‘Justice for Dee’ rally attendees unfazed by snow ahead of husband’s bond hearing

ADRIAN, Mich. — At the last ‘Justice for Dee’ rally at the old Lenawee County Courthouse in Adrian, things looked a bit different weather-wise. Yet, Sunday, the community support remained.

Another thing that remained the same: the presence of Lenawee County Sheriff Troy Bevier, who back at the August 2022 rally, turned Dee’s case over to Michigan State Police.

Parts cut for clarity.

Jaden: How long have you been sheriff in Lenawee County?

Sheriff Bevier: Five years.

Jaden: Do you recall any case that had this much attention in the community, that got this much support from the community?

Sheriff Bevier: No, this has been a pretty polarizing thing for the community.

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Sheriff Bevier: Through it all, the community continues to back law enforcement, and I want to thank them for that.

Jaden: But there were definitely those moments when the community was pushing back and there was some anger about the case when the sheriff’s office was handling it. What have you learned from that experience?

Sheriff Bevier: You learn a lot from everything. And if you don’t, then you’re doing the wrong thing.

Looking back, Bevier says one thing, in particular, should have been done sooner in the investigation.

“The state police did a fantastic job and they did have the resources that we didn’t have. And it’s important to know when it’s time to do that,” he said.

I also asked Dee’s brother, Gregg Hardy, about what he’s learned — when it comes to rallying a community around the cause of a missing person. He says that knowledge, he’d like to pass along to other families in the same boat.

“I would like to do something to help them, at least, share experiences; console them, if nothing else. I’ve learned a lot about this. I’ve learned about what the fight is that we have to do — it’s a big fight — maybe I can help some people understand how much effort that takes or how much strength it takes,” Hardy said.

Deb Keller, former principal of St. Joseph Academy, currently resides in Florida, and on top of getting a healthy dose of cold and snow, was present to show support for the family. Why the journey? She’s close friends with Dee’s son, Parker, as well as Gregg and his wife Shelley.

“She was a party girl, as far as part of the family. She was the one who brought the families together for holidays, for birthdays, for anniversaries. She was the center of that family, she had little children, and she had grown children and they all loved to be around her because she was the spirit of the party,” Keller recalls.

The bond hearing to assess the possibility of lowering Dale Warner’s bail amount is set for Monday at 11 a.m. — right across the street — at the Rex B. Martin Judicial Building.