A southwest Iowa man convicted in the 2009 shooting death of his girlfriend, had his challenge for the conviction denied in court, Friday. According to reports, Judge James Heckerman refused to grant Post Conviction Relief (PCR) to 38-year old Brian Heath Davis, of Shenandoah who, along with his attorney claimed key elements of the investigation and prosecution were flawed.

In April 2015, Davis received a life sentence upon his conviction without the possibility of parole on a charge of 1^st degree Murder in the death of 29-year old Holly Rae Durbin. His conviction was appealed but upheld by the Iowa Court of Appeals in 2017.

Photo of Holly Rae Durben from Iowa Cold Case files website

On July 18^th, 2009, Davis had reported to authorities Durben shot herself in the head at the farmhouse they shared off Highway 59. Durben was found on her bed with a gunshot wound to the left side of her head, near her cheek. Her left hand was on the pistol grip of a 12-gauge shotgun, and her left thumb rested on the trigger. Durben was right-handed. Authorities said the only identifiable fingerprints on the gun belonged to Davis.