Judge drops charges against Wisconsin man accused of hiding corpse
CHILTON, Wis. — A judge on Wednesday dismissed charges against a Wisconsin man accused of hiding the corpse of a man he was convicted of killing in the early 1980s.
John Andrews, of Chilton, pleaded guilty in 1994 to homicide by negligent use of a motor vehicle in the death of 67-year-old Starkie Swenson, who went missing in 1983. Prosecutors said Swenson and Andrews were involved in a love triangle and that Andrews ran over Swenson. Andrews was sentenced to two years in prison.
Swenson's body was found last September by two people hiking in High Cliff State Park. Since Andrews failed to disclose to police in a June 2021 interview where the remains were, prosecutors charged him with hiding a corpse.
However, Judge Carey Reed said Wednesday that the statue requires that someone hid a corpse in order to evade prosecution or to gain benefits. Reed said those terms are not met in this case, WLUK reported.
The judge did leave the door open for prosecutors to file a charge of obstruction of law enforcement.
