Five months after 17-year-old Nathanael Isaiah Hale’s death, an arrest still has not been made.

Monday, September 06, 1999

Five months after 17-year-old Nathanael Isaiah Hale’s death, an arrest still has not been made.

And his mother, Debbie Hale, wants answers.

"It’s been five months and it seems like nothing’s been done," Mrs. Hale said. "I felt I should do something. I felt I owed that to Isaiah."

Hale was found dead March 16 in an isolated area on County Road 519 in Union Township, investigators said.

Now, Hale’s family is distributing fliers soliciting information which will lead to the arrest and conviction of the person or persons responsible for the murder.

The family is offering a $5,000 award for that information, Mrs. Hale said.

"We’ve also checked into hiring a private detective and contacted America’s Most Wanted and Unsolved Mysteries," she said. "It’s really hard to imagine who would have done this. He had so many friends. We’re also checking into renting a billboard. Maybe the right person will see it. You try everything you can think of and you hope something works."

Any information may be given to the family at 643-2304. All calls may remain anonymous, Mrs. Hale said.

Fliers are currently posted in the Huntington, W.Va., area, where Hale spent a great deal of his time, she added.

More fliers will be distributed in Lawrence County and the Ironton area within the next few weeks, Mrs. Hale said.

The Lawrence County Sheriff’s Department supports Mrs. Hale’s actions, said Detective Carol Kitts.

"It couldn’t hurt," Ms. Kitts said. "We’re still interviewing people. Every time we get a tip, we follow it up. We’re going to have to start back over and begin re-interviewing. Murder investigations take a lot of patience and energy. You have to make sure all the t’s are crossed and the i’s are dotted."

The Hale case is not the only homicide still under investigation by the sheriff’s department, Ms. Kitts added.

Law enforcement officials are still looking for information regarding two 1998 homicides. One of them, involving Donell Foster, occurred in January on Lawrence Street, and the other, involving William Fox, occurred in the summer in Burlington.

Anyone who has information concerning any of the three homicides may contact the sheriff’s department at 532-3525, Ms. Kitts said.