On January 26, 1980, law enforcement officials in Tucson, Arizona, were called to the La Quinta Motel to investigate a disturbing scene. Inside one of the rooms, they discovered the bodies of two men, later identified as 33-year-old Martin Lester Concannon and Robert Afton Wise. The scene depicted a brutal crime, with both victims having been bound with various ligatures.
An autopsy would later reveal the violent details of their final moments.
Martin Concannon had been shot in the temple and also sustained a fatal gunshot wound to the chest that perforated his spinal cord. In a cruel act of violence, two socks had been forced into his throat, obstructing his breathing passages. The evidence suggested that he had not died instantly from the gunshots.
The investigation quickly moved forward when, on the same day the bodies were found, a man named Donald Harding was arrested in Flagstaff. He was apprehended while driving Martin Concannon's car. A search of Harding and the vehicle uncovered damning evidence. Harding was carrying a. 25 caliber automatic pistol, which ballistics testing would confirm as the weapon used in the Tucson murders. Inside the car, authorities found Robert Wise's attaché case and credit cards. Further forensic analysis of a shirt worn by Harding at the time of his arrest revealed the presence of human blood.
Harding's own words would also link him to the crime. While in custody, he inquired about getting some of his clothes back. When a detective informed him the clothing was being held as evidence, Harding pointed out that they might find something on his burgundy shirt and shoes.
Following the investigation, Donald Harding faced a Pima County Superior Court jury. In April of 1982, he was convicted on multiple counts, including two counts of first-degree murder, armed robbery, and kidnapping. The court found four aggravating circumstances and no mitigating factors. Consequently, Donald Harding was sentenced to death for the murders of Martin Concannon and Robert Wise, in addition to consecutive prison terms for the other charges. The Arizona Supreme Court later affirmed his convictions and sentences.
