Hacking appears in court; Wife’s remains still missing

SALT LAKE CITY (AP) — Mark Hacking, charged with killing his wife after she confronted him over deceptions about his education, appeared briefly in a heavily guarded courtroom Monday, guarded by armed deputies and looking puzzled.

Hacking said nothing as a judge scheduled a preliminary hearing for September 23.

Hacking’s first in-person court appearance came after police spent their 12th night searching a county landfill without finding Lori Hacking’s body or a .22-caliber firearm they believe was the murder weapon.

His previous court appearance was by video feed from the county jail.

Hacking, 28, reported his wife missing July 19, setting off a weeklong community search by thousands of volunteers.

He is accused of killing his 27-year-old wife while she slept and dumping her body in a trash bin, according to his confession to brothers who visited him at a psychiatric ward where he was kept for 13 days after his wife’s disappearance.

No one from his family or his wife’s family was present at Monday’s court appearance, and the proceeding was over in minutes.

Lawyers for both sides said there had been no discussions of a plea bargain. Hacking hasn’t had to enter a plea yet; that will come sometime after his preliminary hearing.

Authorities believe Lori Hacking was killed after she learned her husband wasn’t enrolled in medical school in North Carolina, even though they were packing to move there.

Deputy district attorney Robert Stott said he was prepared to prosecute Hacking for murder even without a body or weapon. Hacking also has been charged with obstructing justice, accused of throwing Lori’s body, the gun and a bloody mattress in separate trash bins.

Previous entry: Dutch under terror threat
Next entry: Scholar says he’s found John the Baptist’s cave

More articles about Mark and Lori Hacking