Devils Den killings trial date set as prosecutor mulls gag order Phaedra Trethan, USA TODAY August 15, 2025 at 2:01 AM Andrew James McGann, charged with attacking and killing an Arkansas couple who were hiking in a state park with their two young daughters, pleaded not guilty during his Aug.
- - Devils Den killings trial date set as prosecutor mulls gag order
Phaedra Trethan, USA TODAY August 15, 2025 at 2:01 AM
Andrew James McGann, charged with attacking and killing an Arkansas couple who were hiking in a state park with their two young daughters, pleaded not guilty during his Aug. 14 arraignment.
McGann, whom authorities say did not know Clinton Brink, 43, and his wife Cristen, 41, was ordered held without bond until his trial, set for Nov. 14. Prosecutor Brandon Carter asked that McGann have no contact with the victims' families, and he said the state has not ruled out pursuing the death penalty against McGann, who is facing two capital murder charges.
Carter said he anticipated the court may issue a gag order "because of the notoriety this case is receiving. The order was not entertained today, but we're putting that together," according to the Fort Smith Southwest Times Record, part of the USA TODAY Network.
A gag order prevents trial participants from talking publicly about the trial, or those connected with it. Judges use them to deter trial interference.
McGann is represented by attorneys appointed by the Arkansas Public Defenders Commission.
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Arkansas State Police said McGann, a former schoolteacher, fatally stabbed Clinton and Cristen Brink on July 26 while the couple, along with their 7- and 9-year-old daughters, were hiking on a trail at Devil's Den State Park in a remote, rural area in the northwest area of the state.
The investigation into the Devil's Den killings
Speaking to media members outside the Washington County Courthouse on Aug. 14, Carter said his office "has released all the facts of the investigation that it's ever going to release."
At a July 30 news conference, Carter outlined the investigation and said the killings began with the couple's 7- and 9-year-old daughters witnessing "the most horrific thing that you could ever imagine."
The children were found by a hiker who took them off the trail before searching for, and finding, the Brinks' bodies, according to court documents shared with USA TODAY. The caller reporting the slayings indicated "there was a large amount of blood present," according to a preliminary statement.
Andrew James McGann has been charged with murder in the killings of an Arkansas couple who were hiking with their two young daughters. He pleaded not guilty at an Aug. 14 arraignment.
A July 28 autopsy determined a preliminary cause of death for Clinton and Cristen Brink was homicide by stabbing. Investigators interviewed multiple people who'd been at the park the day of the killings, and one person told them there was a man who left the park with what appeared to have blood on his face. The man was seen leaving in a dark-colored sedan, a detailed description of which investigators called "critical" in identifying McGann as a suspect.
'The mother did not return'
Maj. Stacie Rhoads of the Arkansas State Police said police believed Cristen took the children to safety, then returned to the scene of the attack, about a half-mile away, to help her husband.
"The mother did not return to the car with the kids," Rhoads said.
The public provided nearly 500 images and videos in response to police requests for help in identifying a suspect, and with the information about the car, police were able to locate McGann at a barber shop in Springdale, Arkansas, and take him into custody on July 30.
Roadside sign with exit directions to Devils Den State Park at Interstate 49, Arkansas.
Police said McGann had several cuts to his hands and he permitted investigators to search his car, where they found what they believed was blood. After obtaining a warrant, Rhoads said, police searched McGann's home. They said initial DNA evidence from the scene matched DNA found in McGann's car.
Investigators believe McGann acted alone, said Col. Mike Hagar, secretary of public safety and director of the Arkansas State Police. They said McGann, who had recently moved from Oklahoma, admitted to killing the couple after he was taken into custody.
Carter noted on Aug. 14 that there will be several status hearings ahead of the November trial.
"This will be a chance for the lawyers on the case to convene and figure out where we are at," Carter said. "This is where the hard part begins, and the long walk begins to get this case to justice."
Contributing: George "Clay" Mitchell, Fort Smith Southwest Times Record; George Petras and Jennifer Borresen USA TODAY
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Andrew James McGann trial date set in Devils Den killings
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