Maine mom pleads not guilty to murder-for-hire plot

DOVER-FOXCROFT — A mother of 13 from Brownville has pleaded not guilty to trying to hire a hitman to kill her husband.

WLBZ-TV reported that 46-year-old Wendy Farley entered her plea Tuesday in Piscataquis County District Court in Dover-Foxcroft.

Additional Photos

Wendy Farley of Brownville speaks with attorney Christopher Smith during her initial court appearance at the Piscataquis County Superior Court in Dover-Foxcroft on Sept. 20, 2012. AP

Farley was initially charged in September with criminal solicitation for murder for allegedly offering a friend between $3,000 and $10,000 to have her husband of 30 years killed. A grand jury indicted her on Monday.

Farley, described as a church-going mom who home-schooled her children, was captured on tape telling her friend that she wanted “nothing fancy, nothing stupid, nothing traceable,” according to a police affidavit filed last year. She even suggested the type of rifle.

Police say Farley wanted her husband’s death to look like a hunting accident.

An affidavit indicated Farley told an investigator that she and her children had not been physically abused and that she pursued a hit man because she needed her freedom. “Can you imagine for 29 years being told that you were not good enough? I finally snapped,” she said.

Farley remains in jail pending trial.

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