Investigators Revisit the Crime Scene of a Murdered Prosecutor's Broad-Daylight Attack
Witnesses described "a man dressed in black" in the public slaying of Assistant District Attorney Mark Hasse.
A preview for an upcoming episode of Prosecuting Evil with Kelly Siegler gives audiences a never-before-seen look into the shocking 2013 murder of a beloved Texas prosecutor.
Mark Hasse, 57, would be the first of two prosecutors killed in the line of duty when someone (or some people) brazenly opened fire as the assistant district attorney walked from his car to the courthouse in Kaufman County, as seen in Season 2, Episode 2, airing Saturday, Feb. 1 at 8/7c. Special prosecutors Toby Shook and Bill Wirskye now give new insight into the shooting, describing what eyewitnesses saw that fateful day.
In the sneak peek, Shook and Wirskye revisit the one-block path Hasse took on the morning of Jan. 31, 2013, when on his way to work. The investigators follow the route on foot where Wirskye said “a silver-gray car” came along just a moment before the shooting.
“A handful of eyewitnesses saw different parts of the encounter, and they described a man dressed in black with a mask,” Shook told producers.
According to Wirskye, the suspect exited the vehicle and confronted Hasse in a narrow lane near a mechanic’s shop, a building that still stands more than a decade after the murder. An eyewitness working at the business reported what he saw:
“That door is open, he [the witness] was standing right there,” Shook pointed out to Prosecuting Evil producers. “He could see them shoving, and Mark saying, ‘I’m sorry, I’m sorry, I’m sorry.’”
Witnesses then saw the unknown man in black shoot the victim five times, including a fatal shot to the head.
The Murders of Mark Hasse, Mike McLelland, and Cynthia McLelland
Hasse’s murder terrified those in Kaufman, Texas, and beyond, leaving many to wonder if his job as a felony prosecutor had a role in the senseless crime. A small town stood on alert, and fellow members of law enforcement remained vigilant, especially when months went by without any arrests.
But, two months later, the killer or killers would strike again.
On Saturday, March 30, 2013 — just one day before Easter Sunday — someone went to the rural Texas home of Kaufman County Criminal District Attorney Mike McLelland and shot him and his wife, Cynthia McLelland, dead in their home. As it happened, McLelland was not only Mark Hasse’s boss, but he was one of the biggest champions in solving the prosecutor’s case following the murder.
Texas authorities believed all three victims were connected by the same killer, but even they were surprised by the unlikely suspect to come onto their radar … and the notion that he might not have acted alone.
More about Prosecuting Evil
Veteran prosecutor and Cold Justice host Kelly Siegler tackles the case of Mark Hasse and others in the second season of Prosecuting Evil with Kelly Siegler.
"As Chief of Special Crimes in the busiest courthouse in the Lone Star State, Kelly Siegler battled to get killers into courtrooms and faced off with their formidable defense attorneys,” according to the show’s official description. “Alongside the case investigators and victims’ families, Kelly draws on her own extensive experience, the prowess of her fellow state prosecutors and the expertise of skillful defense attorneys to go beyond the headlines and reveal how perpetrators were brought to justice: Texas style."
The case of Mark Hasse, Mike McLelland, and Cynthia McLelland has drawn much attention from the true crime community, being featured in shows like Oxygen's Dateline: The Smoking Gun and Killer Motive.
Don’t miss the full episode about the Hasse-McLelland case in Prosecuting Evil with Kelly Siegler, airing Saturdays at 8/7c on Oxygen.