The murder trial of a North Liberty man is underway in Burlington. Testimony resumes today in the trial of Ryan Wichhart who’s accused of killing 44-year-old Kathi Mertens of Mount Pleasant last November. Opening statements Wednesday were heard in Des Moines County District Court.
Prosecutors told jurors Wichhart admitted to police after his arrest that he’d strangled Mertens hours earlier at the Alcohol and Drug Dependency Services office in Burlington where she worked. He said he did it to get drugs from a medication storage room. Wichhart is using an insanity/diminished capacity defense.