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Matter of Record.

Murder of Sylvia Quayle

Cherry Hills Village · Colorado · United States · 1981

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On 4 Aug 1981, Sylvia Quayle, 34, was found murdered in her Cherry Hills Village, Colorado home. The case went cold after a 1980s false confession led to charges that were later dropped. In 2021, genetic genealogy and DNA from discarded trash linked David Dwayne Anderson of Nebraska to biological evidence from the scene. After a March 2022 mistrial, a June 2022 Arapahoe County jury convicted Anderson of two counts of first-degree murder. On 4 Aug 2022 he was sentenced to life in prison with parole eligibility after 20 years under the 1981 Colorado statute. The Colorado Court of Appeals affirmed the conviction on 20 Aug 2026.

At a glance

Defendant

David Dwayne Anderson

Charges

First-degree murder; Felony murder

No court dates are recorded yet — courts do not always announce dates in advance.

Timeline· 6 entries

A dated record of reported developments and proceedings.

  1. 4 Aug 1981 · Tuesday

    1. Death reported, investigation event

      Death discovered

      denver7.com

  2. 10 Feb 2021 · Wednesday

    1. Arrest, court event

      Arrest

      truecrimenews.com

  3. March 2022

    1. Court ruling, court event

      Date estimated

      Mistrial

      denver7.com

  4. 30 Jun 2022 · Thursday

    1. Verdict, court event

      Verdict

      denver7.com

  5. 4 Aug 2022 · Thursday

    1. Sentencing, court event

      Sentence

      denverpost.com

  6. 20 Aug 2026 · Thursday

    1. Appeal, court event

      Appeal affirmed

      coloradojudicial.gov

Coverage· 3 entries

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