He already had heart problems when a stroke left Melvin Cooksey in a wheelchair. But despite his health challenges, Cooksey had one goal.
“He was trying to live to see his daughter graduate (from high school),” Cooksey’s sister, Brenda Hardy, told The Atlanta Journal-Constitution this week. “He was doing much better. He couldn’t walk, but he was doing better. He fought to live.”
Cooksey, 57, used a website to find a caregiver to help him with daily tasks, his family said. Danetta Knoblauch answered the ad and brought her son with her when she moved to Georgia from Kansas. She also brought a sledgehammer, which she would use to kill him, according to investigators.
On Wednesday morning, Cooksey’s relatives tearfully told the court about the impact of his loss. Newton County Chief Judge W. Kendall Wynne Jr. then sentenced Knoblauch to life in prison without the possibility of parole plus 30 years for felony murder, aggravated assault, aggravated battery, arson and concealing the death of another.
“I am innocent,” Knoblauch said, before being led out of the courtroom.
But the evidence and testimony presented during Knoblauch’s trial late last month told a different story.
Within days of Knoblauch’s arrival, Cooksey was reported missing, though he had no means of leaving his Newton home on his own. A mysterious fire was also reported at his house — but there was no sign of Cooksey.
Credit: Family photo
Credit: Family photo
Three months later, hikers 130 miles away in northeast Georgia found a human skull and a pacemaker, according to investigators. The medical device that had been implanted to keep Cooksey alive had a serial number on it that confirmed it belonged to him.
There weren’t many skeletal remains found, but there was enough evidence to confirm Cooksey was no longer alive and that his death was a brutal one, investigators determined.
Knoblauch, now 37, was identified as the suspect and arrested in July 2023. District Attorney Randy McGinley of the Alcovy Judicial Circuit thanked those who worked on the case for bringing justice to Cooksey.
Credit: Miguel Martinez-Jimenez
Credit: Miguel Martinez-Jimenez
“Because of the tireless work of the prosecution team and the lead investigators, the person responsible for this senseless and heinous crime has been convicted,” McGinley said in a statement after the verdict. “This was a complicated case that required expertise in so many areas and a dedication to finding the truth. I want to thank the numerous agencies that assisted in the investigation and trial preparation for this case.
“This verdict shows the continued dedication of the DA’s office to seeking justice for victims and their families,” McGinley said.
Cooksey had used Craigslist to find Knoblauch, his sister said. At the time, Knoblauch wanted to be far from Kansas, where she was wanted for allegedly attacking a man with a sledgehammer, investigators later found out.
Problems arose between Knoblauch and Cooksey as soon as she moved in with him in February 2023, Hardy said.
“They just didn’t agree with one another,” Hardy said. “I think she took advantage of him being in a wheelchair.”
On Feb. 23, Newton deputies and firefighters were called to Cooksey’s Mote Road residence. The home, where Hardy and her brothers had grown up, had been set on fire.
Investigators determined propane tanks had been spread throughout the house and the fire had been intentionally set. And there was blood, indicating something horrific had happened, Hardy said, but there was no sign of her brother.
In addition to having a pacemaker, Cooksey received intravenous medicine via a port that also had an alert system, according to prosecutors. A nurse testified during the trial that the port beeped if there was an issue giving the medication, and Knoblauch’s son told authorities he heard beeping coming from Cooksey’s room.
The fire and Cooksey’s disappearance remained under investigation until May 2023, when authorities got a major break. The skull and pacemaker found in Fannin County belonged to the missing man, they determined.
“Witness statements, social media records, phone records and (license plate reader) camera records led investigators to identifying Knoblauch,” McGinley said.
By that time, Knoblauch was on the run again. Police found her in East Baton Rouge, Louisiana, where she was in a lengthy standoff with local and state police. She also had a phone she used while in Fannin, Wynne said during the sentencing.
When the standoff ended, Knoblauch was taken into custody on outstanding warrants from Kansas, according to the Newton district attorney’s office.
She was later brought to Georgia to face more serious charges.
In July 2023, Georgia investigators had enough evidence to charge Knoblauch with Cooksey’s death, court records show. The DA’s office and police department in Kansas worked with the Newton prosecutors and testified during trial.
According to her indictment, Knoblauch killed Cooksey with trauma to the head. There were some markings in Cooksey’s home that appeared to be from a sledgehammer, according to investigators. A forensic anthropologist also testified that the trauma to Cooksey’s skull was likely caused by a sledgehammer.
Hardy said her brother’s brutal death was devastating. Cooksey had been beaten and was helpless, she said.
“She was trying to get money to take care of her and her son because she was on the run,” Hardy said. “He had (a) good spirit. He didn’t deserve what happened to him at all.”
Hardy said she can only imagine how proud her brother would be of his daughter, who is now a nursing student at Kennesaw State University. Cooksey’s daughter said she hopes to one day work with newborn babies.
— Photojournalist Miguel Martinez contributed to this article.
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