A pretrial conference is scheduled today as the prosecution and defense prepare for the trial of 64-year-old Charles Cook, who is charged with criminal homicide and robbery in the 1991 shooting death of 76-year-old Myrtle McGill at her home along South 6th Street in Indiana
Cook, who police say was a drifter when McGill at the time of the shooting, was tracked down in Minnesota in the fall of 2016 and extradited to Indiana County in February of 2017. In 2007, investigators identified him as a suspect in McGill’s death after the return of DNA tests on a cigarette butt found in her car, which they say Cook stole and later abandoned at the Pittsburgh Greyhound Bus terminal. Cook evaded arrest for years, but served time for other crimes in other states.
In April, Judge Martin ordered a psychiatric evaluation to determine Cook’s competency, and in June he used that evaluation to determine that he is indeed able to stand trial. The judge has already ruled on a number of defense motions in the case and reserved judgment on others. He has not yet set a trial date.
The status conference today is scheduled for 9:30 AM.
