May 18, 2013
A 17-year-old Goshen teen faces 45 to 65 years in prison for the murder of a 76-year-old Elkhart woman.
Luis Bailey faced an Elkhart Circuit Court judge alone and told the judge that he did not have money for an attorney.
The judge entered a preliminary plea of not guilty for Bailey, which he has 20 days to change. Bailey then accepted the services of a public defender.
If Bailey does not change his plea within 20 days, it will become permanent and the case will go to trial on April 8.
Bailey was arrested on December 23, two days after Hopper was found dead in her home. Officials say Hopper died from blunt force trauma to the head. Charging documents say Bailey told police how he entered her house and what weapon he used to kill her.
Bailey has a pre-trial conference scheduled for January 31.
