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Show Preliminary Hearing Date Set on Charge Against Marine in Robbery, Murder Attempt A preliminary hearing date has been set for Neil Timothy Smith, 18-year-old from Louisville, Louis-ville, Ky. who has been charged with armed robbery and attempted attempt-ed murder. Charges have been filed In connection with the December 23 incident In which Mrs. Thelma Melling of Cedar City was hospitalized hospi-talized from strangling and slashes to her throat in her home i at 76 South 100 East. Preliminary hearing will be held at the City & County building build-ing before Justice of the Peace Haldow E. Christensen at 2:30 p. m. Tuseday, January 4. Smith, who is AWOL from the Santa Ana, Calif. Marine Base, is being held at the Cedar City jail on $30,000 bail. The two count charges were filed against him when lie was apprehended by law enforcement officers in a blockade south of St. George on U. S. 91 approxi-1 mately two hours after the incident inci-dent at the Melling home. I Wrhen apprehended Smith had on his possession four switchblade switch-blade knifes, a purse owned by Mrs. Melling and a check which had been endorsed by Mrs. Melling. Mel-ling. The suspect is accused of entering en-tering the Melling home on the netext of using the telephone to innnlre abc'Jt z job in service ser-vice station. After supposedly dialing the station and reporting that the number was busy, he struck up a conversation with Mrs. Melling and then suddenly began strangling her until she was unconcious. Mrs. Melling was later able to call her daughter who In turn notified authorities to begin the search and also initiated action to have her mother hospitalized If sufficient evidience is produced pro-duced at the preliminary hearing to Justify a trial the case will be bound over to district court. |