A woman charged in the 2011 killing of real estate agent Ashley Okland pleaded not guilty in an Iowa courtroom on Friday, nearly 15 years after Okland was found dead at a model townhome in West Des Moines, where she had been hosting an open house. Kristin Ramsey, who was arrested last month after a grand jury indictment, entered the plea at a hearing in Adel, according to court proceedings reported by the Associated Press.
Okland was 27 when she was killed on April 8, 2011. Her family and friends filled the courtroom for Ramsey’s arraignment and a bond review hearing, in a case that prosecutors say began with a grand jury proceeding kept confidential in Iowa and unusual enough to draw attention as it moved forward.
During the hearing, prosecutors withheld broader case details, including what they considered potential motive and whether there is new evidence, the report said. Court filings released ahead of Friday’s hearing described limited information about what the grand jury was shown. Assistant Attorney General Scott Brown told the court that a neighbor who called 911 reportedly saw Ramsey outside the front door and pacing by her car while talking on her cellphone before driving off, then returning about 15 minutes later.
Ramsey’s attorneys, meanwhile, argued that prosecutors presented gaps to the grand jury and mischaracterized what a witness reported in the 911 call. Defense attorney Alfredo Parrish said in court that it was unfair to wait more than a decade and then proceed with the case on the limited evidence prosecutors had offered. Prosecutors, according to the AP report, released the details they did in filings opposing a request by the defense to lower bond, which is currently set at $2 million.
Court filings also described the neighbor’s account after hearing noises in the adjoining townhome. Prosecutors said the witness heard two loud noises described as thuds lasting “3-4 seconds apart,” looked out, and saw Ramsey by the front door. The witness then entered the model home and found Okland unresponsive on the ground, prompting the 911 call, prosecutors said.
The killing prompted changes within the real estate industry in central Iowa, where Okland worked and was known as part of a tight-knit community. Scott Steelman, president of the Des Moines Area Association of Realtors and an Iowa Realty agent, described the killing as “so out of character for our business, our industry, our profession,” and said the local association pushed to create safety standards and guidance after Okland’s death. Steelman said that nationwide, the industry has used a safety pledge that includes not showing properties to someone an agent does not know, is not familiar with, or has not vetted, and that the pledge is promoted by the National Association of Realtors.
Steelman also said confusion and more questions followed because Ramsey was herself a member of the real estate community. At the time of the killing, Ramsey had worked for Rottlund Homes of Iowa, which used independent real estate agents for sales and owned the model home where Okland was killed.
On Friday, Ramsey appeared in court wearing a pantsuit, with one arm and both feet shackled. Witnesses described her character as part of the defense effort to reduce her bail, and her husband and son as well as her parents and grandfather sat in the first row behind her, the report said. Ramsey had initially been appointed a public defender but is now represented by prominent defense attorneys, who said she has strong family ties and has lived in a small, rural town of Woodward, Iowa, about 25 miles (40 kilometers) northwest of Des Moines since she was a child.
In court filings, Ramsey’s attorneys said prosecutors were offering “cherry-picked” evidence and argued the state did not present the grand jury with key materials, including “a weapon, ballistics evidence or DNA evidence.” They also argued that the grand jurors were shown only a few pieces of the puzzle over two days rather than the entire picture, and they said Iowa’s grand jury process is generally confidential even for criminal cases.
Prosecutors have said little publicly about Ramsey since the March 17 indictment, including what they consider motive or whether there is new evidence. A trial is set to begin next January, according to the AP report, as the court case moves from arraignment and bond review into the next phase.