Guilty Plea Entered for Idaho Man Accused in Murder Cold Case

BOISE, Idaho (AP) — A judge has entered a not guilty plea on behalf of an Idaho state prison inmate charged in the April 1998 rape and killing of a Boise woman who was attacked as she walked to church.

The Idaho Statesman reports prosecutors will have until October to decide whether to seek the death penalty against 40-year-old Patrick Zacharias, for the death of 22-year-old Kay Lynn Jackson. Prosecutors had 60 days from the plea entry date to decide whether to seek the death penalty, but on Tuesday they asked for and were granted 120 days.

A trial is set for February. Zacharias has been in prison since February 2007, serving a life sentence for lewd conduct with a girl under 11. DNA testing connected him to the Jackson case. He was indicted in April.