Wife Found Dead; Items Seized From Home
POSTED: 5:06 pm CDT August 25,
2009
UPDATED: 6:58 pm CDT August 25,
2009
MURFREESBORO, Tenn. -- A case involving a Lebanon firefighter continues to get more bizarre. Mike Hicks is charged with abuse of a corpse after investigators found his wife Carla's body in a Wilson County field.
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A neighbor of the Hickses said Mike often told her about his wife's seemingly shaky mental state.According to a Murfreesboro police report, officers responded to the Hicks house in March after Carla allegedly took between 20 and 30 Xanax pills. She had slurred speech and admitted she wanted to hurt herself."He basically said that it's probably just a matter of time before she completely goes through with it," said the neighbor.On Tuesday, Carla's father reacted to his daughter's death. He said she tried to kill herself several times."We don't know what was going on in her marriage. We really don't know whether this was a suicide attempt or a cry for help or what," said John Grammer.On Thursday night, Wilson County sheriff's officials said Carla's partially clothed body was found wrapped in plastic and yellow rope in a field.Monday, the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation served a warrant on the couple's house. Court documents reveal investigators found yellow nylon rope and a plastic drop cloth in the garage.Mike Hicks was arrested on Sunday as he arrived at work.A court affidavit said a friend of Mike's came forward a day earlier and told investigators that Mike asked for help changing the tires on his Jeep after seeing on the news that investigators took tire impressions from the field where Carla's body was found."We have no malice against Mr. Hicks. You know, we're a little confused," said Grammer.The TBI said this investigation is still classified only as a death because it is unclear how Carla Hicks died.To try to help solve the mystery, investigators also seized ripped-up medical records found in a garbage can outside of the couple's home, and hospital discharge instructions, a camera, cell phones and computers from inside.The Wilson County sheriff's office said it can prove Hicks, at the very least, moved his wife's body, which is bothersome to Carla's father."You don't dispose of somebody's body in this fashion. That's not civilized behavior," said Grammer.Mike Hick's attorney did not return Channel 4’s calls Tuesday for reaction to his client's arrest. However, on Monday, Hicks' attorney stressed that his client welcomes the TBI investigation and is cooperating fully.
Previous Stories:
- August 24, 2009: Firefighter Arrested After Wife Found Dead
- August 24, 2009: Body Found Near Nashville Superspeedway
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