Sherri Dally was in a Ventura department-store parking lot on May 6, 1996, when a woman posing as a police officer approached her. Witnesses saw Sherri handcuffed and put into a Nissan. The woman was Diana Haun. Before that morning, Haun had bought handcuffs, a security badge and a blond wig under her own name and had rented a teal Nissan Altima. [1]
Don Ramey Logan · Image source · CC BY-SA 4.0 · This photograph provides setting or historical context. It is not an authentic crime exhibit.
Following the rental
Haun and Sherri’s husband, Michael Dally, worked at the same grocery store and had been having an affair. The court’s account says Michael was reluctant to divorce Sherri for financial reasons. He was at work when Haun abducted Sherri. In the days after Sherri’s death, he asked about payouts from her life insurance and retirement account, both of which named him as the beneficiary. [1]
Ymblanter · Image source · CC BY-SA 4.0 · This photograph provides setting or historical context. It is not an authentic crime exhibit.
The search near the overpass
A motorist saw Haun in a Nissan near the Cañada Larga overpass that evening. About a month later, searchers found Sherri’s remains in a ravine near Cañada Larga Road. The medical examiner placed her death around the time of the abduction. Tests on bloodstains inside the rental car found DNA consistent with Sherri’s. [1]
The receipts also showed that Haun bought a camping axe. The jury found that she had personally used a knife and rejected the allegation of personal axe use. It also rejected the allegation of lying in wait. In 1997, it convicted Haun of first-degree murder, conspiracy and kidnapping, and found that the murder was committed for financial gain. [1]
Csouthard · Image source · CC BY-SA 3.0 · This photograph provides setting or historical context. It is not an authentic crime exhibit.
Two prosecutions
Haun received life without the possibility of parole, plus a consecutive year for the knife enhancement. Michael was convicted separately of first-degree murder in April 1998. Haun’s direct appeal was affirmed in November 2000. [1] [2] [3]
In 2020, Haun petitioned for resentencing under a California law that narrowed murder liability for some people convicted under theories that allowed them to be held responsible for a killing committed by someone else. The trial judge denied her petition without appointing counsel. The Court of Appeal affirmed in January 2023. It found that Haun should have been appointed counsel and that the error did not change the outcome. The record established that Haun was the actual killer and was therefore ineligible under the law. The California Supreme Court denied review that March. [1] [4]
Case brief
Ventura, California · 1996
- Recorded outcome
- Diana Haun and Michael Dally were separately convicted of first-degree murder. Haun received life without parole. The denial of her resentencing petition was affirmed in January 2023, and the California Supreme Court denied review in March 2023.
Key moments
People in this case
- Michael Dally and Diana Haun
Convicted in the murder of Sherri Dally
Photo at source · Oxygen · labeled photographs
Look closer · 9 visuals
Inside the evidence.
Open a visual to explore what it contributed to the case—and the limits of what it shows. Photographs, historical reproductions and original illustrations are individually labeled. Open the notes for each image’s source, credit, and limitations; setting photographs do not depict crime scenes.
The costume left a paper trail
Original editorial illustration — not an actual evidence photograph or exhibit.
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Purchased objects linked Haun to the false-officer disguise.
Objects are drawn symbols, not photos of recovered exhibits.
The vehicle that connected locations
Original editorial illustration — not an actual evidence photograph or exhibit.
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The sedan connected preparation, abduction and physical evidence.
No exact driven route or total mileage is reconstructed.
Witnesses saw a false arrest
Original editorial illustration — not an actual evidence photograph or exhibit.
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Eyewitnesses described Haun placing Sherri in the car.
No staged portrait or recreation of the abduction.
The jury’s actual findings
Original editorial illustration — not an actual evidence photograph or exhibit.
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The verdict did not adopt every allegation made at trial.
A rejected enhancement is not proof that an object was never purchased.
Presence and conspiracy differ
Original editorial illustration — not an actual evidence photograph or exhibit.
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The two defendants’ legal roles cannot be reduced to who was seen abducting Sherri.
Michael’s conviction is separately sourced; no unseen scene is invented.
Why the 2023 request failed
Original editorial illustration — not an actual evidence photograph or exhibit.
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The court distinguished a procedural mistake from eligibility for the statutory remedy.
Unpublished case-specific judicial record.
An aerial view of Ventura and its coastline
Geographic context photograph — not a crime-scene image.
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An aerial view of Ventura and its coastline. Geographic context photograph; not a crime-scene photograph or an authentic exhibit.
This photograph provides setting or historical context. It is not an authentic crime exhibit. The source and reuse terms are linked below.
Don Ramey Logan · Image source · CC BY-SA 4.0
Ventura County Courthouse building
Geographic context photograph — not a crime-scene image.
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Ventura County Courthouse building. Geographic context photograph; not a crime-scene image or proof of an event on the map.
This photograph provides setting or historical context. It is not an authentic crime exhibit. The source and reuse terms are linked below.
Ymblanter · Image source · CC BY-SA 4.0
Ventura Beach and the Pacific coast
Geographic context photograph — not a crime-scene image.
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Ventura Beach and the Pacific coast. Geographic context photograph; not a crime-scene photograph or an authentic exhibit.
This photograph provides setting or historical context. It is not an authentic crime exhibit. The source and reuse terms are linked below.
Csouthard · Image source · CC BY-SA 3.0
★ Key evidence used in a conviction · ✓ Exclusion or reversal · ◇ Disputed evidence · ⊘ Excluded at retrial · ◆ Identity / investigative finding, not a conviction. A symbol does not mean one item proved the whole case.
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Put the story on the map.
Follow the dated entries, then select an event to find its regional setting. Shared-location pins open a group of events. Evidence symbols identify important findings and their limitations.
Open the map in its own window ↗Sources & further reading
- People v. Haun, B307581 — California Court of AppealUnderlying evidence, 1997 verdict findings, 2000 affirmance, 2020 petition and 2023 decision. Unpublished government judicial text.
- Dally found guilty of first-degree murder — Los Angeles TimesMichael Dally’s separate April 1998 conviction only; fewer than 25 derived words.
- Appellate court OKs woman getting life — Daily JournalIndependent contemporary report of Haun’s life sentence and direct-appeal affirmance; limited paraphrase.
- California Supreme Court minutes, People v. Haun, S278630The court denied review of the 2023 decision affirming the denial of Diana Haun’s resentencing petition.
Editorial review: 2026-11-12 · 381 words