The season premiere of Dateline (September 29), “On the Outskirts of Town,” investigates the murder of Halee Rathgeber, a beautiful 20-year-old nursing student from Newburgh, Indiana. Her body was found in a gravel lot by a soccer field on April 24, 2017. She had been shot in the back of the head. Dateline’s Andrea Canning (dressed in tight capri jeans and high heels) investigates and interviews Halee’s mother, Heather Collins. Days after Rathgeber’s body was found, Halee’s friend Isaiah Hagan was charged with Halee’s murder. The first trial ended in a mistrial. During his second trial in May 2018, jurors watched a 7-hour video of investigators interrogating Hagan. Hagan said he dropped Rathgeber off at the soccer complex that night and that she gave him “like $200” that Hagan said she owed him. The big obstacle for the prosecution is that there’s no gun, no bullet – no physical evidence. The DNA found on a bloody towel belonged to Rathgeber not Hagan.
[Related: ‘Dateline’ Andrea Canning, Mom of 5 Young Girls, Married to Ex-Marine]
In June 2018, Isaiah Hagan, 23, was found guilty of Halee’s murder and robbery (Rathgeber’s wallet, phone, keys). In August Hagan was sentenced to 60 years in prison. When Hagan’s attorney, Mark Phillips, said they were going to appeal the convictions, a judge appointed a different attorney for the appeal, saying “a fresh set of eyes” should represent Hagan. However, Hagan has since requested his court-appointed attorney for his appeal be terminated. Phillips reports that he will represent Hagan again during the appeals process, and for free. Dateline airs Fridays at 10pm on NBC.
