(Decatur County, TN) He is accused of kidnapping and killing nursing student Holly Bobo, but Zachary Adams said in court Tuesday he is not guilty.
Adams had his arraignment in Decatur County.
Holly’s family sat just a few feet from where Adams stood with his attorney Jennifer Thompson.
There were plenty of tears from those who loved Holly, but through it all, Zachary Adams stared blankly ahead.
Emotions ran high on Adams’ arraignment day, but even higher was the level of security both inside and outside the courthouse.
A helicopter flew overhead and deputies and state troopers surrounded Adams as he arrived in a bulletproof vest.
Ernest Sanders, a Bobo family friend, watched Adams arrive.
“I hope he didn’t do it, but in my heart, I know he did it,” Sanders said.
Adams said nothing as he entered the courthouse, and very little once inside.
Instead, his attorney Jennifer Thompson spoke for him, entering a plea of not guilty to charges of especially aggravated kidnapping and first-degree murder in the perpetration of kidnapping.
Holly Bobo’s family sat in the front row. Her mother, Karen, cried. Her brother, Clint, stared at the back of Adams’ head, never looking away.
Mississippi lawyer Steve Farese has represented the Bobo family for the past two years.
“Advising them and telling them about motion dates, what normally happens in court appearances,” he said of what he has been telling them.
A status hearing was set with the judge saying he wants the case to move along as quickly and fairly as possible, and after three long years of searching for Holly, justice is what this community is aching for.
“We’re still to going to give up,” Sanders said. “You still have to have hope.”
The status hearing will be held on April 9 at 9 a.m.
Adams is being held in the Chester County jail without bond.
It’s been almost three years since Holly Bobo disappeared.
It was April 13, 2011, when her brother told authorities he saw Bobo following a man in hunting clothes into the woods near the family home in Darden.
Police and family searched but were unable to find her.
Investigators have not revealed what evidence they have against the suspect, or if they have found a body.
Adams have a violent past and some say they are not surprised he was arrested.