Dateline: Return to Early Shift – Who was Michelle Mockbee, and what happened to her? Details of the 2012 incident, explored

Dateline: Return to Early Shift, which aired on 28th June 2019, addresses the murder of Michelle Ann Whalen Mockbee. She was found murdered in May 2012, in her office in a warehouse in Florence, Kentucky.

According to Dateline, on 29th May 2012, in the early hours of the morning, Michelle was found dead in her office by her co-workers, Ed Yask and janitor David Dooley. She was found with a plastic bag over her head and signs of blunt force trauma.

Dateline: Return to Early Shift explores the details of Michelle’s murder. Michelle Mockbee, a loving wife, mother, daughter, and meticulous employee, was taken away from her family, colleagues, and loved ones in a brutal murder that was followed by a lengthy trial.

Details of Dateline: Return to Early Shift

Michelle Mockbee was born on 8th August 1969 in Covington, Kentucky. She was the oldest of four siblings and was known for her kind heart and strong sense of responsibility. In 2012, she was married to Carl D. Mockbee (also known as Dan), and the couple were parents to two daughters, Carli and Madelyn. Michelle worked at the Thermo Fisher Scientific Warehouse in Florence as a Logistics Support Representative, which is also where she met her husband, Carl D. Mockbee, for the first time.

As Dateline reports, on the morning of 29th May 2012, Michelle left home early for her shift. But she did not return home that day. An hour later, a co-worker named Ed Yaska noticed a large stain in the hallway outside her office.

Upon looking further with another co-worker, janitor David Dooley, they found Michelle’s dead body. Ed called 911, and authorities soon arrived to find her with a plastic bag over her head and signs of blunt force trauma.

The autopsy revealed that Michelle was killed by blunt force trauma to her head. There were also cut marks on her neck, her hands were tied, and there were pry marks on a nearby door, hinting at a possible break-in.

Dan Mockbee, Michelle’s husband, was sleeping at home at the time of the murder, which gave him an alibi. He was quickly ruled out as a suspect after he passed a lie detector test. Police then turned their attention to investigating the thirteen employees who were on-site that morning.

Surveillance footage revealed that the janitor, David Dooley’s truck, left the warehouse around 6:30 a.m. and returned just before 7:00 a.m. At first, David had not mentioned leaving when he was questioned but later claimed he had gone home to check on his wife after she did not pick up his call.

His wife, Janet, however, gave conflicting statements. At one point, she said David never came home that morning, but later said he returned to change his pants. Another co-worker also said David had mentioned his pants getting torn.

Suspicion grew after it was discovered that David had been faking time cards for himself and Janet. Investigators believed he might have been covering up more than just missing work. His time logs from the week of the murder were missing.

On 27th September 2012, David Dooley was arrested and charged with murder and tampering with evidence. His trial in 2014 ended with a conviction and a life sentence. But this wasn’t the end.

A later investigation revealed misconduct in the case. As Dateline reports, the lead detective and the prosecutor had a secret relationship and failed to disclose important video evidence. This included footage of another man near the warehouse hours before the murder.

Because of this, David’s conviction was overturned. He had another trial in 2019. Once again, the jury found him guilty. He received a sentence of thirty-eight years for murder and five years for evidence tampering.

According to Dateline, David Dooley is now serving his sentence at the Eastern Kentucky Correctional Complex. He will be eligible for parole in 2032. Dateline revisits this case, capturing the heartbreak, the fight for justice, and the memory of a woman who meant so much to so many.

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