HOT SPRINGS -- A former Hot Springs woman arrested last year over accusations she was conspiring to kill her ex-husband pleaded innocent earlier this week in Garland County Circuit Court to an amended charge of first-degree solicitation of murder.
Shannah Lynn Harrington, 37, who now lists a Dermott address, was initially arrested on Oct. 17, 2014, on a charge of conspiracy to commit capital murder and held in lieu of $100,000 bond.
She pleaded innocent in Garland County District Court on Oct. 20. Prosecutors withdrew the charge Dec. 9, 2014, for further investigation.
A new charge of solicitation to commit murder involving the same case was filed July 24, and Harrington was arrested July 28 in Dermott. She was returned to Hot Springs, where she remains in custody in lieu of $200,000 bond.
Both charges are felonies punishable by up to 30 years in prison.
Willie Eugene Evans, 51, of Little Rock, was arrested Oct. 24 on a charge of conspiracy to commit capital murder in the case, but the charge against him was withdrawn Dec. 16. It hasn't been refiled.
According to the affidavits, the ex-husband filed a report Oct. 14 with Hot Springs police, saying he was contacted Oct. 11 by the current live-in boyfriend of his ex-wife, identified as Harrington, who told him she had hired someone to kill him.
The ex-husband said the boyfriend also emailed him an audio recording of what he said was Harrington talking to an unknown person about killing him. The ex-husband listened to the recording and confirmed it was Harrington telling someone his address, his vehicle description, including three digits of his license plate, and the manner in which she wanted him killed, the affidavits said.
The victim sent the audio recording to a Hot Springs detective via email.
On Oct. 15, the detective interviewed Harrington's boyfriend, who said he and Harrington were at the home of a man named "Willie" about one week earlier, and he heard Harrington and "Willie" talking about getting someone to kill the ex-husband, the affidavits said.
The boyfriend said Oct. 11 he overheard Harrington talking to someone on the phone about paying to kill the ex-husband and started recording her conversation with his phone, the affidavits said.
On Oct. 17, the boyfriend gave a detective an address for "Willie" in Little Rock, where he and Harrington had gone, the affidavit said. The detective contacted Little Rock detectives, who found Evans at the address.
A photo of Evans was shown to the boyfriend, who identified him as the person he knew as "Willie" who offered to "off" the ex-husband for Harrington, the affidavits said.
That same day, Harrington was arrested and later questioned. She said Evans had a friend who would commit the killing for a fee and he would have his friend contact her after he spoke to him, police said.
A hearing on the admissibility of statements Harrington made to police was scheduled for Oct. 20. A trial date has not been set.
NW News on 08/08/2015