There will be no preliminary hearings in the case involving murder suspect Natasha Davenport and her alleged accomplice Joseph Howell.

The next step in the case, District Attorney Michael Jackson said, will be for the pair to appear before a Dallas County Grand Jury.

“They will probably be on there when the next one rolls around,” he said.

Davenport and Howell’s attorneys waived the right to the preliminary hearing.

Authorities are still searching for the murder victim, 71-year-old James Davenport. The absence of a body, Jackson said, will not hurt his case.

“There have been situations in the past where there have been convictions without a body,” he said. “It would be nice to offer closure for the family, but it doesn’t hurt the case.”

Natasha, 29, and Howell, 39, were taken into custody July 23 in connection with the murder of Natasha’s father, 71-year-old Jimmy Davenport.

After being taken into custody, Natasha gave a statement to the Dallas County Sheriff’s Department outlining the details of the crime.

Though she did not recall the exact date, Natasha said the alleged murder occurred sometime before Valentine’s Day.

Natasha, who was Davenport’s primary caregiver, told investigators after Howell headed to work, her father, who suffered from stage two dementia, started an argument while she was watching a movie. She said she walked back to his bedroom and found him packing his bags. As he attempted to pack a pillow, a hatchet fell out. When she recovered the hatchet, she said Davenport pulled out a closed pocketknife and told her to give him the hatchet back.

As the argument continued, Natasha said she hit Davenport in the head with the hatchet. Davenport, she said, fell forward toward her. She said she then pushed him back onto the bed, straddled him, and began stabbing him with the pocketknife.

Investigators said Howell’s statement said Natasha actually used one of his knives.

Natasha told investigators once Davenport was dead, she covered most of his body with a trash bag, rolled him in a blanket and went back to her movie.

Natasha and Howell issued differing statements on how long they waited to dispose of the body. Howell said they waited one day, while Natasha said it was three or four days.

Howell borrowed a truck from a friend, according to the statement, and the two loaded up the body. Again, both parties provided differing testimonies on how the body was disposed of.

Natasha said they threw the body off a cliff, while Howell said they threw it into a ravine.