Photo: inmatesearch.linncounty.org
(Cedar Rapids, IA) -- The trial is underway in Linn County for one of the men accused of kidnapping and murdering a Marion, Iowa woman.
Jury selection began on Tuesday, October 29th, for 24-year-old McKinley Louisma, who is charged with First-Degree Murder and First-Degree Kidnapping after the body of Melody Hoffman was found dead at Amana Lily Lake in Iowa County on February 18th last year.
However, investigators believe Hoffman was killed the night before by McKinley and another man, Dakota Van Patten, at Morgan Creek Park in Cedar Rapids.
According to court documents, Hoffman and McKinley were in a relationship at the time of the killing, and that Louisma was also in a relationship with another woman.
Iowa News Now reports Louisma's defense filed documents earlier this month that Hoffman may have been pregnant at the time of her death, however, the defense requested to exclude the evidence, arguing it may influence the jury.