Salt Lake County DA details arrest of man charged with Sherry Black's murder
KUTV — Salt Lake County District Attorney Sim Gill released details Monday about the arrest of Adam Antonio Spencer Durborow, 29, in the 2010 Sherry Black murder case.
Durborow has been officially charged with aggravated murder, according to Gill. He also faces charges related to the desecration of a human body, Gill added.
Police arrested Durborow at his Orem home on Oct. 10, 2020. A probable cause statement said on November 30, 2010, officers from South Salt Lake Police Department were dispatched to the scene of a homicide at 3466 S. 700 East.
When officers arrived, they found the 64-year-old Black stabbed and beaten to death at her business, B&W Billiards and Books. The scene was processed, DNA, fingerprints, and palm prints of a suspect were collected from the scene.
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On October 7, 2020, DNA was collected from Durborow. This was submitted to the Utah Bureau of Forensic Services on October 7, 2020. On October 8, 2020, his DNA was a match to the DNA collected from Black's bookstore nearly a decade ago.
Durborow was taken into custody two days later where post-Miranda he confessed to the homicide, the police affidavit states. The affidavit also states that Durborow will face first-degree felony aggravated burglary charges.
The South Salt Lake Police Department was the lead investigative agency in the case until 2018 when the Unified Police Department (UPD) took over.
According to Gill, the state medical examiner reported Black's cause of death was multiple blunt force trauma and sharp wounds to her body. There was also evidence of post-mortem sexual assault with bruising to Black's vaginal area and a bite mark on her left breast, Gill said.
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Black is the mother-in-law of Greg Miller, the former CEO of the company that owns the Utah Jazz. Greg and Heidi Miller issued the following statement following Gill's announcement. It states:
We are grateful to the South Salt Lake Police Department, the Unified Police Department and Detective Ben Pender, and the Utah State Crime Lab and Jay Henry, for their ongoing investigative work and diligence that led to an arrest and charges in the murder of Sherry Black. We also appreciate the media for covering this case over the last 10 years, which allowed the public to share tips and new information. We especially want to thank our family and the community for their love, support and prayers.
While this 10-year period has been difficult, we have been able to feel peace and comfort knowing other cases are being solved with the use of new forensic tools.
We will continue to work through the Sherry Black Foundation using industry experts to educate law enforcement officers on the most current investigative techniques, and also support advanced DNA testing, to help bring resolution to victims’ families.
As a family, we are now asking for time and privacy.
Individuals named in jail affidavits are presumed innocent unless or until proven guilty in a court of law.
