DNA helped solve this once-cold case. Now a Granite City woman is convicted of murder

A Granite City woman became the first person in Macoupin County convicted of first-degree murder in more than 30 years, according to State’s Attorney Jordan Garrison.

A jury took just a little under two hours Wednesday to find Chancey Hutson, 31, guilty on two counts of murder for her part of a residential burglary that led to the death of Cody Adams, 24, of Woodburn.

“Cody Adams spent the last moments of his life fighting off an intruder to protect his mother and his father,” Garrison said in a statement. “We can all hope to have the courage and strength Cody had in his final moments. Ms. Hutson learned that even after years justice will find you.”

According to court records, Hutson entered Adams’ home wearing a mask and carrying a gun in the early morning hours of Jan. 1, 2015. She encountered Adams and his mother, who attempted to fight her off. The .38-caliber handgun discharged, striking Adams in the upper arm and chest.

Hutson’s mask came off in the melee and she was able to flee. Adams later died of his wounds.

The case was cold for more than two years until a police database matched DNA found on the mask with Hutson, Garrison said.

Macoupin County Judge Joshua A. Meyer scheduled sentencing for Oct. 3. Hutson faces a term of 20 to 60 years in an Illinois prison.

A second person, William Kavanaugh, 37, of East Alton, also was charged in Adams’ death. The Associated Press reported in 2022 that Kavanaugh had escaped the Macoupin County Jail by crawling out through ceiling tiles. He was later recaptured at the trailer home of a female acquaintance.

A trial on the murder and escape charges has not yet been scheduled, Adams said.

Woodburn is an unincorporated village on Illinois 14 roughly three miles west of Bunker Hill.

This story was originally published August 24, 2022 at 4:01 PM.