Lori Hacking

Lori Kay Hacking (December 31, 1976 – c. July 19, 2004) is a Salt Lake City, Utah woman who made headlines after her mysterious disappearance on July 19, 2004. She was 27 years old when she disappeared.

Her husband, Mark Hacking, called 9-1-1 to report her missing at 10:49 a.m. He told police she had left home early for a customary jog in the Memory Grove and City Creek Canyon area northeast of downtown Salt Lake, but had not returned home or arrived at work. A woman who said she had seen Lori near the grove that day later withdrew her claim. [1] (http://tv.ksl.com/index.php?sid=108389&nid=8)

According to some family members, Lori Hacking was about five weeks pregnant when she vanished. She had planned to move to North Carolina, where her husband had said he was to study at the University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill medical school, having recently graduated from college. However, police say Mark had never completed an undergraduate degree at the University of Utah as he led family and friends to believe, and the medical school had no record of him having ever applied. [2] (http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,127675,00.html)

Shortly after Lori's disappearance, Mark Hacking was reportedly found running naked through the streets, and was admitted to hospital for mental evaluation. While in the hospital, Mark engaged a well-known defense attorney, D. Gilbert Athay. [3] (http://deseretnews.com/dn/view/0,1249,595080053,00.html)

On August 2, 2004, Mark Hacking was arrested on suspicion of the aggravated murder of his wife. Police believed that he acted alone, killing Lori in their apartment with a .22-caliber rifle while she was asleep and disposing of her body via a trash dumpster. They found blood in several places in the couple's apartment, including on a knife located in the bedroom and on the headboard of the bed, as well as in Lori's car. In addition, Scott and Lance Hacking, Mark's brothers, claim that he confessed to them on July 24, 2004 of having murdered Lori. [4] (http://tv.ksl.com/index.php?sid=110997&nid=5) First-degree murder charges were filed against Mark Hacking on August 9, 2004.

On October 1, 2004 at approximately 8:20 a.m. (Mountain Daylight Time) searchers found human remains in the Salt Lake City landfill. By that afternoon police had confirmed that the remains are those of Lori Hacking.

On October 29, 2004, Mark Hacking pleaded innocent to first-degree murder, despite the victim's brother, Paul Soares, begging Mark in a letter earlier in the day to "save your family the grief and cost" and "plead guilty to murder". [5] (http://tv.ksl.com/index.php?nid=5&sid=129293)

On April 15, 2005, Mark Hacking plead guilty to first-degree murder in exchange for prosecutors dropping other charges. Because there was a firearm involved, the statutory sentence is six years to life. Some additional hearings have been scheduled before actual sentencing.

On June 6, 2005, Mark Hacking was sentenced 6 years to life in prison, the maximum the judge could give under Utah law. Under Utah's system of indeterminate criminal sentences, first-degree felony murder brings a mandatory five years to life, but Hacking's minimum is increased to six years because he used a firearm. It will be up to the parole board how long he will serve.

The Soares family has since removed the name "Hacking" from the headstone of Lori. "We just felt that Mark obviously didn't want her anymore," said mother Thelma Soares. Where Lori's married name once was on the headstone is now engraved the Portuguese word "Filhinha," which translates to "little daughter." [6] (http://www.donnunn.com/spiel/2004/12/salt_lake_tribu.html)

External links

• RememberLori.com (http://www.rememberlori.com/)
• Statement of Charges (http://tv.ksl.com/index.php?sid=111834&nid=5&pid=0)