SEDALIA (AP) - A man accused of killing a woman whose dismembered body was found near his rural Pettis County home will be tried in Clay County.
Judge Larry Harman on Friday agreed to a change of venue request for 65-year-old Joseph Arbeiter of rural Pettis County.
Arbeiter is charged with first-degree murder, first-degree rape and several other crimes in the death of 35-year-old Marshall resident Mandy Black. Her body parts were found in May near Arbeiter's trailer.
Pettis County Prosecutor Jeff Mittlehauser is seeking the death penalty against Arbeiter.
No trial date has been set. Arbeiter is being held in the Pettis County Jail without bond.