said.
“It’s one of the few trials where the credibility of the victim was really not put into play,” Janske said. “I think the only thing bad said about her at all was that she liked drinking Miller Lite. In my book, that’s not a bad thing other than I prefer Coors Lite. My client never told me a bad word about Dawna Natzke. I’ve had this case for half my career and I’ve never heard a bad word about her from anyone.”
Before Brandon Natzke’s testimony, Kevin Duck’s brother, John Duck, testified for the state about the abuse and terror he and his little sister endured at the hands of Kevin Duck during their childhood.
He relayed a time as a 7-year-old when a teenage Kevin Duck made “pretty extraordinary” demands of them. Unsatisfied with their response, Kevin Duck grabbed a shotgun and ran through the house threatening suicide. He locked himself into a bedroom and pulled the shotgun’s trigger.
As members of the Natzke family were leaving the courtroom, they stopped to embrace Kevin Duck’s father, siblings and other family members.
Duck’s mother was allowed to remain in the courtroom after the crowd dispersed to say a private goodbye to her son.
Janske said later that the verdict would be appealed.