Anna Runau was found guilty of criminal attempt to commit first degree murder and sentenced to 20 years in the Arkansas Department of Correction. Runau, 24, was charged following a stabbing at Buzzard Roost Marina that was reported Aug. 31, 2015.
Arkansas Department of Corrections records show Runau’s earliest possible parole date is scheduled for May 25, just four days after her 21-year-old sister Amber Runau is scheduled to appear in Baxter County Circuit Court on a charge of first-degree murder in connection with a fatal stabbing.
Amber Runau faces a charge a of first-degree murder in connection with the fatal stabbing of her 72-year-old wheelchair-bound neighbor. Amber’s defense attorney notified the court the defense planned to use mental disease or defect as a defense theory.
A mental examination for first-degree murder suspect Amber Lea Runau to see if she is competent to stand trial and if she can be held criminally responsible in the death of her 72-year-old neighbor has been completed, it was announced Thursday in Baxter County Circuit Court.
In a November hearing, Circuit Court Judge John Putman ordered the 21-year-old Runau undergo evaluations to determine if she can help in her defense and if she can be held criminally liable for her alleged conduct.
Court officials now must await the results of the examination before the case can proceed. Should the results come back and indicate Runau is competent to stand trial in the killing of Sharon Adler, that may not be the end of the issue.
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Photos: 11 people are now facing murder trials in Baxter County Circuit Court. Pictured are: (top row, from left) Ryan James Lindsey; Allison Cunningham, Skyler Brazil, Ashley Hendricks, James Tyler Davis; Jeffery Shepherd, (bottom row) Savannah Wren, Baxter Stowers, Amber Runau, Jonathan Mauldin and Robert Dean Penny.
There will be no jury trials in Arkansas until May 1, according to a ruling issued Friday by the Arkansas Supreme Court.
The action to extend the prohibition of jury trials was taken due “to a continued high level of COVID-19 positive tests and hospitalizations,” the court’s order noted.
Through the continuing course of the pandemic, the state’s highest court has scheduled various times for jury trials to resume but pushed the dates back because infection and hospitalization numbers continued to track upward.