Sarah Dawn WINTERS

WINTERS, HARRIS, MCKELVEY, SMITH, JOHNSON, SHELLHART, PHENGSANTI, CAMPBELL, OVITT, RUTHERFORD

Posted By: Sharon R Becker (email)
Date: 7/16/2012 at 04:40:25

Obituary - Sarah Dawn Winters

The Globe Gazette
Mason City, Cerro Gordo County, Iowa
Tuesday, July 10, 2012
by Kristin Buehner

Woman murdered in Mason City
MASON CITY — A Mason City man was arrested early Tuesday morning on a charge of first-degree murder following the death of a woman at a Mason City apartment.

Aaron John HARRIS, 35, of 410 N. Washington Ave., Apt. 101, is being held in the Cerro Gordo County Jail, Mason City police reported.

He was arrested in connection with the death of Sarah Dawn WINTERS, 40, who was discovered in the apartment at 12:40 a.m.

Police said WINTERS was unresponsive when she was discovered. Paramedics were called to the scene to administer treatment.

WINTERS was transported to Mercy Medical Center-North Iowa, where she was later pronounced dead.

Mason City Police Capt. Mike McKELVEY said an autopsy will be conducted and an official cause of death will be released at that time.

He said further details are unavailable now.

Mason City police received assistance from the Iowa Division of Criminal Investigation and the Mason City Fire Department.

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Victim's friends say her death 'hard to fathom'
MASON CITY — Friends of Sarah Dawn WINTERS reacted with shock and sadness to news of her alleged murder Tuesday morning at a Mason City apartment house.

WINTERS, 40, was unresponsive when police arrived at 410 N. Washington Ave. at 12:40 a.m. She was later pronounced dead at Mercy Medical Center-North Iowa.

"It's quite a shock," said Sandy, service banquet manager at the Mason City Country Club, where WINTERS had worked as a waitress since April. "It's hard to fathom.

"She was a great employee," said Sandy, who would not give her full name. "We are really going to miss her."

Aaron John HARRIS, 35, who lived in the first-floor apartment where WINTERS was found, was being held on a charge of first-degree murder in the Cerro Gordo County Jail. Bond was set at $100,000.

Other residents of the apartment house were evacuated by police at approximately 5 a.m., said Chris SMITH, 44, a second-floor resident. He was one of the first to return to his place at about 2:30 p.m. Tuesday, when police cleared the crime scene.

"Both of them are my friends," SMITH said of HARRIS and WINTERS. "They both were good people."

HARRIS and WINTERS had been going together during the time that HARRIS lived in his first-floor apartment, SMITH said.

"(WINTERS) lived somewhere else but she came here all the time," he said.

SMITH said he found the couple having words in the parking lot behind the apartment building when he pulled up about 6 p.m. Monday.

"She smacked him because he had been having a beer and started throwing his things around," he said.

SMITH said he talked to HARRIS and calmed him down, and WINTERS left the scene.

"She ended up coming back and I guess that's when it happened," he said.

The daughter of SMITH'S girlfriend stopped by the apartment house around midnight Monday to see him.

"She saw Aaron dragging the body upstairs away from his room," SMITH said. "She got scared.

"It's kind of hard to understand, especially when I'm dealing with some of the same issues — drugs, alcohol, psychiatric," SMITH said of the incident. "I feel for both families. Sometimes you can't control the thoughts in your head. People don’t understand."

HARRIS loved WINTERS, SMITH said.

"He did a bad thing, but he's sick," observing that HARRIS was on medication for mental health reasons.

Neighbors living in surrounding houses said they woke up Tuesday to find yellow police tape strung up to their garage doors, houses and lawns. Two neighbors, who did not want to be identified, said they heard nothing all night from the apartment house, even though their bedroom faces the buiding where the homicide allegedly took place.

An official cause of death for WINTERS is not being released until an autopsy has been performed, Mason City Police Capt. Mike McKELVEY said.

Further details were unavailable Tuesday.

The apartment house is owned by Shechem LLC of St. Ansgar. The company's address is that of Daryl E. JOHNSON, former manager of the Mason City apartment building, according to information from the Cerro Gordo County Recorder's Office. He could not be reached for comment.

Mason City police were assisted at the scene by the Iowa Division of Criminal Investigation and the Mason City Fire Department.

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The Globe Gazette
Mason City, Cerro Gordo County, Iowa
Wednesday, July 11, 2012

Woman murdered in Mason City

DES MOINES — A preliminary report provided by the State Medical Examiners Office has ruled that Sarah WINTERS died by strangulation early Tuesday. WINTERS, 40, of Mason City, was discovered by Mason City police after they responded to a report of suspicious activity at 410 N. Washington Ave.

Her boyfriend, Aaron HARRIS, was charged with first-degree murder and is being held in Cerro Gordo County Jail.

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Harris' bond increased

July 11, 2012, MASON CITY — Bond has been increased for a Mason City man accused of a Tuesday murder.

Aaron John Harris, 35, 410 N. Washington Ave., Apartment 101, Mason City, is charged with first-degree murder in the strangulation death of Sarah Dawn WINTERS, 40, also of Mason City.

HARRIS' bond was increased Wednesday from $100,000 cash only to $200,000 cash only.

He will appear at 8:30 a.m. Friday, July 20, in Cerro Gordo County District Court in Mason City.

WINTERS' body was discovered in the apartment at 12:40 a.m. Tuesday, according to Mason City Police.

— By Peggy Senzarino

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Friend: Winters was 'one of the best'
By Peggy Senzarino

MASON CITY — A friend of the late Sarah Dawn WINTERS said it is inconceivable that the Mason City woman would be the victim of domestic violence.

WINTERS, 40, Mason City, was allegedly strangled to death Tuesday by Aaron John HARRIS, 35, Mason City. The pair had been dating for less than two months, according to friend Crystal SHELLHART of Mason City. WINTERS worked for SHELLHART in the laundry at Holiday Inn Express and Suites in Mason City from January 2011 to January 2012. SHELLHART said everyone called WINTERS by her last name.

"Honestly, she is one of the best people you could have ever met in your life," SHELLHART said.

"She was always positive, very bubbly. She always had positive things to say about people. She would take the shirt off her back to help somebody.

"It's very sad to see someone of her stature be taken long before her time. We need a whole lot more people like WINTERS."

SHELLHART said WINTERS grew up in Mason City but moved out to California after graduation. She had recently moved back to Mason City to be near her mother, Deb WINTERS.

WINTERS has a teenage daughter, Bentley, who lives in California with WINTERS' ex-husband.

"She has a lot of friends. She has friends all over Mason City. She has a ton of friends in California. And this is truly a very sad moment for everybody who knew her."

SHELLHART, the front desk manager at the hotel, said WINTERS never had any problems with men.

"That is why all of this is so shocking. To me, the WINTERS I know could physically, emotionally and mentally take care of herself."

SHELLHART said WINTERS could lift 150-pound buckets of laundry.

"When it comes to body strength, WINTERS was very strong. She also had the mental strongness. She had been there and done a lot in her life made her so strong to who she is today."

SHELLHART loved her spirit and bubbly personality.

"Of all the people in Mason City who could have had their life taken by somebody else, she would have been the last person in the world I would have ever thought it would happen to."

SHELLHART said rumors about drug use by WINTERS are untrue.

"This is one woman I would have trusted with my children. I would have trusted with my home, anything. I would have stood up for WINTERS if it came down to something that she needed."

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OBITUARY

MASON CITY - Sarah Dawn WINTERS, 40, of Mason City, died Tuesday morning, July 10, 2012.

Memorial services will be held at 10:30 a.m. Tuesday, July 17, at Fullerton Funeral Home, 123 Second St. S.E., Mason City. Officiating will be the Rev. Jeff DAHLIN of Praise Community Church, Mason City.

Visitation will be from 4 to 8 p.m. Monday, and again one hour prior to services at the funeral home. Condolences may be shared with the family at Fullertonfh.com.

Sarah was born on Feb. 20, 1972, at Udornthani, Thailand, the oldest of three daughters to Dwight Bryan and Lawan (PHENGSANTI) WINTERS.

Attending school through her freshman year at Mason City High School, she later moved to Anaheim, Calif., where she graduated Katella High. She attended Kaplan University, earning credits toward her nursing assistance degree. For many years she worked as a licensed hydro and massage therapist in Costa Mesa, Calif., and settled in mortgage lending until her return to Mason City in 2010.

During her early years she loved to play basketball, run track and field, and won several beauty pageants. During her stay in Mason City, Sarah tended bar at the Mason City Country Club where everyone loved her charisma, enthusiasm and vivacious personality. She was always a pleasure to be around.

She enjoyed playing pool, listening to music, traveling and hanging with friends. She was wonderful in sketching clothing designs and whipping up a surprise in the kitchen. She would watch over and over "A Room With A View" and "Golden Girls." Sarah was also great at board and card games, beating her family and friends at Life, Monopoly and Uno.

Aside from loving friends and family who are thankful in sharing her short life, Sarah leaves behind her parents, Bryan and Lawan WINTERS; daughter Bentley CAMPBELL of California; sisters Sheri and her husband, Chad OVITT, and Katherine and her husband, Scott RUTHERFORD, all of Colorado; a step-brother, Jason E. WINTERS of California; and she was a very proud aunt of Cody, Taylor, Meela, Gavin and Austin.

Fullerton Funeral Home, 123 Second St. S.E., Mason City, Iowa 50401, 641-423-8676, www.Fullertonfh.com.

Published in The Globe Gazette, Sunday, July 15, 2012.

Transcriptions by Sharon R. Becker, July of 2012

Cerro Gordo Obituaries maintained by Lynn Diemer-Mathews.
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