[CA] Kidnap added to murder-of-Janet Kovacich charge

Ex-Placer County Deputy Paul Kovacich has been in jail since March with no bail amount awaiting trial for the murder of his wife Janet that happened back in 1982 - while Paul was still a deputy. Makes you wonder what took so long... Now, besides the murder charge - a kidnap charge is added. Janet had been making the divorce transition plans for the kids, had an 11 a.m. appointment to enroll one of the children, but couldn't drive herself there due to recent breast surgery. Paul took her & she never arrived at her appointment. The defense is saying she got in the car willingly with her soon to be ex husband - so it's not kidnap, but...

...Placer County Deputy District Attorney Dan Gong argued Janet Kovacich did not go with her husband willingly to Rollins Lake. "She had no intention of going to Rollins Lake," Gong said. "She had an 11:10 appointment (at Forest Lake Christian)," he said, adding that for Kovacich to continue driving to a place his wife did not want to go was enough use of force or fear, which would constitute kidnapping. And, he added, Kovacich had previously caused his wife to be afraid of him. A week before, he had kicked the family dog, Fuzz, to death. He later admitted it to investigators, saying he was training the animal...

(Source: Former deputy faces new charges in wife's slaying. The Union. Robyn Moormeister, Jun 9, 2007)

To see previous blog entry:
March 23, 2005
[CA] Janet Kovacich, a deputy's wife, disappeared.