ST. LOUIS COUNTY, Mo. — A family is thankful for the work put in to solve the mystery of their mother's death. A man was charged this week in the 2004 murder case where a woman was found dead in Wright City, Missouri.
Deanna Denise Howland's body was found at the rest stop along westbound Interstate 70 on June 29, 2004.
Mike Anthony Clardy, 63, was charged with second-degree murder and one count of abandonment of a corpse after a DNA test matched him to Howland's body.
Ashley Kinnear, Howland's daughter, said she always felt that detectives were working to solve the case nonstop. She spoke at a Thursday news conference with her brother at her side.
"They made sure I knew they didn't forget about it," Kinnear said.
She knew that law enforcement offers were losing sleep for 19 years as she was.
"It's always been my mom. I knew that something happened. I knew she didn't just decide to get rid of us," Kinnear said.
She was glad to know that many people were interested in the case, and law enforcement did not reduce her mother to a "body part found."
"Just last week I got to a point where I was like I should just be grateful I had the identification. I'm surprised we made it that far. Maybe that's all I'm going to get. I need to come to terms with it. This might be the end of it. It was just this week...earlier this week before that...I guess they made the arrest. So that is mind-blowing because some people never get this far at all," Kinnear said.
Kinnear thanked those that were interested in Howland as a mother.
5 On Your Side's Laura Barczewski asked Kinnear, "If there was anything you could say to your mom who was taken away from you at such a young age, what would it be?"
Kinnear responded, "It would be that I know she never gave up on us. No matter how many times people would tell me, 'Sorry, maybe the drugs are better than you. She just doesn't want to come back.' I knew that was wrong. I had just enough experience with her as a person to know how much she loved us. And she would tell me all the time, 'I know I'm not allowed to talk to your brother, but will you tell him I love him and that I'm sorry. I just can't get away from the drugs.' I know, Mom. I know. I never doubted it. I know you love me. And I know that you were taken away and that you didn't just leave."
The case remained unsolved until 2014 when the Warren County Sheriff's Department began looking into missing person cases.
Howland's torso was found headless, handless and legless by maintenance workers. A knife in a sewer was also recovered at the scene.
On Jan. 10, police interviewed Clardy and he admitted to killing the victim on or about June 26, 2004, in his home in St. Louis County. He also admitted to dismembering her body.
Detectives revealed Thursday that Howland was a sex worker and had a disagreement with Clardy before her death.
Clardy is being held on $1 million bond in the Warren County Jail.