Ten years later: Father struggles to make sense of daughter’s brutal slaying
In this October 2012 photo, Dave and Mary Neese hold a photo of their daughter Skylar, in Morgantown, W.Va. When 16-year-old honors student Skylar slipped out her bedroom window, she had no clue that two girls she considered among her best friends planned to stab her to death then bury her in the woods of Greene County. (Photo courtesy of the Associated Press)
A makeshift memorial was set up in Wayne Township, Greene County in the days after the body of Skylar Neese was found in 2013. (Photo courtesy of the Observer-Reporter)
Skylar Neese
Dave Neese speaks to students at Penn State Fayette, The Eberly Campus about the 2012 murder of his 16-year-old daughter, Skylar. (Photo by Mark Hofmann)
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For more than a decade, Dave Neese has tried to make sense of his 16-year-old daughter鈥檚 brutal murder.
During a Tuesday presentation at Penn State Fayette, The Eberly Campus, Neese said he simply can鈥檛.
鈥淭here鈥檚 no part about this story that鈥檚 sane,鈥� he told those who gathered to hear him speak.
On July 6, 2012, Sklylar Neese left her Star City, W.Va. home with two girls she believed were her friends. They told her they wanted to take her to a party, and instead drove her to Wayne Township in Greene County and stabbed her death.
鈥淚鈥檝e had so many questions I鈥檝e wanted to ask these girls for so long, and you know, it doesn鈥檛 matter what the question is. You鈥檙e not going to get an answer that makes sense because this is insanity,鈥� Neese said.
Still, Neese and his wife Mary continue to give presentations, telling their daughter鈥檚 story 鈥� and the impact her death has had on them 鈥� everywhere from prisons to schools.
鈥淭his has ruined my life,鈥� Dave said. 鈥淢y wife can鈥檛 be here today because she鈥檚 ill 鈥� she鈥檚 sick, all directly related to this.鈥�
Two years ago, he said, his brother committed suicide over the devastation of his niece鈥檚 murder.
Skylar was stabbed more than 50 times by Rachel Shoaf and Shelia Eddy, both classmates of hers from Morgantown. Prosecutors in West Virginia said Shoaf and Eddy killed Skylar because they believed she was in the way of their friendship.
Dave Neese said the girls planned the killing over a year鈥檚 time, and tried to dig a grave to hide Skylar鈥檚 body. When they found the ground was too hard to do that, they covered her up with twigs and branches, he said.
After Skylar was killed, Shoaf and Eddy would come to the Neese family鈥檚 home, offering support. One of the girls even asked to go to Skylar鈥檚 room, telling her parents she wanted to do so to be closer to her.
Authorities discovered Skylar鈥檚 body six months after she was killed in rural Greene County, after Shoaf confessed the killing to a nurse at a mental health facility.
Both Shoaf and Eddy were convicted in the case, with Shoaf sentenced to 30 years in prison and Eddy sentenced to 15 years to life.
Dave Neese said he finds it impossible to understand how two people who have ruined so many lives continue to have perks, even behind bars. He said Shoaf and Eddy get bags of mail, one was briefly married, and both have received money and gifts.
Next month, Shoaf will be eligible for parole. Dave said he will be at the hearing, ready to say what he needs to, to ensure she stays in prison. He asked those who listened to him on Tuesday to show support for Skylar, and to sign the Change.org petition to keep Shoaf behind bars.
Launched in March, the petition has more than 31,000 digital signatures.
While the support is meaningful, it brings little consolation to a man who has an unbearable hole in his heart over the loss of his bubbly and kind daughter.
鈥淭en years later, I still find myself as mad. I know how to control it a little better, but I still find myself as mad and full of hate as I did before,鈥� he said. 鈥淚鈥檓 going to try to channel that hate into good. I鈥檓 trying to help people. I鈥檓 trying to make this never ever happen again but as much as I don鈥檛 want it to, it already has happened somewhere and it鈥檚 horrible.鈥�