Grayslake 'Serial Stowaway' Can Stand Trial, Free On Monitoring

CHICAGO, IL — The 66-year-old woman who is known as a serial stowaway aboard commercial airline flights was determined mentally fit to stand trial Wednesday. A Cook County judge also released Marilyn Hartman on electronic monitoring and allowed her to move from the state mental health hospital in Elgin to a Chicago treatment facility, the Chicago Tribune reports.

Hartman, 66, was arrested Jan. 28 at O'Hare International Airport for allegedly causing a disturbance at the airport, just three days after the Grayslake woman agreed to a judge's order to stay away from Chicago's airports. The ban was a stipulation of her release after Hartman allegedly snuck past security and on to a British Airways flight to London on Jan. 15.

In March, Hartman was deemed unfit for trial following mental health evaluations by two psychologists. The evaluations said she understood the charges against her, but she had delusions and was focused on receiving media attention. A prosecution psychologist also said that Hartman's mental stability fluctuates.

But Judge Maura Slattery Boyle said Wednesday that Hartman was in good mental health now, according to the Tribune. A doctor also testified that Hartman had been cooperative with the treatment she had been receiving, the report added.

More Patch Coverage:

• 'Serial Stowaway' Snuck On To London Flight At O'Hare: Cops
• Hartman Banned From O'Hare, Midway Airports
• 'Serial Stowaway' Shouldn't Be Free On Monitoring: Sheriff
• 'Serial Stowaway' Arrested At O'Hare Airport. Again
• Hartman Kept Behind Bars After Latest Arrest
• 'Serial Stowaway': How She Evaded Airport Security

Slattery Boyle again warned Hartman, who faces a felony burglary charge from January's incident, to stay away from airports while she awaits trial, the report stated.

Over the past few years, Hartman has had similar incidents like the one she had in January at O'Hare. She has faced previous charges in Chicago and Jacksonville, Florida, as well as the West Coast. In 2014, authorities accused her of trying to stowaway on flights from San Francisco to Hawaii on six separate occasions.

More via the Chicago Tribune

Marilyn Hartman (Photo via Chicago Police Department)