The retrial of Edward Holley in the 2003 murder of his ex-girlfriend, Megan McDonald, began Monday in Orange County Court — nearly a year after a mistrial and more than two decades after the 20-year-old Orange County Community College student was found bludgeoned to death on a remote dirt road in the Town of Wallkill.

The case has been marred by delays, investigative missteps, and questions about how critical evidence was handled — from the failure to test key DNA evidence for 22 years, to conflict within the Orange County District Attorney’s Office.

McDonald was killed on March 14, 2003. Holley, who authorities say had recently broken up with her and owed her money, was arrested for murder in April 2023 and has pleaded not guilty. He remains in jail without bail.

His first trial ended in a mistrial in April 2025 after jurors were unable to reach a unanimous verdict.

Now, a new jury is being selected in what is expected to be a lengthy retrial. Testimony could begin as early as Friday and continue through mid-March, with no court held on Wednesdays. The hallway outside the courtroom was lined with dozens of prospective jurors Monday before being brought in for questioning. Media was temporarily asked to leave to make space.

This second attempt at trial comes after prosecutors disclosed DNA results from a sample collected in 2003 from a car linked to another of McDonald’s former boyfriends — one of several original suspects in the case. The vehicle reportedly had mud on its wheels and what police believed could be human tissue on the back seat and side-view mirror. It was impounded at the time but ultimately released to its registered owner without the sample being tested.

State police waited until April 2025 — days after Holley’s mistrial — to send the sample for testing. The results showed the DNA was degraded due to age and did not match McDonald.

The material on the vehicle was believed to possibly support or contradict witness accounts about who last saw McDonald — but investigators never followed through with testing. Her body was found dumped in a wooded area off a dirt path, raising further questions about why potential evidence from a car with similar environmental clues wasn’t analyzed sooner.

While prosecutors haven’t said how they plan to use the DNA results, the evidence could be used to address some of the doubt raised at Holley’s first trial — when jurors reportedly focused on why the sample was never tested.

Holley’s defense argues the case is circumstantial and riddled with early investigative failures. The Orange County District Attorney’s Office had previously declined to prosecute, stating there wasn’t enough evidence to convict. State police did not consult the DA’s office before arresting Holley in 2023, and a conflict later required two special prosecutors to be appointed.

McDonald’s family, who had a constant presence in court during last year’s proceedings and previously blamed the DA’s office for the delays, was not in attendance Monday. News 12 has reached out to their attorney for comment.

Jury selection continues this week, and the trial is expected to stretch into March.