Jurors convicted Derek Lennon Bradley in the strangulation death of Casie Lynn Graves, whose body was found near railroad tracks in Orange.

ORANGE, Texas — An Orange County jury convicted Derek Lennon Bradley of murder and sentenced him to 30 years in prison for killing Casie Lynn Graves, the mother of two of his children, after a six-day trial centered on video, witnesses and GPS evidence.

The verdict closed a case that began Sept. 16, 2023, when Graves’ body was found near railroad tracks by the former International Paper facility on Highway 87 in Orange. Graves was 38 and a mother of four. Prosecutors said Bradley, 47, strangled her, left her body near the tracks and later tried to distance himself from the case by asking a mechanic to remove the GPS function from his truck.

Jurors reached the guilty verdict May 5 after hearing from investigators, witnesses and family members. They then set Bradley’s punishment at 30 years in the Texas prison system. Orange County District Attorney Krispen Winfree said the evidence showed Bradley’s truck leaving his residence about 12:30 a.m. on the morning Graves died and returning about 12:57 a.m. Prosecutors told jurors that the timing placed the truck near the area where Graves’ body was later discovered. Winfree said the investigation “came together through the work of deputies, the Texas Rangers and witnesses who stayed with the case.”

The case began with a workday discovery, not an emergency call from a home. Authorities said an International Paper employee found a woman’s body near the railroad tracks while entering the facility shortly before 3:45 p.m. Deputies and investigators with the Orange County Sheriff’s Office responded and identified the victim as Graves. An autopsy later found that she died from strangulation. The location, near an industrial site and rail line north of Orange, became the starting point for a murder investigation that stretched across two and a half years before a jury reached a final decision.

Investigators worked backward from that scene. Surveillance video became one of the central pieces of the case, prosecutors said. The footage showed Bradley’s truck leaving his home around 12:30 a.m., traveling toward the area near the railroad tracks and returning less than 30 minutes later. Investigators also learned that Bradley later contacted a mechanic about removing GPS capability from the truck. Prosecutors said that detail, combined with witness interviews, gave investigators enough information to seek search warrants for Bradley’s home and vehicle. Evidence collected during those searches was presented to jurors during the trial.

Graves and Bradley had been together for several years and shared two children. Family members said Graves was also raising two other children, and local reports said her two youngest daughters were younger than 6 at the time of her death. Her mother, Vickie Graves, said after Bradley’s arrest that she felt empty, lost and broken. She described her daughter as kindhearted and close to her family. Graves’ brother, who had spoken publicly while the case was pending, said the family was waiting for justice and some measure of closure after months without an arrest.

The criminal case moved in stages. A grand jury heard the case in September 2024 and indicted Bradley on a murder charge. Orange County deputies arrested him the next day. His bond was set in the hundreds of thousands of dollars, with some local accounts listing it at $650,000 and others at $1 million. Prosecutors said Bradley faced a sentencing range that could have extended to life in prison. The trial began in late April 2026, with testimony starting after jury selection and continuing through the first week of May.

Assistant District Attorney Bard Anderson prosecuted the case. The Orange County Sheriff’s Office led the investigation, and the Texas Rangers assisted. Rebecca Patterson Smith, the district attorney’s victim assistance coordinator, also worked on the case. Prosecutors described the proof as a combination of physical evidence, digital evidence and witness testimony rather than a single item. They said the request to remove the GPS system showed consciousness of guilt, while the video timeline helped place Bradley’s truck near the area where Graves’ body was found. The defense did not stop jurors from returning a murder conviction. Public reports from the trial did not include a detailed defense explanation for Bradley’s truck movements, the GPS issue or the search warrant evidence. Authorities have not publicly released every item taken from Bradley’s home or vehicle. The full trial record was not immediately available in public reports after sentencing, leaving some details of the jury’s deliberations unknown.

The sentence means Bradley will serve his punishment in the Texas Department of Criminal Justice. Under Texas law, his precise parole eligibility will depend on state rules, prison records and credit for time served. For Graves’ family, the verdict marked the first formal finding that Bradley was responsible for her death after a case that began with a body near train tracks and ended in a courthouse nearly 20 months after his arrest.

No new hearing date was listed in the public reports reviewed after sentencing, and the next major step would be any post-trial motion, appeal filing or prison transfer record. Bradley remained convicted of murder as of May 27, 2026.

Author note: Last updated May 27, 2026.