Marine indicted, but won’t face death penalty if caught in Mexico
JACKSONVILLE (AP) — Onslow County’s district attorney says he will not seek the death penalty for a Marine indicted on a first-degree murder charge.
Authorities believe Cpl. Cesar Laurean has fled to his native Mexico, which refuses to send anyone back to the United States unless they are assured that they won’t face the death penalty.
District Attorney Dewey Hudson says the choices he faced were life without parole or the defendant living in Mexico without going to trial.
Laurean is wanted in the death of Lance Cpl. Maria Lauterbach, whose remains were found with those of her fetus earlier this month in a fire pit in Laurean’s back yard.
Lauterbach, who had once accused Laurean of rape, had been missing since mid-December.
Laurean faces several additional charges because authorities believe he forced Lauterbach to remove money from her bank account on the same day they think he killed her.
(Copyright 2008 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
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