Overton, Neb. — A man serving 45 years to life for murdering his girlfriend in their Overton home has filed a motion for forensic DNA testing of evidence he says will prove he was wrongly convicted. Timmy Timmens, 48, was convicted of killing 35 year old Tracy Giugler in July 2000. An autopsy concluded Giugler died from blunt force trauma to the head, chest, abdomen and upper and lower extremities, with hemorrhaging and rib fractures.
A jury found Timmens guilty of second-degree murder in 2001 and he was sentenced to 45 years to life imprisonment. Timmens is serving his sentence at the Tecumseh State Correctional Institution in Tecumseh. In his motion filed in November 2020, Timmens says he was not present the night Giugler was murdered and his motion is based on advancements in DNA technology that would allow for testing of items never DNA tested or present at trial in 2001.
The conviction and sentence of Timmens was upheld a second time by the Nebraska Supreme Court in 2011. The states high court previously upheld Timmens conviction in 2002. Dawson County Attorney Elizabeth Waterman has filed a response denying all allegations and conclusions contained in Timmens motion. Watermans response also objects to the defendants request for the appointment of counsel for DNA testing. A hearing on the motion for DNA testing is set for January 8 in Dawson County District Court in Lexington.
