Man Indicted in Va. Pastor's Slaying
Pastor Dale Morgan
Man Indicted in Va. Pastor's Slaying*
Tuesday July 3, 2007 6:01 PM
ROCKY MOUNT, Va. (AP) - A man accused of beating a minister to death in
a robbery after eyeing her rural church's collection plate has been
indicted on capital murder charges.
A Franklin County grand jury on Monday indicted Charles Vincent Cobler,
40, on charges of capital murder and robbery in the April slaying of the
Rev. Nancy Copin. Franklin County Commonwealth's Attorney Cliff Hapgood
said he's still considering whether he will pursue the death penalty.
Copin, the 60-year-old pastor of Snow Creek Christian Church, died from
blunt force trauma, the result of a beating, an autopsy concluded.
A telephone message left for Cobler's attorney, Carolyn Furrow, was not
returned Tuesday.
Cobler told police he saw the collection plate at a Palm Sunday service
and decided to rob the clergywoman, according to testimony at a
preliminary hearing. He said he later went to the parsonage and asked to
use Copin's telephone, then overpowered her and took her purse,
according to court testimony.
Cobler was arrested April 8 in northeastern Ohio.