Posted on 07/27/2004 10:15:01 AM PDT by Bonaparte
Missing: The family hires a criminal defense attorney to represent Mark Hacking, who remains hospitalized
By Ashley Broughton
and Matthew D. LaPlante
The Salt Lake Tribune
Salt Lake Tribune
2004-07-27 00:39:09.532
Three days before she disappeared, Lori Hacking may have uncovered her husband's deceptions.
She received a phone call at her work, started crying and went home early, said a colleague at Wells Fargo Institutional Brokerage and Sales.
"I could hear her say things such as, 'But he's already been accepted. He's already applied. This can't be correct,' said Darren Openshaw, a Wells Fargo employee who overheard the phone call about 2:15 p.m. on July 16.
Openshaw said he believes the caller was from the University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill.
"I don't know for sure it was the school," he said. "I can only assume."
Lori Hacking and her husband, Mark Hacking, were preparing to move to Chapel Hill, where he said he had been accepted to medical school.
But last week, shortly after Mark Hacking reported his wife missing, police learned he had never applied at North Carolina and had lied to his family about graduating from the University of Utah.
His family members, meanwhile, said Monday that they have retained Salt Lake City criminal defense attorney Gilbert Athay to represent him. Family spokesman Scott Dunaway said the move was necessary because of news media reports regarding Mark Hacking.
Monday marked one week since Lori Hacking, 27, dis- appeared.
The Salt Lake City woman, who reportedly was five weeks pregnant, failed to return from an early-morning jog in City Creek Canyon, according to her husband.
Friends have said that Mark Hacking contacted them about his wife's disappearance about 10 a.m., claiming he had twice run his wife's usual jogging route three miles each way, looking for her before he called police.
But police said last week that before Mark Hacking reported his wife missing, he was purchasing a new queen-sized mattress at a South Salt Lake furniture store.
Authorities have been unable to confirm Lori Hacking was in the canyon that morning and consider her husband, Mark Hacking, the only "person of interest" in the case.
Dunaway said relatives were not aware of the phone call Lori Hacking apparently received at work July 16.
The last time Lori Hacking contacted her mother was by e-mail July 14 or 15, he said, making arrangements for her to take care of the couple's cat while they were preparing for their move to North Carolina.
Before Lori Hacking received the phone call on Friday, Openshaw said, he had seen her looking at UNC-Chapel Hill's Web site.
Afterward, "she hung up the phone and sort of sat there crying," he said. "We asked her if she was OK and if she wanted to leave a little early."
She did. But by the time she arrived at her going-away party held that evening, she seemed fine, Openshaw said. Co-workers were so relieved at her elevated mood that they didn't bother to inquire about the phone call.
"We didn't think of it," he said. "We assumed everything had been worked out, that there may have been a misunderstanding. Whatever it was that upset her seemed to have been resolved."
Pictures from the party, held at a supervisor's cabin in the Uinta Mountains, show Lori Hacking in a baggy gray University of Utah sweatshirt, smiling widely with her husband's arm wrapped around her shoulder.
Another shot depicts her standing next to her supervisor, Randy Church, and a cake that reads: "We'll miss you, Lori."
But those present didn't intend the party to be the last time they saw Lori Hacking. Her last day at Wells Fargo was to be Aug. 5, according to a company spokesman.
Those at the party said the guest of honor didn't speak in detail about her future plans, but seemed optimistic about the impending move.
Openshaw said he asked Mark Hacking at the party whether he was planning on rooting for UNC or rival Duke. "He said he didn't really get into stuff like that."
A close friend of Lori Hacking, who saw the couple at a housewarming party the night before she disappeared, said she made no mention of an upsetting phone call.
"Lori was just acting totally normal," said Erin Galbraith, a former college roommate of Lori Hacking. "I would have sensed something weird. I was in their apartment. I was looking at boxes."
Mark Hacking remained hospitalized Monday, Dunaway said, after suffering what relatives have called a "breakdown" the evening of June 19.
Police last questioned Mark Hacking on Wednesday. "To go back and re-question him on the same issues when we don't feel he's been truthful the first time - I don't think that would do us any good," said Detective Dwayne Baird, a police spokesman.
Baird said Mark Hacking has been cooperative with authorities, however.
Police are still awaiting test results from the state crime lab. "They have a lot of material," he said.
Athay said he was retained to represent Mark Hacking late Thursday and has met with him several times. He would not describe the meetings or discuss his conversations with his client.
Asked why Mark Hacking needs an attorney, Athay said, "Everybody needs a lawyer when they're under investigation or suspicion."
He said he was returning calls to reporters Monday because of curiosity regarding his role in the case, but said he will not be saying much in the future.
"You know me," he said. "I'm pretty closed-mouthed and tight-lipped."
Mark Hacking called his wife's office about 10 a.m. on July 19, speaking first to Brandon Hodge, another trading assistant she was training. He didn't ask where his wife was, but instead how she was doing, Hodge told The Associated Press.
''By the way, how is Lori?'' Hacking reportedly asked. Hodge said he replied, ''Well, she's not made it into work yet.''
Church then took the phone and recalls Hacking saying she hadn't returned from a sunrise jog at Memory Grove, a downtown park near the office. Hacking made it seem he was calling from his apartment, Church told the AP.
''Oh, my God, her [work] clothes are still here,'' Hacking reportedly said to Church, who had been expecting Lori Hacking at 7 a.m. and says she was never late to work.
''I said, 'You need to call police immediately. Just get off the phone,' Church said.
Police said Mark Hacking's call came in at 10:49 a.m. Monday - about 25 minutes after he used his credit card to buy the mattress at Bradley's Sleep Etc.
In other developments Monday:
l Salt Lake City Police officers used dogs to search the city landfill Monday night. Baird said they were finishing up a search of the area that had started last week. High temperatures and the availability of the dogs were the reason for the night search, he said.
l Police said they are looking into a lead that Mark Hacking may have visited an R.C. Willey Home Furnishings store nearby before going into Bradley's.
l Authorities have asked anyone who was in Memory Grove Park or City Creek Canyon between 5 a.m. and 11 a.m. on July 19 to call 799-3000 or 799-INFO (4636).
l Police continued to decline comment on reports of blood and a bloody knife found at the Hackings' apartment, saying the information is evidentiary in value.
l Police rejected a Salt lake Tribune open-records request for initial police reports in the Lori Hacking case, as is routine in most disappearance cases. In a letter to the newspaper, Capt. Mark Peck said releasing the information might interfere with a law-enforcement investigation, disclose investigative techniques or deprive a person of a right to a fair trial.
l A BFI Waste Services driver who picked up the Hackings' garbage at about 3:30 p.m. on July 19 said he saw nothing unusual and wasn't asked by police to inspect his collections, as is often the case in drug investigations and other crimes.
l The Salt Lake City office of the FBI said it has not been involved in Lori Hacking's case. The FBI has offered its help through agents and profilers but police have so far has not accepted, said spokesman Bob Wright.
aebroughton@sltrib.com
mlaplante@sltrib.com
---
Tribune reporters Stephen Hunt and Michael Westley contributed to this story.
What about that Berger guy... I think that is a bigger story. I wonder what the Clintons stole?
There was also a guy in Arizona a couple of years ago. His wife and stepchildren turn up missing. The truck is found in a grocery store parking lot. Bodies are never found. The guy is on death row now.
"Why could that not be the case here? I'm speaking from personal experience as someone raised in archaic Catholic beliefs."
That's just it. The kind of attitude towards divorce you are talking about is an extreemist CATHOLIC attitude.
In their case, the church is there to help keep a marriage together, but it never judges or punishes people just for getting a divorce, or getting married again after getting divorced. The kind of attitude towards divorce just isn't part of Mormon culture. It just isn't reasonable to think that she would fear anything more than personal embarasment for getting a divorce, especially in the face of the family's willingness to give Mark the benifit of a doubt (so far) in the face of all this.
There is no indication that this was even heading towards a divorce, and unless there was abuse or recently discovered infidelity it's unlikely that she would rapidly decide to seek a divorce without trying to patch things up first.
Her parents have shown themselves to be slow to judge others harshly, and quick to forgive. Surely their daughter knew they were like that.
"You do realize that we're all just speculating here, right?"
Yes, but speculation should start with the known facts and work forward, not pick a pre-determined end and then try to work backwards to some of the facts. There are real people involved in this, and I'm sure you wouldn't want people attributing harsh characteristics to you just to advance a totaly blue-sky speculation.
At this point it really doesn't seem reasonable at all to think she bolted or that she feared her parents reaction to them getting divorced. Mark had motive, means, and opportunity to kill her. She doesn't seem to have any motive run off without telling anyone and cause all this commotion.
Then why not try a thread that's discussing the Berger matter? Seems to me your curiosity would more likely be satisfied over there.
There are numerous examples of solid murder convictions for cases in which the body is not found.
There was a guy in Florida about 5 or 6 years ago, who moved into a girlfriend's trailer with her and her little daughter. I think his name was Crane or Crain. Something like that. Anyway, the girl went missing about the same time he did. No body, no witnesses, no confession. But he was given the death penalty by a jury who saw lots of strong forensic evidence of a violent episode involving the defendant and the girl.
But no matter how much evidence there is, some people are never convinced. They'd have to see it with their own eyes and even then, they would doubt what they saw. Some of them just like to argue to the point of absurdity.
I had heard that he was shipped off to the same facility that he worked at. The media needs to get their act together.
Amen to that!
Yep. That Berger story has been placed on the back burner. I hope that the prosecutors are still pursuing it. But hey, those documents ended up inadverantly in Sandy Bergler's pants, and he may have accidently discarded him, and the poor guy is just sloppy, so why is anybody bothering him about it?
There have been a number of murder cases with convictions and no body. I can't remember the names of any of them, but do remember seeing some of them on "The New Detectives", and reading about a couple of them in books by Ann Rule. There was one case I recall where there was no body, but the medical examiner was able to determine by the amount of blood found on the carpet pad and floor under the pad (carpet had been discarded, and another one placed over it, if I recall) that no one could have lost that much blood and survived. A case that Ann Rule (true crime writer) wrote about, there wasn't even any blood found. It was a completely circumstantial case where a wife had disappeared, and the husband's lies and bizarre behavior were enough for the prosecutor to put a case together and get a conviction.
Good illustrations!
Have you ever visited Sam Vaknin's site on Narcissism? It's an education on how their minds work. They think and behave believing that they're smarter than everyone else. Pay close attention to the topic of "narcissistic injury". Rage killing sure would fit.
This guy thinks he's smarter than the average bear. I think LE is hoping he says something that will help them recover Lori's body. That may be why they haven't arrested him yet. It's not like Mark is going anywhere anytime soon.
Wouldn't it be great if all the liars and manipulators of the world got stuck with one another. That would be fun to watch.
I want on ping list
I can understand the whole family rallying around and protecting Mark in an age when you're instantly tried in the media, but that doesn't mean you have to give up rational thought and the ability to conceive that he just might be guilty, expecially when the evidence starts mounting up like it is in this case. Right now it's safe to take Mark's side because nothing is gained by not doing so. I suspect the lovefest will breakup, however, when a crucial piece of evidence is revealed, like the results of the blood tests and/or finding the body and the police make an arrest.
Don't throw stones, brother.
The facts are that Lori Hacking's husband is a pathological liar. He worked at a psychiatric center. She worked at Wells Fargo as a trainee trader. His brothers were professionals, he was not. Normal people might feel a little resentful about that, but they sure wouldn't build up a web of lies to make their outside appearance look better. The fact is that Lori Hacking is gone. There is forensic evidence suggesting that a rage killing took place in their apartment. MH calls friends and Lori's work, then buys a mattress, then runs around naked at a motel. Of course it's just speculation that he had anything to do with it, or that Lori knew there was a problem. I'm going by her mother's continual defense of this person who was her husband. I've seen it before. It's a mindset, not a specific religion.
When it comes to religious lunacy, keep David Koresh, Andrea Yates, and the Hale Bop Comet crowd in mind. They look just like you and me.
It would be even more fun to ship them off to another planet. Bill, Hill, Kerry, etc. could finally rule a world ;-)
>>You mean you don't already know?<<
No, I know personally of no murder case where the body or parts of it were unaccounted for and the defendant was convicted of murder. I'm not saying there's no case in history, I'm just unaware of it -- and it was your argument, not mine.
>>we can start your education now.<<
Yeah, OK. Start my education. /grin /smirk /outright laughter.
>>Do you remember a case a few years back in New Jersey? <<
Not at all. Do you have a case name and a reporter citation, if the appeal was published? If this is true, I'd be interested in seeing the differences between it and what's been reported so far. And I would bet money right now there are significant differences. Eyewitness? Diary?
>>You actually think a person can be identified by his or her blood type alone?<<
I didn't say a person could be identified by blood type alone, but it can be a form of exclusion. If you were missing, an O+ finding of blood on sheets would mean absolutely nothing.
>>Probably a billion or so people with my blood type.<<
Likely more like 2 billion, but I digress.
>>The SLC police just announced that this was a rage killing <<
The reports say "Police BELIEVE" it was a rage killing. If they already knew it was, they would have arrested him since there was nobody else in the apartment and he apparantly doesn't deny being there. You are jumping the gun.
>>And you say we're "speculating"?<<
Uh, yeah, that's exactly what you are doing. You don't know what the police know, and no one can know for sure if what the police know is the truth. They don't know where she is, whether she's dead or alive, and thus don't know if anyone killed her.
Do you believe everything you read? I guess you still think there was a bloody ski mask at OJ's residence? That was, according to the press, a very important piece of evidence until it was revealed in an initial hearing that it didn't exist.
You still haven't answered my question: what is your hurry in convicting this guy? There will be plenty of time to demand the death penalty for whoever is convicted of a murder, if it occured here. Why are you potentially setting yourself up to be wrong if something turns out to not be as reported?
If I am not mistaken wasn't that the one where he was a famous Lawyer and she worked for a State Congressman? Also if I remember correctly the only reason he was caught is because his brother finally broke down and said that his brother had him help dump the cooler and when they dumpted it the lid came open and he saw a leg.
The case you're thinking of was the murder of Anne Marie Fahey, scheduling secretary to Gov Tom Carper of Delaware. Sad case.
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