A 21-year-old Cortez woman charged with first-degree murder entered a not-guilty plea in District Court Thursday, but attorneys indicated a disposition of her case may be in the works.
Nykhona Holiday and her companion, 33-year-old Robert Salt Jr. of Cortez, face multiple charges related to the brutal beatings of three men in Veterans Park the evening of August 20 of last year.
Police who came to the park that night reportedly found Curtis Benally, who was 40, dead and two other men severely injured. All had been repeatedly kicked in the head.
One of the injured men, Bilbert Tsosie, who was then 61, survived. The other, Anthony Hill, then 56, died on March 15 of this year. Authorities have not said whether his death was related to the assault.
On Thursday, defense attorney Stephen Singer and District Attorney Jeremy Reed told the court that they are working toward a disposition of Holiday’s case but have not reached it.
Holiday has told police she was forced to take part in the assaults, according to a police affidavit.
Reed said if both defendants do go to trial, they would probably be tried together and the trial would likely last two weeks.
District Judge William Furse scheduled a “setting conference” with his clerk for Friday, May 15, at 8:30 a.m. for the purpose of setting trial dates.
Salt is scheduled for a plea hearing on May 13.
