Nashville, IN, February 12 (AP) - A man suing Brown County's sheriff for naming him as a suspect in his wife's 2003 death now faces a murder charge alleging that he strangled her and left the body in a hot tub.
Michael B. Smith, 61, being held Sunday in the Brown County Jail on a preliminary charge of murder.
Brown County Sheriff Buck Stogsdill said Smith had been arrested on a warrant late Friday, but said authorities would wait until Monday to release details surrounding the case.
He and Morgan County Prosecutor Steve Sonnega scheduled a Monday news conference to announce the charges in the death of Linda Smith, 55, whose body was found in a hot tub on Nov. 9, 2003.
An autopsy performed by Coroner Earl Piper showed Linda Smith died of strangulation.
At the time of his wife's death, Michael Smith admitted to police he had been in the couple's home near Spearsville, about 25 miles south of Indianapolis the night she died. Smith said he had fallen asleep while she was in the hot tub.
He said that when he awoke, he found his wife face-down in the water. Smith told authorities he tried to resuscitate his wife but was unable to do so.
The couple co-owned Custom Mats of America, making floor mats and wall hangings with corporate logos.
If Smith is convicted, Stogsdill could be vindicated in a civil lawsuit Smith filed in November. It alleges that Stogsdill defamed Smith by naming him as a suspect in his wife's death.
Stogsdill was quoted in a Johnson County newspaper as saying he anticipated arresting Smith in Linda Smith's death. That case, in which Smith seeks $300,000 in damages, is working its way through the Brown County courts.
(Copyright 2006 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
