11/03/09 - McNairy County

By: Mallory Cooke
mcooke@wbbjtv.com
6:55 p.m.
 
Amanda Ervin-Wilbanks, the daughter of a former McNairy County Sheriff, was officially charged Tuesday with theft after investigators say she was driving a murdered woman's car.
 
Wilbanks stood before a judge Tuesday for the first time. She is charged with theft of property of more than $10,000. That property belonged to a dead woman. "She had possession of Ms. Donna Hill's vehicle," said McNairy County Sheriff Ricky Roten.
 
According to the McNairy County Sheriff's Department, Wilbanks turned herself in along with the vehicle. "We got in contact with her and caught her with the vehicle in the Ramer area," said Roten.
 
Deputies took Wilbanks into custody at her parents' home, the home of former McNairy County Sheriff Paul Ervin, on Highway 57 in Ramer. "We found out she had possession of the vehicle and that is how we came about her in the car," said Roten.
 
Roten said an anonymous tip let them know Wilbanks had the stolen car. "We got a phone call that she was in the vehicle," he said.
 
This is not Wilbanks' first encounter with the law. County records show she has been convicted in McNairy County for drug possession, DUI, aggravated assault, resisting arrest, and writing bad checks.
 
So far, no one has been charged with the murder of Donna Hill, but that could change. When asked if the McNairy County Sheriff's Department anticipated charging Wilbanks with anything else, Sheriff Roten responded, "That is to come later. We are still investigating the case and that could come later."
 
Wilbanks is being held in lieu of $150,000 bond.