July 1986	BOB and BETSY Kelly are granted license to operate Little Rascals Day Care Center. (old location, Court Street).
March 1987	SHELLEY Stone begins caring for children at the old Little Rascals Day Care Center.
September 1988	DAWN Wilson hired as a cook, ROBIN BYRUM hired to work with children at Little Rascals.
September 26 1988	BOB and BETSY Kelly move into the new Little Rascals Day Care Center on East Eden Street.
September 29 1988	BOB Kelly slaps Joel Mabrey.
January 19 1989	Initial complaint charging child abuse at Little Rascals filed with the state Department of Social Services.
late January	BOB Kelly hires Chris BEAN as his lawyer.
April 14	BOB Kelly arrested. Bond eventually reaches $1.5 million.
April 25	Probable cause hearing for BOB Kelly during which his lawyer, Chris BEAN, learns from Distict Attorney, H.P. WILLIAMS that his son has been named by other children in the case.
April 28	Little Rascals Day Care Center closes.
May 8	First grand jury indictments handed down against BOB Kelly.
June	BOB Kelly's lawyer, Chris BEAN formally withdraws from the case.
1989	August Bill HART assigned Special Prosecutor by State Attorney General.
September 1	BETSY Kelly arrested. Bail eventually reaches $1.8 million. SCOTT Privott arrested. Bail set at $1 million.
September 25	SHELLEY Stone arrested. Bail: $375,000 DAWN Wilson arrested. Bail: $880,000. Grand Jury adds to number of indictments in case.
October 13	SHELLEY Stone makes bail. Is released.
December 11	Pretrial motions held before Judge TILLERY
January 9 1990	ROBIN Byrum arrested. Bail: $500,000 DARLENE Harris arrested. Bail: $350,000.
January 8 1990	Grand Jury adds to the indictments
January 22 1990	Grand Jury adds to the indictments.
February 21	Judge Bradford TILLERY orders defendants to be tried together.
May 21-22	Pretrial motions held before Judge TILLERY
September 17	TILLERY's order tying cases is overturned, trials severed.
October 9	Judge TILLERY resigns from case.
October 24	Judge D. Marsh MCLELLAND of Burlington appointed.
December 16	ROBIN Byrum and DAWN Wilson's bonds are reduced to $200,000.
December 20	ROBIN Byrum released on bond.
December 1990	Defense team's request for change of venue because of pretrial publicity is approved, trial moved Farmville in Pitt County .
February 8 1991	DAWN Wilson released on $200,000 bond.
May 7	FRONTLINE's first report on the case, "Innocence Lost," airs.
July 22	BOB Kelly's trial begins in Farmville with jury selection.
August 12	BOB Kelly jury selection completed.
August 19	BOB Kelly jury empaneled. Evidence begins.
October 4 1991	BETSY Kelly's bond reduced from $1.8 million to $400,000.
October 9	BETSY Kelly is released on bond.
December 10	State rests its case in BOB Kelly trial.
March 4 1992	Defense rests its case in BOB Kelly trial.
March 12	State concludes rebuttal evidence in BOB Kelly trial.
March 27	Judge MCLELLAND begins charging the jury in the BOB Kelly trial.
March 30	Judge MCLELLAND gives final instructions to the jury in the BOB Kelly trial.
April 22    April 23 1992	BOB Kelly convicted on 99 of 100 counts. BOB Kelly sentenced to 12 consecutive life sentences.
April 28	District Attorney H.P. WILLIAMS announces he will not be involved in prosecuting future Little Rascals cases.
November 2	DAWN Wilson's trial begins in Hertford.
January 26 1993	DAWN Wilson convicted.
February 4	DAWN Wilson enters prison.
April 15	SCOTT Privott's bond reduced from $1 million to $50,000.
April 26	SCOTT Privott released from Chowan County Jail.
July 16	BOB Kelly's lawyers file his record on appeal to the North Carolina Court of Appeals.
July 20-21	FRONTLINE's second report on the case, "Innocence Lost: The Verdict" is broadcast.
August 17	DAWN Wilson gives birth to son, Zachary, in jail.
September 8	DAWN Wilson released on $250,000 bond pending appeal. Under house arrest.
November 22	BOB Kelly files motion for new trial based on improper conduct by jurors.
January 18-20 1994	BOB Kelly's motion to dismiss on basis of improper conduct by jurors argued by David RUDOLF in front of Judge Marsh MCLELLAND in Farmville.
January 21	BETSY Kelly pleas "no contest," accepts sentence of seven years in prison. With two years and two weeks credit for time served, she is eligible for probation almost immediately.
January 1994	BOB Kelly's motion for a new trial denied.
January 28	BETSY Kelly begins serving her term in the North Carolina Correctional Institution for Women, Raleigh
mid-April	BETSY Kelly's parole denied.
April 21	BOB Kelly's appeal filed.
May 16	DAWN Wilson's appeal filed.
June 6	SCOTT Privott pleas "no contest."
November 28	BETSY Kelly released from prison on mandatory parole.
January 9 1995	Mark MONTGOMERY argues BOB Kelly's case, Kirk OSBORN argues DAWN Wilson's case before the State Court of Appeals.
May 2	Appellate Court of North Carolina overturns the convictions of BOB Kelly and DAWN Wilson.
September 7	Supreme Court of North Carolina upholds Appellate Court decision.
September 8	BOB Kelly has hearing in Fayetteville for reduction of bond to $200,000.
September 22	BOB Kelly makes bond. Is released in Fayetteville.
October 5	DAWN Wilson's house arrest ends.
October 29	BOB and BETSY Kelly separate.
April 29 1996	State indicts BOB Kelly on new charges. He is arrested and held in Chowan County Jail.
May 1 1996	BOB Kelly's bail set at $50,000. He is released when his employer, GLENN Livingston pays it.
October	SHELLEY Stone's bond reduced to nothing.
December 2	BOB Kelly's lawyer, Gerald BEAVER, moves to dismiss new charges against BOB Kelly. Motion denied.
December 3	Gerald BEAVER moves to have the new charges joined to the Little Rascals charges. Judge Giles CLARK rules in his favor.
December 16	Charges dropped against ROBIN Byrum, SHELLEY Stone, and DARLENE Harris.
May 22 1997	Little Rascals charges dropped against the remaining defendants, BOB Kelly and DAWN Wilson. Prosecutors say they still intend to prosecute Kelly on unrelated new charges that he raped a young girl outside the day care in 1987.
September 23, 1999	Remaining charges against BOB Kelly dropped.

home | join the discussion | forum | bob kelly's trial | readings | summary | profiles of the defendants | tapes & transcripts | press
explore FRONTLINE | wgbh | pbs online

New Content Copyright © 1998 PBS and WGBH/Frontline