A 36-year-old man who spent much of his adult life in prison was charged Tuesday with murdering a 14-year-old girl whose badly burned body was found behind an asphalt plant where he worked.
Adam Joseph Longoria was charged with capital murder,
criminal sodomy, vehicular theft and vehicular burglary and in the August death of Alicia DeBolt.
During the hearing in Barton County Court, Longoria stood with his fists leaning on the table in front of him and started frequently at Alicia's family. Asked by the judge if he understood the charges, Longoria looked away from the judge and said, "Yeah."
The Great Bend girl, who would have been a high school freshman this year, disappeared after leaving home on Aug. 21 to go to a party. Her family reported her missing the next day, leading to an intense search until her body was found Aug. 24 behind an asphalt plant in Great Bend, a city of about 15,000 residents in the middle of the state.
Authorities on Tuesday again refused to say how she was killed.
State Attorney General Steve Six said he doesn't anticipate charging anybody else with Alicia's slaying.
The capital murder charge carries a possible death sentence, and although Six said his office hadn't determined whether to seek capital punishment, Longoria was represented Tuesday by Jeff Wicks of the Kansas Death Penalty Defense Unit.
"There's no more serious case than a capital murder case," Six told reporters outside the Barton County Courthouse.
Wicks declined to comment after the hearing. Longoria's bond was increased to $1.5 million.
Six said he met with Alicia's family over the weekend.
"It's completely devastating," Six said. "They are still in shock and recovering from that. It's something they're continuing to struggle with all the time."
Family members declined to speak with reporters after leaving the courtroom and being ushered into a side room.
Longoria had previously been charged with vehicular theft and burglary in connection with the case.
He was arrested in a 2002 white Ford Explorer that police said was stolen from Venture Corp., a Great Bend paving company where he worked and Alicia's body was found. Her body was so badly burned that the Wichita coroner had to use dental records to identify the girl.
Longoria has a long criminal record. He was released May 25 from a Texas prison after serving a seven-year sentence for aggravated robbery. Since 1991, Longoria served prison stints in Texas for charges including burglary, forgery, credit card abuse, unauthorized use of a motor vehicle, escape from prison and evading arrest.