Kentucky seeks death penalty in Harding case: Former CHP commander implicated in possible murder-for-hire plot

Jul. 5—A man who prosecutors allege took part in a murder-for-hire plot involving the husband of a former California Highway Patrol commander, now faces the death penalty should he be convicted, according to court documents.

Thomas O'Donnell, who was indicted late last year for the death of Michael Harding, has since been arraigned and pleaded not guilty in a Cumberland, Kentucky, court, Jesse M. Stockton Jr., an attorney prosecuting the case for the state of Kentucky, confirmed with the Appeal on Wednesday.

According to court records obtained by KCRA 3 last month and previous reporting by the Appeal, O'Donnell was possibly hired by former Yuba-Sutter area CHP Commander Julie Harding to kill her husband, Michael Harding.

In a story that was first broken by the Appeal, Julie Harding, who had been living in the Sacramento area but was traveling back and forth to Tennessee, was found dead at a residence in Clay County, Tennessee, on Dec. 10, 2022.

Clay County Sheriff Brandon Boone previously told the Appeal that she had died from "a gunshot wound," but was not able to confirm if it was the result of a successful suicide attempt or possible homicide. Boone said the investigation into Harding's death was turned over to the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation.

The Appeal contacted the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation on Wednesday to get the status of that investigation. Officials with the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation told the Appeal that "findings from that investigation are currently under review" by the District Attorney General's Office.

Julie Harding's death followed the alleged murder of her husband, Michael Harding, which prosecutors said occurred around Sept. 19, 2022. According to court records, O'Donnell was "engaged in a conspiracy" with Julie Harding to kill her husband.

Two days before Julie Harding was found dead, O'Donnell was arrested on Dec. 8, 2022, at Sacramento International Airport on an out-of-state warrant. He was indicted on Dec. 15, 2022, for the alleged murder of Michael Harding.

According to the Cumberland County, Kentucky, indictment, O'Donnell was charged for the Sept. 19, 2022, murder of Michael Harding, alleging that O'Donnell "shot Michael L. Harding multiple times; and that in so doing he caused the death of Michael L. Harding intentionally, or he was wantonly engaged in conduct which created a grave risk of death to another, and thereby caused the death of Michael L. Harding, under circumstances manifesting an extreme indifference to the value of human life, all against the peace and dignity of the Commonwealth of Kentucky."

O'Donnell is scheduled to appear in court again on Aug. 31.

"We're still in the discovery process," Stockton told the Appeal on Wednesday. "I'm still gathering some evidence myself."

'Engaged in a conspiracy'

The indictment of O'Donnell is part of a conspiracy put forth by several people who spoke to the Appeal last year on the condition of anonymity. According to multiple sources, Julie Harding was allegedly involved in a "murder-for-hire" plot that included her husband — the two were going through the process of a divorce after only being married a few years.

"It was a successful murder-for-hire deal and the hitman, for a lack of a better term, got pinched and he squawked and he implicated her. They arrested her and she took her own life," a source claimed.

Harding, however, was not arrested, at least according to police records, for her possible involvement in the death of her husband.

Larry Flowers, a public information officer with the Murfreesboro Police Department in Tennessee, previously confirmed with the Appeal that there were "two incident reports pertaining to a Julie Harding. The reports are for stalking and criminal trespass."

Multiple anonymous sources suggested, without evidence, that Harding had killed herself as a result of the investigation into Michael Harding's death.

According to court documents dated April 12, the state of Kentucky is seeking the death penalty against O'Donnell due to the alleged "capital murder" of Michael Harding. In those documents, the state alleges that the intent to seek the death penalty is based on the following circumstances: — The offense of the intentional murder of Michael Harding on or about the 19th day of September 2022. — The defendant was engaged in a conspiracy with the victim's estranged wife, Julie Harding, now deceased. — The defendant committed the offense for himself or another (Julie Harding) for the purpose of receiving money or any other thing(s) of monetary value, or for the profit.

According to court records, Michael Harding and Julie Harding were legally married during the time of Michael Harding's alleged murder.

Based on a Kentucky State Police investigation, the couple had intended to move to Clay County, Tennessee, where the Hardings had purchased a home.

"The victim, Michael Harding, relocated to the residence in Clay County, Tennessee, but Julie Harding remained in Sacramento, California," court documents stated. "During this time of physical separation, the parties became estranged which led to the filing of a divorce petition by Julie Harding in California."

Court records show that Julie Harding "cashed out" material assets without the "consent, knowledge, or approval" of her husband. Those assets included the withdrawal of $102,000 from a Citizens Bank in Tennessee on May 23, 2022; $73,000 from Bank of the West in Citrus Heights, California, on March 9, 2022; and $47,700 from another Citizens Bank in Tennessee on May 24, 2022.

"Sometime thereafter notes were found at Michael Harding's residence reading 'no money here' in an apparent attempt to taunt the victim," court documents stated. "Prior to the alleged murder on Sept. 19, 2022, there were substantial and significant contacts between the defendant and Julie Harding. The Commonwealth has no evidence of interaction between the defendant and the deceased victim other than telephonic messages made by the defendant to lead the victim to Cumberland County, Kentucky, so the defendant could commit the intentional murder."

According to phone records obtained by the Kentucky State Police, a person "claiming to be a realtor" contacted Michael Harding on Sept. 19, 2022, requesting an HVAC service call in Burkesville, Kentucky. The person calling Harding identified himself as James Fraser, court records show. This was allegedly the last call made or received by Harding.

Prosecutors allege the phone used by Fraser was activated on Aug. 29, 2022, and the user "attempted to conceal who was in fact using this phone."

The Kentucky State Police also obtained phone records of Julie Harding.

Prosecutors allege that Julie Harding had "194 voice contacts" from July 1, 2022, through Sept. 8, 2022, with a phone allegedly used by O'Donnell. Furthermore, the location data of the phone used by the alias Fraser to contact Michael Harding matched the location data of O'Donnell, prosecutors alleged.

Court documents detail the whereabouts of O'Donnell and the matching phone location data that was used by the alias Fraser, including the vehicle used by O'Donnell on the day of Michael Harding's alleged murder.

"On or about September 19, 2022, the date Michael Harding was murdered, a vehicle with the same appearance as Thomas O'Donnell's 2020 Tundra was located on video surveillance traveling past the courthouse located at 601 Court House Square, Burkesville, Kentucky, at 12:55 p.m," court records stated.

According to prosecutors, the last known location of the phone used by the alias Fraser was near the crime scene in Burkesville "at 4:49 p.m. on or about September 19, 2022."

The FBI through its own investigation found that another phone registered to O'Donnell "had multiple cell phone transactions" with a Verizon cell tower near 5620 Woodforest Drive in Sacramento, Julie Harding's residence.

According to the FBI's investigation, "movement indicated" that O'Donnell was at Julie Harding's home in Sacramento and then "traveled by plane" to Nashville, Tennessee. Court records stated that the phones used by the alias Fraser and O'Donnell were "co-located" on the day of Michael Harding's murder in Cookeville, Tennessee.

Prosecutors allege that not only is O'Donnell the "operator" of both phones, but that one of them was used to "facilitate the initial killing" of Michael Harding.

Along with phone records, the FBI also allegedly found that O'Donnell drove near Julie Harding's Sacramento home on Nov. 29, 2022.

"FBI personnel from Sacramento conducted surveillance near the residence and found O'Donnell, inside his 2020 Toyota Tundra parked approximately 0.4 miles away at the Foothill Community Center parking lot," court records stated. "On several occasions, O'Donnell drove his 2020 Toyota Tundra past 5620 Woodforest Dr., Sacramento, California, 95842 and returned to the Foothill Community Center parking lot."

On Dec. 10, 2022, Julie Harding was found dead in her Tennessee home of an "apparent suicide," court records show. As of April 12, court records stated that the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation had not concluded its death investigation.