ADRIAN — The Warner trial resumed Tuesday morning in Lenawee County Circuit Court with a key evidentiary ruling and continued testimony from a lead investigator.
Warner trial resumes with key safe ruling
Judge Michael R. Olsaver ruled that prosecutors may show jurors demonstrative photographs of Detective Lieutenant Daniel Drewyor inside a Cannon-brand gun safe similar to one previously identified in a spray barn on the Munger Road property. The Warner trial centers on allegations that Dale Warner concealed his wife’s body on April 25, 2021.
The prosecution argued the images help illustrate that a person the size of Dee Warner, described in court as approximately 5-foot-3 and 140 pounds, could physically fit inside a safe of that size. Defense attorney Mary Chartier-Mittendorf objected, arguing there is no forensic evidence placing Dee Warner inside the safe and that the photographs are speculative and prejudicial.
Judge Olsaver determined the images are admissible as demonstrative evidence and found they are relevant to rebut the defense’s argument that concealment would have been impossible while others were present on the farm. The judge said cross-examination is the proper method to challenge weight and assumptions.
Following the ruling, Drewyor delivered testimony detailing digital evidence collected during the investigation. He testified that investigators executed a search warrant at the Munger Road property in spring 2022 and seized approximately 100 electronic devices, including phones, tablets and computers.
Drewyor said investigators specifically sought a phone that had Dee Warner’s number imported after her disappearance. He testified that Dale Warner initially indicated police already had the device, but later contacted investigators from that number. Officers returned to the property and ultimately seized it.
Drewyor also outlined search warrants for OnStar records, airline records connected to Rob Briskey, and prescription monitoring data. He testified that investigators found no evidence supporting claims that Dee Warner voluntarily fled, had a secret second phone, or was abusing prescription drugs.
New Search Details
The Warner trial continued Monday afternoon in Lenawee County Circuit Court with detailed cross-examination of a Michigan State Police investigator, focusing on the scope of searches and forensic testing conducted over nearly three years.
Defense attorney Mary Chartier-Mittendorf questioned Detective Lieutenant Daniel Drewyor of the Michigan State Police about multiple consent searches and search warrants executed after April 25, 2021. The Warner trial centers on allegations that Dale Warner killed his wife and concealed her body on the Munger Road property.
Dreer confirmed that numerous searches were conducted beginning April 26, 2021, including consent searches, warrant-based searches and multi-agency operations involving cadaver dogs, drones, excavation equipment and ground-penetrating radar. He acknowledged reviewing thousands of pages of reports and body camera footage after the Michigan State Police assumed lead responsibility in August 2022.
Testimony outlined a large-scale search in May 2023 involving approximately 120 personnel over multiple days and roughly 3,000 acres divided into designated search areas across several Lenawee County townships.
Chartier-Mittendorf also questioned Drewy0r about property damage during searches, including damage to a Hummer when equipment was moved, an electrical line struck during excavation near Building 7 and circular cutouts made in a couch during earlier FBI testing.
The defense asked whether certain items located later in the investigation, including duct tape, tarps and paint cans, were ever forensically tested or traced to purchase dates. Drewyor testified he did not know when those items were purchased and confirmed that the gun safe located in the spray barn was photographed by the FBI in October 2021 but not swabbed for blood or DNA.
Drewyor also confirmed that geofence data returned multiple devices attributed to another individual and that one known individual’s device did not appear in that data set.
The Warner trial resumes Tuesday in the 39th Circuit Court before Judge Michael R. Olsaver.