Arlington Heights man's hatchet murder trial delayed for mental exam
The start of a trial for an Arlington Heights man accused of murdering his wife with a hatchet in November 2014 in Wisconsin has been delayed so he can undergo a mental evaluation.
On Tuesday, during an unscheduled hearing in Racine County, Cristian Loga-Negru's attorneys requested a mental health examination, according a report in the Racine Journal-Times.
Loga-Negru, 39, is charged with first-degree intentional homicide, mayhem and kidnapping in the death of his wife, Roxana Abrudan. His trial was set to begin on Feb. 1, but, according to the Journal-Times, the mental exam his lawyers requested is common when defendants plead not guilty by reason of insanity. In December 2014, Loga-Negru was declared competent to stand trial.
On Tuesday, Judge Eugene Gasiorkiewicz granted the evaluation and set a review hearing for Feb. 25.
The Arlington Heights couple were both Romanian immigrants who had a volatile relationship for months leading up to Abrudan's murder.
Abrudan, 36, had contacted police several times and filed for an order of protection against her husband before her death.
She then fled their Arlington Heights condo and was hiding with her boss and his wife before, authorities allege, Loga-Negru attacked her outside their home and took her to a Super-8 Motel in Mount Pleasant, Wisconsin. According to a criminal complaint, police found him in the parking lot with Abrudan's body in the car. She died later that night at a Wisconsin hospital of what the Milwaukee County medical examiner described as "multiple chop wounds and blunt force injuries."
Racine County District Attorney W. Richard Chiapete said at the time of the murder that "this is as brutal a case as I think we will ever see."
If convicted, Loga-Negru faces life plus 85 years in prison.