'Milkshake Murder' Convict Seeks Case Dismissal
A lawyer says an Adrian, Michigan, native convicted of murdering her husband in Hong Kong will ask a judge to dismiss the case against her.
Nancy Kissel was sentenced to life in prison after being convicted of murder in 2005. But Hong Kong's Court of Final Appeal ordered a retrial in March, saying she was improperly cross-examined.
Now Kissel wants to kill the retrial.
She plans to apply for a permanent stay in proceedings, arguing the bad publicity she has received will affect the fairness of the retrial. Her lawyer, Derek Chan, said a Hong Kong court is scheduled to hear arguments on the application starting Nov. 1.
If the move is successful, Kissel will be immediately released.
The first trial grabbed headlines around the world with its juicy detail on the breakdown of a wealthy expatriate marriage in this southern Chinese financial hub, spawning two books and a TV special.
Prosecutors alleged that Kissel carefully plotted her husband Robert's murder in November 2003, first drugging him with a milkshake laced with sedatives and then bludgeoning his head with a metal ornament.
While prosecutors portrayed Robert as a loving father, his wife said the former investment banker for Goldman Sachs and Merrill Lynch was a heavy drinker and cocaine user who was frequently sexually abusive. She also acknowledged having an affair with an electrician who worked at the couple's vacation home in Vermont.
Former British colony Hong Kong maintains separate political, economic and legal systems from mainland China as part of its special semiautonomous status.
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