As trial ends, question on many lips: where is Aaron Marker?

By Christopher Quinn

JOURNAL REPORTER

WINSTON-SALEM

December 4, 1997

It's a question that has been whispered and talked about throughout the trial of Kalvin Michael Smith in the near-fatal beating of Jill Marker.

Where was Marker's husband, Aaron? The Markers had been married for five years in 1995 when Jill Marker quit her job as a teacher in a private school and went to work managing the Silk Plant Forest at Silas Creek Crossing.

She was 3 1/2 months pregnant Dec. 9, when someone robbed the store of $295 and savagely beat Marker in the head.

Marker lay in a coma for more than a month, and Aaron Marker was frequently at her side. He was there April 19 when Jill Marker, still semi-comatose, delivered their boy, Barron.

North Carolinians heard of the Markers and donated about $26,000 to them. Aaron Marker was guardian of the money, insurance and workers' compensation that Jill Marker received.

The Markers moved to Ohio in May 1996 to be near family. Jill Marker moved in to a nursing home, and Aaron's visits began to lapse.

Questions about how he spent about $60,000 in donated and other money in a matter of six months were also raised by Jill's parents, Walter "Bud" and Edna Hoisington. Probate-court records showed that Marker paid some bills, bought a new car and ate out frequently.

Aaron Marker and Barron have disappeared from Jill's life, according to the Hoisingtons.

The Hoisingtons say that he has told them he can't stand to see Jill the way she is. He has not seen her in months, they said.

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