Trial delayed in killing of Lawrence businessman

LAWRENCE – The trial of a young woman charged with killing her 52-year-old roommate in Lawrence will not be held in January as scheduled.

Prosecution and defense attorneys agreed on Thursday to delay the first-degree murder trial of 20-year-old Sarah Gonzales McLinn, which was scheduled to start Jan. 5.

McLinn is charged with killing and nearly decapitating 52-year-old Harold M. Sasko in January at his home. Investigators allege she put sleeping pills in Sasko’s beer, bound him and cut his neck with a hunting knife.

McLinn worked for Sasko at one of three CiCi's Pizza restaurants he owned in Lawrence and Topeka. Sasko's relatives have said he let her move into his home while she was having personal problems.

Police went to Sasko's home and found his body Jan. 17, after McLinn's family reported her missing.

She was arrested Jan. 25 after a security officer at Everglades National Park in Florida found her asleep in Sasko's car.

The Lawrence Journal-World reports that McLinn’s attorney has said he is seeking a plea deal because his client has a mental illness and has never denied killing Sasko.

The court will set a new trial date at her next court appearance on Dec. 18.

This story was originally published December 5, 2014 at 7:49 AM with the headline "Trial delayed in killing of Lawrence businessman."