Third Judicial District Prosecuting Attorney Henry Boyce announced today that the arraignment of Becky O’Donnell, accused of killing former state Sen. Linda Collins, will be July 30 at the district courtroom at Randolph County jail. O’Donnell is being represented by public defenders.
UPDATE: The venue has been changed to the Randolph County Courthouse, 107 W. Broadway in Pocahontas, at 2 p.m. July 30 to accommodate the public and press. The decision was made by Circuit Judge David Goodson.
State Police arrested O’Donnell, 48, of Pocahontas in the death of Republican Sen. Linda Collins. Collins fatal wounds were apparently inflicted several days before the body was discovered. Her decomposed body was found wrapped in a covering outside her home near Pocahontas June 4. O’Donnell was arrested as she drove with her fiancé June 7 to a church visitation for Collins. The fiancé, Tim Loggains, defended O’Donnell in a TV interview on ABC’s “Good Morning America” in late June, noting that Collins and O’Donnell were best friends. Loggains said authorities have made a mistake, but he offered no alternative theory for Collins’ death. He said that unless O’Donnell was the “best actress, a sociopath or completely fooled me, there’s not a chance she did this.”
O’Donnell’s charges: capital murder, abuse of a corpse and evidence tampering in the slaying of Collins. The courtroom is located at 1510 Pace Road in Pocahontas.