Man Accused of Poisoning Wife With Nicotine to Stand Trial

Paul Marshal Curry, 55, will stand trial in connection with the 1994 nicotine poisoning death of his wife, who prosecutors claim he killed to collect $400,000 in life insurance.

A judge ruled this week that there's enough evidence to move forward with the case. Curry now faces an Nov. 22 arraignment in the Central Justice Center to select a courtroom for his trial, which could take place next year, the Orange County Register reports.

Curry was extradited from Kansas to Orange County on Dec. 2, 2010. The alleged murder happened in San Clemente.

According to a 2010 release from the district attorney, Curry is accused of poisoning his wife late in the night of June 9, 1994. He then called 911 to report that she was not breathing.

Curry told the Los Angeles Times in 1995 that Linda Curry had been ill for at least a year, but medical tests failed to identify the cause. He told the paper then that he wasn't convinced that Linda—a nonsmoker—had died from nicotine poisoning.

Prosecutors say Curry collected $400,000 from his wife's life insurance policies. At the time of the crime, Curry was suspected in her death, but the Sheriff's Department said the case went cold.

Senior Deputy District Attorney Ebrahim Baytieh, who is prosecuting the case, against Curry that investigators uncovered.

He said, however, that Linda Curry was poisoned with nicotine, which is  lethal in high doses. 

The new evidence comes from new testing technology and a greater scientific understanding of nicotine's effects on the body, Baytieh said.