News

Actions

Prosecutor: DNA links Daniel Clay to Chelsea Bruck in Halloween party death

Posted at 6:07 PM, Jul 27, 2016
and last updated 2016-07-27 20:40:26-04
 
A new law about when police can collect DNA from suspects is the reason detectives finally got a major break in the Chelsea Bruck murder case. 
 
Police and Prosecutors say Daniel Clay killed 22-year-old Chelsea Bruck, and it was Clay’s capture months ago for a different crime that may finally bring justice to Bruck’s family.
 
Bruck vanished from a crowded Halloween party in Frenchtown Twp. back in October of 2014.  Clay is now charged with 2nddegree murder after police closed in on the 27-year-old in Newport last week.
 
The Monroe County Prosecutor says a 2015 law that allows police to take DNA from suspects when they are arrested on felony charges – instead of waiting for a conviction – can make all the difference in cases like this.
 
Police arrested Clay back in May on theft charges.  After his DNA was sent to the crime lab, state police told sheriff’s investigators that the DNA matched DNA that had been found on Bruck’s Poison Ivy Halloween costume.
 
Daniel Clay will be back in court Thursday for a hearing.  He faces life in prison if he’s convicted in Chelsea Bruck’s murder.
Daniel Clay will be back in court Thursday for a hearing.  He faces life in prison if he’s convicted in Chelsea Bruck’s murder.