Sobering crime behind a laughable scheme
(“Grave Danger,” Forensic Files)
Anyone who watches the “Grave Danger” episode of Forensic Files can’t help but be taken aback by the ridiculousness of Molly and Clayton Daniels’ crime.
Molly, an office receptionist, and Clay, an unemployed mechanic, robbed the grave of Charlotte Davis — who had died at the age of 81 in 2003 — then placed her body in a Chevrolet Cavalier along with some of Clay’s belongings. They pushed the vehicle off the road and set it on fire on June 18, 2004, in the hopes of collecting $110,000 in life insurance money upon Clay’s “death.”
OMG, it’s working. At first, things went as planned for the Leander, Texas, couple. Family members identified items from the burned car as having belonged to Clay. Molly used her new status as a widow with two children to coax aid from sympathetic community members. Clay hid himself from public view.
But Molly, 21, and Clay, 24, had always intended to remain together. Instead of moving someplace far away where no one knew them, they stayed in the same area. Clay dyed his hair black, and Molly began introducing him as her new boyfriend, Jake Gregg.
That didn’t work out so well. The authorities caught on pronto. A DNA test proved the charred remains in the car belonged to someone other than Clay Daniels.
Worldwide ‘what?!’ The insurance company got justice at the subsequent trial, as did the late Charlotte Davis, when her former caretaker testified that the grave desecration made her heartsick.
The macabre element of Clay and Molly’s scheme may have made members of the general public shudder and grimace, but they still wanted to hear all the details. Prosecutor Jane Starnes wrote in an article in “The Texas Prosecutor” newsletter:
My sister-in-law in Hawaii called to say she read about me in the Hilo paper. Molly’s dirty deeds were reported in South Africa, Australia, New Zealand, and Ireland. A producer from CNN called. [A] People magazine reporter kept calling. A reporter from Tokyo called, asking insightful questions such as, “What color [was] Clayton Daniels’ hair before he dye[d] it black?” We got a call from a reporter in London from The Sunday Magazine.
Clay Daniels ended up receiving 30 years in prison for offenses including insurance fraud, arson, and desecration of a cemetery. Molly Daniels got 20 years for insurance fraud and hindering her husband’s apprehension. Molly’s family members took custody of the two small children the couple shared.
The redeeming part of this whole mess seemed to be that at least it didn’t cause bodily harm to any living person.
A live victim. But the motivation for the outlandish string of events had its roots in a real, devastating crime committed by Clay when he was 16 years old.
He raped a 7-year-old cousin of his circa 1996, although the assault came to light only years later. Clay pleaded guilty to aggravated sexual assault on a child and, under a deferred adjudication deal, had to serve 30 days in jail, to start on June 21, 2004, and then 10 years probation. His name would appear on the Registered Sex Offenders list.
Molly said on Dateline NBC that she believed the legal system had railroaded Clay and that a good man like him could have never molested a child. She wanted him to continue as a stay-at-home dad without any limitations on where they could live, and that’s why they hatched the insurance fraud plan, she explained.
Leniency…in Texas? Arson investigator Janine Mather, however, told Forensic Files that she believed Clay’s motivation was a reluctance to go to jail and appear on the RSO list.
But here’s the question that remains: Why did Clay initially get only 30 days in jail for rape? One third of the 30-year sentence he ultimately received was in connection to a “probation violation” for the aggravated sexual assault to his cousin — but that wasn’t handed down until after the burned-car caper.
I did a little nosing around online for information about Texas sexual assault laws and found that aggravated sexual assault on a child younger than 14 years of age, under certain circumstances, means a minimum sentence of 25 years. It’s automatically a minimum of 25 years if the child is under 6 years of age. But Clay’s little cousin was already 7 when the attack occurred.
The most recent U.S. Sentencing Commission fact sheet listed average sentences for sexual abuse offenders as 139 months to 235 months.
So had Clay Daniels done something to redeem himself in the years between the sexual assault he committed at 16 and his initial sentencing for that crime at age 24? It didn’t sound that way. “Grave Danger” mentions that, even during the eulogy at Clay’s funeral (held before he was discovered alive and raven-haired), his best buddy felt compelled to acknowledge that Clay was a seriously flawed character.
Minor on minor crime. The only, meager explanation I could find for the light sentence Clay received is suggested by a University of New Hampshire study commissioned by the U.S. Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention, which suggests that the age of an offender can affect sentencing favorably.
The research revealed that “juveniles account for more than one-third (35.6 percent) of those known to police to have committed sex offenses against minors” — but that “a large majority (about 85–95 percent) of sex-offending youth have no arrests or reports for future sex crimes.”
That doesn’t mean, however, that these folks stay on the right side of the law: According to the UNH research, “[Of the youths who do] have future arrests, they are far more likely to be for nonsexual crimes such as property offenses.”
There’s one area in which Clay, with Molly’s help, exceeded everyone’s expectations.
Today, he’s an inmate in the Wallace Unit in Colorado City, Texas.
Molly served at least 12 years of her sentence and exited prison sometime after 2016. She is keeping a low profile. — RR
Watch the Forensic Files episode on YouTube
P.S. Below, please see a different explanation for Clay’s sentencing from reader Ash.
What a pair of degenerates! I doubt their jail time will reform their characters either. Hope the police will keep an eye on them wherever they go when they’re released.
hello i would like you to know that although they both did bad things in their life time they are good people. i am in fact the child of these to people. what they did was to keep a family together. and though you may not like them i forgive them. they may have caused my life to be harder than it shouldve been but i forgive them.
j d: Blessings to you – and I hope your mum has a contented and trouble-free life henceforth, now she’s out. Forgiveness is good, and it’s entirely a matter for you, with others’ thoughts on your mum irrelevant to you. She’s served her time; a line can be drawn under it.
You shouldn’t feel bad for someone else’s mistake. You’re a good person, because you learn how to forgive, but justice needed to be served. They will learn from their mistakes and have the chance to start over again and hopefully making the right decision. Be blessed!
They are and will always be scumbags. If you don’t realize that unfortunately you are probably a scumbag too. Ever heard the apple doesn’t fall far from the tree? Just because there may be a motive, doesn’t mean it’s excusable. He raped a 7 year old and then tried to trick his kids into thinking he was dead. She played along. Dirty trash scumbsgs.
Shut up!
Darling, I’m glad you made it through all of that. It must be painful still but you’re doing great. Blessings on you xx
Buck tooth baby raper got butt raped in jail.
I don’t forgive child molesters. I’m sorry but your Dad is a scumbag. But I do hope that your life turns out to be an amazing life — try to accomplish all your dreams and visions.
They are scumbags but I know both her kids and they are pretty decent kids, It’s hard to live in the shadow of what your parents did. However, Molly is a scumbag — she hurts people and she does it sober, which makes her more dangerous. She is about to go back to prison for stealing from the roofing company she worked for, and it’s in the millions from what I was told. She is a liar, a manipulator and a narcissist, and the fact she could do this to her children AGAIN, makes her a lousy mom. I used to work with her and be friends with her until I didn’t pay 24/7 attention to her and then she got me fired. Karma always finds its way around. I am also a felon but changed my life around 14 years ago. Women like her give us other felons a bad name when we HAVE changed. I hope she rots in jail.
Thanks for writing in with your experience from the frontlines! I’m so glad to hear the kids are doing okay and I hope people give them a chance.
You are a beautiful soul and 1000% correct. Imagine if every human was able to understand the human condition to even half the intensity you’ve displayed, the world would be great. All my love and respect to you.
Jack,
I am glad to know you have a forgiving heart. It must be hard on you and your sibling. I hope you are happy and well.
It is an interesting mystery. I like the way you checked Texas law to ground the show in reality. The story is very interesting. Kudos.
Karma is a bitch (and well-deserved!) Great job on all the research…you can be the new Jessica Fletcher (“Murder She Wrote”) !
Odd that they would pick an elderly female corpse to spell a “dead” 24-year-old male, fire notwithstanding. How horrific for the family of Charlotte Davis. Fascinating what people think they can get away with. Thanks.
Wonder if anyone would believe that either of these perps has anymore brain capacity than that of a chimp.
Sounds like a Columbo episode where there is always a ‘fatal’ flaw in the planning or the aftermath. You have to wonder if they would have been caught had they not decided to live in proximity. Even if they had eluded detection in this case, how far does $110,000 go? It’s not like the guy was supremely employable. What would they do for money except commit more crimes?
The forensic science proved the the few remains that were found were not that of Clay Daniel…so yes they would have gotten caught either way.
IKR.
They both actually sound very uneducated and actually idiots. He is a child molester and she is a fool. I feel sorry for their children. The one posting here, does not sound like school is a priority.
Great research – especially in light of the light sentence given in the Stanford rape case.
Thanks, Marie! That Stanford sentence was beyond belief.
Hi,
Sometimes you see a show where the accumulation of improbable occurrences actually adds up to something that seems probable!
Are you familiar with The Dating Game killer?
Yes, thank you for writing in! You must mean Rodney Alcala. If remember correctly, he raped someone and was either punished lightly or not punished — and then went on to commit horrible crimes (way worse than Clay and Molly’s). I found a clip of Alcala’s appearance on the Dating Game:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=12PXvKfWdZs
Also some photos of Alcala’s victims in a 2014 article:
https://www.vice.com/read/the-haunting-photography-of-a-serial-killer
I guess they watch TV crimes shows such as Law and Order and CSI, and from there got the idea to dig out a corpse from a cemetery. Clayton and Molly Daniel were just dumber than Beavis and Butt-Head. At least they didn’t kill a person to complete such bravado. The two main elements were insurance fraud and avoiding serving just 30 days in jail. And were also dumb enough to remain in the area in the naked public eye. Watching those shows, they probably didn’t watch the end where the villains get caught at the end of the show. This is the case of the imperfect crime.
Justice across the U.S. involving prison sentences for juveniles is out of control. (Forensic Files: Key Evidence) Roy Beck shot and killed a poor homeless man on the street when Roy was a juvenile. He was sentenced to juvenile detention for the rest of his youth. (Room with a View) Patrick Denney — a 15-year-old paperboy — raped a woman in her home and killed her with 97 stabbings. He was convicted for his crimes and sentenced to life without parole. (Breaking News) Shermaine Johnson, 16, also raped a woman and stabbed her numerous times. By the time he was convicted, he was an adult. But despite being a juvenile when he committed the crimes, he was sentenced to death. A sentence that was later overturned by the U.S. Supreme Court and the government banned the death penalty for criminals who committed their crimes as a juvenile. Although it is fact this death sentence had been banned for criminals who committed their crimes as a juvenile, it’s still a fact they tried and completed the verdict of ‘death penalty’ on a criminal who committed their crimes as a juvenile.
Harsher sentencing laws for career criminals.
The “corpse” used to be someone’s daughter, maybe someone’s mother or wife. The fact that they would dig her body out of what was supposed to be its final resting place is unconscionable.
The court agreed with you — I think one of the charges against them was “abuse of a corpse.”
Why was Clay “resentenced” for the assault with 20 years? He was given 30 days, initialy….it seems like double jepoardy…he didn’t re-commit the crime. Maybe it was a probation violation when he did the latter crimes?
Not 100 percent sure, but I think that by avoiding the initial jail sentence and registering as a sex offender — by pretending to be dead – he tripped another legal wire related to the sex assault. It’s one crazy case.
He wasn’t resentenced. Initially he took a plea bargain for the sexual assault charge. Because the victims parents did not want to put their daughter through the agony of a trial and the evidence against him was mostly circumstantial, he agreed to 10 years probation. However, if he violated his probation in the slightest, he would have to serve a 20 year sentence in TDCJ per that plea bargain. The 30 days he was sentenced to was for a prior probation violation. The reason I know all of this is because I was the young victim.
Thanks so much for writing in and explaining the legal history. I’m terribly sorry about the crime Clay Daniels perpetrated against you as a child and hope it’s a comfort to you that he’s in prison and has been publicly exposed as a sex criminal.
Bless you hon. I hope you are leading a happy life now that this cretin is where he belongs. Love and power to you.
God bless you I hope you are living a peaceful life now and that you have overcome all this!
If this means anything I am so sorry this disrupted your life. I know firsthand because my abuser was my brother. It has had a devastating effect on my life, especially my personal relationships. If you have not done so, I recommend counseling. It saved my life. This situation is so mixed up in the emotions of disgust, and conflicting feelings you do not understand. I ruined a beautiful relationship and impending marriage because of my emotional problems. He married someone else and is now deceased. I am married happily now and it took me 66 years to get here. I KNOW how you feel do yourself a favor and get help. If you have already contacted a therapist, congrats. Email me anytime. I do not know if it is shown or not. Good luck and I am sorry. tlo
Terri, thanks for writing in with your story — I’m glad to hear you found a great therapist! (There are so many mediocre and bad ones out there.) FYI, your email isn’t shown to the public unless you actually write it into the body of your reader comment.
Dear Ash, I’m sorry you had to go through all this. I hope that scumbag meets the fate he deserves soon. And I hope life gives you back in some form all the joy you were stolen. Strength and support.
When was Molly Daniels released from prison?
Thanks for the heads-up on Molly — not sure when she got out. Clayton Daniels isn’t eligible for parole until 2021.
2016
30 days for child rape and 30 years for insurance fraud. That’s American capitalism for you.
That’s exactly what I was thinking. 30 years is more than some people get for killing someone.
Clay Daniel’s initial sentence for child rape was as fucked up as Tim Bradford’s for killing Tina Mott (another Forensic Files episode titled “Skin of her Teeth”) in a manner so gruesome it should’ve sent him straight to death row. Lucky for Clay, he got an additional 20 years later for that offense. If you want a prison sentence too light, Tim Bradford’s was and he actually killed somebody.
FF ep ‘Skin of Her Teeth’:
In ’94 a human skull retrieved from a Hamilton, Ohio pond reveals a ghastly crime. Markings on the skull indicate the victim had been stabbed multiple times and the teeth had been removed with pliers in an attempt to hide the victim’s identity. A DNA match between the skull and the victim’s 18-month-old son was used to identify the remains as 21-year-old Tina Elaine Mott, who was reported missing two months earlier. Investigators focus on her live-in boyfriend, Timothy Bradford, who, faced with the forensic evidence against him, confessed to killing and dismembering Mott.
—
As I understand the case, I can’t see why Bradford averted a murder conviction for agreeing to disclose the remains’ location (when the skull had been recovered and its identity confirmed). Apparently, Tina had no close relatives – so why did the rest of the remains matter more than a murder conviction? He MAY also have agreed to confess on condition of the vol. manslaughter ‘deal,’ yet it seems the state had sufficient evidence to convict him for murder without a confession. But maybe not…
Bradford’s was a terrible crime, for which he should be serving life without parole. He has shown himself to be capable of the utmost depravity. I can’t imagine the parole board seeing fit to release him early – but that won’t prevent release at the sentence-end.
Bradford’s case, yes they did have physical evidence to convict him of murder, her blood was on the knives that were found in a storage unit he’d been renting and the cops went there cuz he missed a payment. Her blood was also near the bathtub where he skinned and disemboweled her plus he did confess to it. And they used mitochondrial DNA from her son to identify her. Something that gruesome, forget life in prison, he’s a walking argument for the death penalty.
When cousins marry they are the result. Their children do not have a chance being the spawn of these two imbeciles
I can tell you. Her name is Molly Honea now and she works as an office manager at Tarrant Roofing in Bedford, Texas. I used to work there is how I know and she told me about this crime. Of course she has a different version. Funny how she has access to people’s information, checks and other financial assests when her crime is fraud. I am sure if people whose roofs were being put on knew she was in the end in charge of taking care of the back end of their roofs they probably would choose a different company to put their roof on!!
Jessica, thanks much for the scoop! On one hand, it’s nice to hear she’s working but, on the other, yikes, who knows whether she’ll brew up trouble again.
I would like to say that this woman that is speaking here was fired due to the fact that she could not and would not get her work done. She made too many mistakes and was fired. She then became very upset and began harassing Molly and the owner of Tarrant Roofing saying how horrible they had been to her. Tarrant Roofing is a company that actually allowed for convicted felons to get a second chance at life because our legal system has it out for felons. And Molly was given a second chance to start anew and she has done exceptionally well. Molly has learned from her mistakes and does not plan on repeating them. EVER. I would appreciate it if you would disregard this woman’s statement as she is not a reliable source as to Molly’s current situation.
JD: Thanks for the info. I hope Molly manages a contented life for your sake at least. As a former prison chaplain I agree that when people have done their time they shouldn’t be treated as though they’re criminals. Some crimes are horrible and that’s a bigger ‘ask’ – but this isn’t one of those cases. ‘Abuse of a corpse’ isn’t nice… but it’s rather less egregious than abusing the living…
I hope you’re doing well after this disruption to your childhood. Every blessing.
Well said. I agree everyone has the hope that convicts can be changed but no one wants to be the one who does it. I thank you for the info and god bless you for sharing that it changed my view of this situation. People talk a good game but thank god for that business that actually does something. Everyone needs to forgive and give her another chance. tlo
Funny you say that and now look at her. She didn’t learn anything, and sadly she is a liar and a thief. I didn’t harass anyone, as a matter of fact when I was fired even though I never received a write up AND when I asked for a situation to be given to me when I was being fired they couldn’t give it to me, I moved on. If I really didn’t do my job I wouldn’t have been able to get unemployment. I understand how you need to defend her, but she literally has let you down again, and I feel bad for you that you have to always defend her. She will probably go to prison for a long time. Embezzling millions when she did get a second chance, WOW!!
Brew up trouble she did. I’ve heard she’s in hot water for embezzlement of 2-4 million from the company she was employed with “Tarrant Roofing.” Apparently she no longer works there and is being investigated by authorities. Interested to see if anything comes of this.
Yea that’s what I was told. Writing checks to herself. I am not sure if she has been charged yet but I know the Feds are involved.
Oh trust me she still is scandalous as ever just in a more legal way ..for now!! She’s on parole she has to be!!
I say that is good for them both in trying to scam the insurance company. They both should have receive a very long sentence.
Molly showed very poor judgement indeed in her attraction to that man and in perpetrating a crime that was highly likely to fail, as well as the implication it had for her children’s relationship to their father. But she was a clearly immature 21 at the time (no sensible person can have thought it could work) and served a longish sentence of 12/20 years, which I think was sufficient. As Rebecca states in the narrative, little harm was done to the living. If people are expected to serve 20 or more years for fraud, where does that leave crimes of violence – manslaughter and murder? Proportionality is required. Fraud isn’t victimless, as is sometimes claimed (all crime, by definition, entails victimhood of some sort), but is regarded as significantly lesser than violence and loss of life.
As to her working, it’s surely churlish to resent this. She served her time and is seemingly living an honest, responsible life (she has to, as she’s still on parole). How is unemployment and welfare better for her or society? Assuming justice has properly been served, as it has in her case (not acquitted on a technicality, say), FORMER criminals should not continue to be punished for the rest of their lives.
I absolutely agree. Their sentences were longer than those handed down to people who commit violent crimes.
They were both young and exceptionally stupid.
The long, sentences for what basically amounts to fraud reveals the disparity in sentencing between rich and poor.
As far as the long sentence for a sex crime perpetrated on a young child? Not long enough. Let him rot. He’ll most likely reoffend when he gets out.
So you fake your death but stay in the same town? As if dyeing one’s hair helps! That they thought they would get away with it…. I must have missed the part in the episode where Junior Samples rose from the corn field shouting “saaaa-lute”!
Lol, Robzuc — those two might not be sophisticated enough for Hee Haw.
When i see this type of crime, my first thought is “are there really people who are that stupid?” Notice how evil and stupid seem to go hand in hand.
20-30 years for a $100,000 fraud is crazy.
Agreed: Molly’s hugely fails to differentiate the most serious crimes: attempted/actual murder. Her 20 years should’ve been no more than several. Clay’s case is complicated by the sexual assault, though I think at age 16 it rightly shouldn’t have merited an adult sentence, and that, overall, his 30-yr sentence is excessive – more than many murderers’.
Cases such as Molly’s reflect the relative obsession for incarceration in the US: excessive for her, for her loved ones, and the taxpayer. Whether she’d served five or 15 years was unlikely to make any difference to recidivism. Indeed, some argue that the longer the sentence the less employable the person is, therefore the more likely they are to need welfare (taxpayer) and reoffend (Devil making work for idle hands; needing money), and also the more inculturated into crime they become as they reside longer in the ‘community of offenders’.
Clay Daniels:
Last Parole Decision: denied on 06/06/2018; next review date 04/2021 – shown as under review as of today.
Thanks for the scoop — fingers crossed that they order this reprobate back to his pen.
His parole was denied again…Thank GOD
Next parole hearing: 03/24.
Why the hell did Molly get such a long sentence? Desecrating a cemetary should be a fine, not prison time. People get less for manslaughter, for god’s sake. (I understand Clay’s sentence, since he’s a rapist.)
Fun times in Texas! It’s like Florida’s little brother.
Lol, Bob.
Hey, you… I’m in Florida and keep trying to find no trials of Fl — V “somebody “in the lineup for Court TV Live in a weeks time.
Hell, even the evil mother from Colorado comes all the way here to dump the body of her innocent murdered stepson under a dry bridge.
The reality of so many lovely… evil, sick, stupid, worthless insane people coming or living in Florida always made me feel uneasy about living here. But I’ve come to realize that most of these people committing heinous crimes are not actually from Florida. You’d think in a state only @a mile wide surrounded by water that a human going to such lengths to abuse, murder and hide the crime would at least use the waterways to hide the evidence.
Alligators inland and sharks in the Gulf and Atlantic.
Rednecks from everywhere, everywhere.