John Holman Jr. was recently found guilty of First Degree Premeditated Murder after just 2 hours of deliberation for the 2018 murder of his girlfriend, Donna Adams.
Assistant District Attorneys Debbie Housel and Kristen Taylor, along with Victim Witness Coordinators Brittany LaDuke and Susan Tucker Smith, secured the verdict earlier this month in Criminal Court Division VI.
General Housel praised the work of the entire team, especially ADA Kristen Taylor, who was ‘fantastic’ during second close and effectively shut down the defense claim of Voluntary Manslaughter. That work, and the visual of General Housel swinging a baseball bat during closing arguments to show the heinousness of the crime, convinced the jury to convict and awarded justice to the family of victim Donna Adams.
The details of this crime are gruesome, as described by General Housel following the verdict.
46-year-old Donna Adams’ bludgeoned body was found by North Precinct officers on July 9th, 2018 laying in the bathroom of her North Nashville home. A few inches from her head, officers discovered a bloody wooden bat that Holman had used to strike the victim a minimum of 10 times resulting in her death.
Both of the victim’s arms were broken, one in two places, as she tried to protect her head from the repeated blows. The victim suffered extensive injury and was also strangled.
The victim was discovered in Nashville after Holman drove his truck into the Cumberland River in Clarksville in an apparent suicide attempt. When he was rescued by a boater, he admitted that he tried to commit suicide because he had “hurt” Ms. Adams with a bat.
“Donna Adams’ last hours on this earth were that of a horror story – her home became a torture chamber.” “In addition to the multiple and catastrophic blows, the Defendant also shaved her head, threatened to burn her to death with lighter fluid and threatened to dismember her with a reciprocal saw.”
“Donna Adams and her family finally received justice after six and a half long years,” said Assistant District Attorney Debbie Housel. “When the Davidson County jury announced their verdict, Ms. Adams two daughters who courageously testified against their father yesterday were overcome with joy,” Housel said.
“The victim’s twin sister and other relatives were overjoyed with the verdict and expressed their sincere appreciation to the police, the court and our office,” said co-counsel, Assistant District Attorney Kristen Taylor.
Congratulations to the Nashville District Attorney’s prosecutorial team as they achieve a measure of peace and justice to the family of victim Donna Adams.