Prosecutors plan to seek a first-degree murder conviction against a man accused of shooting his wife and tossing her into Lake Erie, then reporting that she'd accidentally fallen overboard from his commercial fishing boat.
Forty-eight-year-old Christopher Leclair was formally arraigned Tuesday on charges including criminal homicide, aggravated assault, abuses of a corpse, evidence-tampering and false reports in the death of 51-year-old Karen Leclair.
Erie County prosecutors say Leclair reported her missing June 11 but dock surveillance images showed the two leaving and him returning alone. Authorities said her body was found in July with an anchor attached to the torso. An autopsy indicated that she had been shot in the head.
Defense attorney Bruce Sandmeyer has said his client asserts his innocence. He said trial may be held in April.
