White male Cody Joshua Adams, 34, died on January 1, 2015, after a home invasion at his family's residence in Woodburn, a small community just west of Bunker Hill in Macoupin County, Illinois.
A struggle inside the house ended with a single. 380-caliber shot that struck him in the upper arm and chest; he died shortly afterward.
Early reports described a masked intruder entering the home before the fight, and authorities soon appealed to the public for leads.
With no immediate leads, the Macoupin County Sheriff's Department offered a $1,000 reward, for any information leading to the arrest and conviction of who killed Cody Joshua Adams.
In April 2015, Crime Stoppers increased the original reward by $20,000 to a combined total of $21,000 as the investigation pressed on, and still no leads or suspects came to light.
The case went cold for more than two years, but on July 15, 2019, Macoupin County State's Attorney Jennifer Watson announced six charges stemming from the New Year's Day killing.
Two suspects, Chancey Y. Hutson of Granite City and William D. Kavanaugh of Edwardsville, were arrested and charged with three counts of first-degree murder, as well as home invasion, aggravated battery, and residential burglary.
Prosecutors alleged the pair went to Adams's home intending to steal, knowing he was inside; during the struggle, the shot that killed him was fired and the intruders fled.
In August 2022, a Macoupin County jury convicted Chancey Hutson of first-degree murder after less than two hours of deliberation, with trial evidence that she entered the house masked and armed during the predawn break-in.
In October 2022, Judge Joshua A. Meyer sentenced Hutson to 46 years in the Illinois Department of Corrections, noting the ordinary quiet of the Adams home on New Year's Eve before the violence. Court reporting indicates Hutson will not be eligible for parole until 2065.
As of 2022 news accounts, William D. Kavanaugh remained charged in the case and was awaiting trial; earlier coverage placed him in custody on a $1 million bond.
Authorities had previously detailed that both defendants were tied to the attempted theft that led to the deadly confrontation inside the Woodburn home.
Obituaries and memorials remembered Cody Joshua Adams, 34, as a Bunker Hill High School graduate, a laborer with Local 338 in Wood River, and a devoted father who enjoyed hunting, fishing, and sports.
Notices recorded his time of death that morning at 9:36 a.m. at the family home. Some memorial listings record the location as Bunker Hill, reflecting the nearby community most associated with his life.
