Husband charged with murder of Emma Compton Layne of Virginia

On Wednesday, November 27, the Halifax County Sheriff’s Office in Virginia posted on its Facebook page that an arrest had been made in connection with the murder of Emma Compton Layne.

“Sheriff Fred Clark announces the arrest of Russell Wayne Layne, 67, of Nathalie, VA, for the senseless murder of his wife, Emma Compton Layne, which occurred in June 2017,” the HCSO Facebook post reads. “Layne was taken into custody by authorities this evening and served with a murder charge by Sergeant Jeff Burton.”

Dateline published Emma’s story in October 2017. Emma went missing on Saturday, June 17, after finishing closing at her supermarket in Cody, Virginia, around 7:30 p.m. She was supposed to spend the following day in the hospital visiting her mother, but never showed up.

The family reported Emma missing on Tuesday after finding Emma’s credit card, clothes, car keys, cell phone and dog left at her home.

In 2017, Investigator JM Burton of the Halifax County Sheriff’s Office told Dateline that police began their investigation and contacted Emma’s husband, Russell Layne, who allowed authorities to search their home. Burton said Layne was cooperative. “I suspect that the husband is always a suspect in some way,” he said. He added that Layne had conducted several interviews with police and was not considered a person of interest at this time.

The day after Emma was reported missing, cadaver dogs were brought in to search the house and surrounding area. The investigator also told Dateline that they conducted ground searches and searches of nearby ponds, but none of those searches revealed anything significant.

On November 22, 2017, hunters found human remains in the woods less than a mile from the property Emma and her husband own. At the time, Halifax County Sheriff’s Office Major Tommy Spencer told NBC affiliate WSLS that the remains were scattered on the ground and someone appeared to have tried to bury the body.

The remains were taken to the coroner’s office for autopsy, examination and positive identification. In January 2018, the remains were positively identified as belonging to Emma Compton Layne.

It is unclear what Emma’s cause of death was, but authorities said she was “violently murdered.”

Last year, on the sixth anniversary of Emma’s death, WSLS spoke with one of Emma’s sisters, Shawna Compton-Krohn, who said no matter how much time passes, she will never stop fighting for Emma. “We will get justice for Emma. Just hiding, being cowards won’t make any difference because I’m not going anywhere. I will fight for Emma every day,” she said.

News of Russell Layne’s arrest came just one day before Thanksgiving 2024.

Emma’s other sister, Wynona Childress, told WSLS earlier this week that the news has come full circle. “Emma’s remains were found on November 22nd. But in 2017, November 22nd was the day before Thanksgiving. And then today, the day before Thanksgiving, we get this call. And it’s a blessing. I feel like after seven years and five months I finally have something to be grateful for,” she said.

In announcing the arrest, the HCSO stated that Emma’s case has been a “top priority” since day one and that they “continue to advocate for justice for Emma and her family.”

“We hope this arrest will provide some closure for Emma Layne’s family and loved ones,” they wrote.

Russell Layne is being held without bail at the Blue Ridge Regional Jail Authority awaiting arraignment. It is unclear whether he is currently represented.

Emma’s case remains active and authorities encourage anyone with additional information to contact Sergeant Jeff Burton of the HCSO Investigative Division at 434-476-3339.