Husband of missing woman Dee Warner jailed on contempt charge

ADRIAN — Dale Warner, husband of missing Lenawee County woman Dee Warner, concluded his afternoon in court Wednesday being escorted away in handcuffs by Lenawee County sheriff's officers and was ordered to serve jail time.

Dale Warner, along with his personal assistant and accountant Mark Weisberg, were found to be in civil contempt of court by Lenawee County Probate Judge Catherine A. Sala after Sala found enough evidence was presented during Wednesday’s conservatorship hearing showing that Warner and Weisberg have not been adhering to court orders regarding sharing financial documents and transactions with attorneys representing his missing wife.

The jail time ordered by Sala at the conclusion of the more than two-hour hearing was not stated as part of her ruling, but she did note the two men would be held at the Lenawee County Jail until the proper documentation and records have been presented.

“Clear and convincing evidence” was shown, Sala said, that Warner and Weisberg have no intention of complying with the court’s orders, unless “I take action in order to require them to do that,” she said, which resulted in the two men being taken into custody inside the courtroom.

Dale and Dee, still legally married, are co-owners and business partners of several farming operations in Lenawee County. They each had a 50% interest in all the businesses except for the trucking company, DDW Investments, which is owned solely by Dee. A court order in September 2022 made it so Dale was required to show transactions, activity, bank statements and other documentation related to the businesses and for assessing and protecting Dee’s estate.

Dee Warner has been missing since April 2021. Many family members of Dee have suspected Dale murdered her on April 24, 2021. Several of Dee’s close friends have said that she was crying all day after getting into a heated argument with Dale and was going to ask him for a divorce that night.

In addition to the court hearings for the estate and the couple’s businesses, Dee’s family, along with her brother, Gregg Hardy, have been seeking a declaration of death for Dee with more than two years having transpired since she went missing.

The Michigan State Police took over the investigation of Dee’s disappearance in August 2022 at Lenawee County Sheriff Troy Bevier's request.

Attorney Billy Little, a private investigator with with Hardy and Dee's family, said he suspects Dale murdered Dee for financial reasons.

More: Private investigator in Dee Warner case says money was a motive

John Polderman, the lawyer for Dee’s successor/conservator, Charles Bullock, explained to Sala that Dale and Weisberg have been “continually and blatantly refusing court orders” regarding the presentation of documents and financial records, claiming at least three violations of a court order have occurred and the conservator has dealt with eight months of noncompliance.

Weisberg, while on the witness stand Wednesday, said he was requested by Dale to look over the financial books and records after Dee disappeared in 2021. Weisberg said he does not have any claims or interests with the Warners' businesses but that he was simply acting as an accountant for Dale, assisting with invoicing, vendor payables and preparing documents for the conservatorship.

Weisberg contended multiple times while on the witness stand proper documentation has been presented since September 2022.

The September 2022 court order and another order from January 2023 states any land that was owned by Dee and Dale and any business entities that the two had a joint interest in must be reflected with a bimonthly budget that sets forth receipts and disbursements, reconciliation, detailed lists of invoices and unpaid bills, all of which is subject to approval of the conservator.

A budget for February 2023 was received, Polderman said. It showed grain sales, rent, disbursements and total operating expenses but none of the requested backup documentation.

“Prior to that we received no budgets, and after that we have received no budgets,” he said.

When questioned during the examination if he thought he has ever tried to defy a court order, Weisberg replied, “I do not believe so.”

From May 2023: Michigan State Police conducting searches in Dee Warner missing person case

Later during the questioning, Weisberg admitted to not submitting certain requested checks but said it was an oversight and would be corrected.

“The estate has received no money. We have not received any checks from the sale of grain, we have not received any proceeds, we have received nothing,” Polderman said.

Weisberg said the budgets could not be completed properly because at this time, Dale’s farming operations have seen “zero activity” over the last couple of months.

Dale Warner’s attorney, Lawrence Leib, requested further clarification on what budgetary format the conservatorship would prefer to see for a company that has “zero balances” and “does not operate.”

“The rest of companies haven’t operated at all within the last two years,” Leib said. “That’s why their numbers are at zero. You can’t produce a budget for a company that doesn’t operate.”

In the last three weeks, at least 3,000 documents have been produced for the court, Leib said, showing financial statements, transactions and emails.

“It’s an open door. I’ll show you whatever documents you want to see,” Weisberg said.

Dale Warner did not speak during the hearing and was not called to testify.

Leib said Dale Warner has not knowingly defied any court orders. If something hasn’t been addressed or properly taken care of, Leib said he attributed that to a lack of communication from the conservatorship and the attorneys.

“We’ve been transparent. If something is missing, we have quickly produced it,” Leib said. “...We’ve produced thousands and thousands of documents to this court.”

Polderman clarified the conservatorship is asking for all the checks from the grain mills and the correct budget format, which shows cash and disbursements, and backup documentation.

Testimony by Weisberg, Sala said during her ruling, showed he clearly understood the orders of the court from September 2022 and January 2023.

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“The problem is this is a conservatorship to preserve the assets of Dee Ann Warner,” she said. “The conservator's role is to inventory and preserve those assets.”

If this were a divorce case, Sala said, Dee would have an interest in half of everything. At the end of the day, though, it is a matter of the businesses owned by a married couple, which means, she said, Dee would still have an interest in 50% of everything.

“This is more than just a business partnership, this is an actual marriage,” Sala said.

“The systematic undermining of the court’s orders is very clear,” Sala continued. “It has cost the estate of Mr. Warner and Dee Ann Warner’s estate an exceptional amount of funds up to this point.”

Because of Dale’s reliance on Weisberg to conduct business operations, Sala found both men in civil contempt of court, noting, "to hear admissions that expectations of the court’s orders were understood but there was an assumption made that a different course of action was somehow allowable is not acceptable to the court."

Dee’s family will be back in Lenawee County Probate Court Wednesday, Aug. 16, to continue their petition to have Dee declared dead.

This article originally appeared on The Daily Telegram: Husband of missing woman Dee Warner jailed on contempt charge