Jury selection has begun for the trial of an eastern Pennsylvania man accused of killing and dismembering a woman whose remains were left along two interstates six years ago.
Monroe County prosecutors allege that 40-year-old Charles Ray Hicks of Tobyhanna tortured and killed 36-year-old Deanna Null in January 2008. Her remains were found in trash bags along Interstates 80 and 380 in the Stroudsburg area, 70 miles north of Philadelphia.
Prosecutors said the victim's severed hands were found hidden inside a wall in Hicks' home. They plan to seek the death penalty if he is convicted of first-degree murder.
Authorities say Hicks told investigators that he gave the victim drugs in exchange for sex but didn't harm her, saying she died of an accidental drug overdose.
