A man charged in connection with the strangulation of a 17-year-old girl last year has been ordered to stand trial.
Jeremy Lee Parker Hardy, 29, waived a preliminary hearing in 3rd District Court Wednesday and Judge Roger Livingston ordered him to stand trial on one count of murder, a first-degree felony, for the Oct. 13 death of Crystal Skelton, 17.He is scheduled to appear before Judge Dennis Fuchs Aug. 16 for a scheduling hearing.
According to the charges, on Oct. 13 Skelton told several people at the Youth Resource Center that she was going to meet Hardy, her boyfriend, later that day.
The next day, a passerby found Skelton's body between two railroad tracks at 450 S. 650 West. An autopsy revealed the girl had been strangled.
Police interviewed Hardy early in the investigation of Skelton's death. Hardy said he had seen Skelton Oct. 12, and that they had fought, but he denied seeing Skelton on Oct. 13.
However, Hardy's brother told police that he took Hardy to meet Skelton at the Salt Palace about noon on Oct. 13, the charges state. Investigators also found Jeremy Hardy's fingerprints on items "closely associated with Skelton's body."
After being arrested in Atlanta, Ga., April 9, Jeremy Hardy "confessed that he had strangled Crystal Skelton," the charges state.