Man accused in slaying behind Las Vegas strip mall could face death penalty
A man accused of raping and killing a woman behind a Las Vegas strip mall could face the death penalty, prosecutors said Friday.
Authorities said Jerry Howard, 24, attacked Kathy Shines, 54, on the 3300 block of South Nellis Boulevard on Saturday.
Shines was beaten, stabbed and sexually assaulted before being thrown into a dumpster and covered with trash.
Police said Shines crawled out of the bin before dying. Her body lay in the alley for six hours before anyone found her.
Howard was arrested Wednesday at a friend’s apartment on the 3000 block of South Nellis Boulevard, three blocks from where Shines died.
“The death penalty is on the table,” Clark County District Attorney Steve Wolfson said after a brief court hearing Friday. “It’s something that will be considered in the next few weeks.”
He called the slaying “one of the most brutal cases I’ve seen in my 35 years.”
Shines had been collecting cans to recycle to supplement her income Jan. 2, when a man in a hooded jacket attacked shortly before midnight, police said.
Police initially said she was found with apparent neck trauma. The Clark County coroner later said Shines died from multiple stab wounds.
Police said they do not believe Shines knew Howard, but detectives think Howard targeted Shines, who was well known in the neighborhood, to rob and rape her.
Deputy Public Defender Scott Coffee said he would need several months to review evidence in the case.
In court, Howard appeared to become teary and rubbed his eyes after Las Vegas Justice of the Peace Ann Zimmerman set a preliminary hearing for April.
Contact reporter David Ferrara at dferrara@reviewjournal.com or 702-380-1039. Find him on Twitter: @randompoker
