MOUNT VERNON — Currently charged with one count of kidnapping, murder suspect Matthew Hoffman, 30, waived his right to a preliminary hearing scheduled for this afternoon.
related
Family abduction ends in tragedy
Get audio from the press conferences, see images of the investigation and search, a map of key events and related stories.
A preliminary hearing is used by the presiding judge to determine if there is probable cause to hold an individual based on filed charges. This is necessary in cases, such as Hoffman’s, when an indictment has not yet been handed down.
Hoffman remains in the Knox County Jail under a $1 million bond placed by Mount Vernon Municipal Court Judge Paul Spurgeon a week ago. He remains under suicide watch where a jailer is required to check on him every 10 minutes.
Hoffman was charged with the kidnapping of 13-year-old Sarah Maynard after she was discovered in Hoffman’s basement on Nov. 14. He is the prime suspect in the murders of Maynard’s mother, Tina Herrmann; brother, Kody Maynard; and family friend, Stephanie Sprang.
More charges are expected to be filed by Knox County Prosecutor John Thatcher once the murder investigation is concluded by the Knox County Sheriff’s Office.
