The Sioux City Journal reports that 32-year-old Jenna Merrill, of Oakland, entered her plea Thursday in Cuming County District Court to one count of being an accessory. She’s set to be sentenced Feb. 7 and will remain in custody until then.
Another woman, 43-year-old Becky Weitzenkamp, was sentenced last month to 18-20 years in prison after she pleaded guilty to an accessory charge in the case.
The women were among four people charged in the March 10, 2017, death of Ernest Warnock, whose body was found in the burned rubble of his Rosalie home. He’d been fatally stabbed.
Two men, Derek Olson and his father Jody Olson, have each pleaded not guilty to second-degree murder, arson and other charges. Their trials will be held separately next year.