Indiana coroner says police ‘dropped the ball’ in Fox Hollow Farm serial killer case

A coroner in Indiana investigating the Fox Hollow Farm serial killer said law enforcement “dropped the ball” when the case was first investigated in the 1990s.

Hamilton County Coroner Jeff Jellison announced in April that his office had identified human remains at Fox Hollow Farm in Westfield, Indiana, that belonged to Daniel Thomas Halloran. He was the tenth victim of suspected serial killer Herb Baumeister, whom law enforcement has tied to at least 25 victims.

Jellison told Fox News Digital in an interview that he thinks law enforcement didn’t handle the case as they should have when they were first investigating it.

“I think originally in the investigation, law enforcement did a good job of excavating the remains, but I think as time went on in the investigation, our county really dropped the ball,” Jellison said.

Jellison said he “cannot imagine” that law enforcement would push the financial burden of a DNA test onto a victim’s family in today’s world.

“These remains represent victims in a homicide, in a murder. So, to say to the families that if you want to know if your loved one was a victim of a murder, I mean, that’s a tragedy in and of its own,” Jellison said. “I think we’re better today. We’re more sensitive today to victims and family members of victims of crimes.” 

The Hamilton County Sheriff’s Office declined to comment.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.