Crime & Safety
Plea Scheduled in Williams Murder Case
Prosecutor says Elizabeth Collazo is expected to admit to murder of Mark Werkheiser in court Monday.
An Easton woman is expected to plead guilty next week to the murder of the father of her four children.
Elizabeth "Lily" Collazo is scheduled to admit to first-degree murder at 9 a.m. Monday in Northampton County Court, said First Assistant District Attorney Terry Houck.
Collazo was charged in March with killing Mark Werkheiser, shooting him six times with his own handgun while he slept at his home in Wlliams Township.
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Police recorded a phone conversation between Collazo and one of her friends in which she admits to the killing.
She and Werkheiser had been in the middle of a custody dispute involving their children.
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By pleading guilty, Collazo avoids a possible death sentence. Under state law, anyone convicted of first-degree murder gets an automatic life prison sentence.
Houck said Collazo's decision came as a surprise. She and her lawyers had been in court Friday to argue several motions -- including one that would have postponed the trial.
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