The man charged with strangling a 34-year-old woman in her hotel room in March 2016 has been found guilty of second degree murder, according to a news release from the Hamilton County District Attorney's Office.
Mark Howard, 56, was already incarcerated on an unrelated charge when the jury reached the verdict Friday afternoon after three days of testimony in Hamilton County Criminal Court. Once located, Howard was charged with first degree premeditated murder.
Mark HowardChattanooga police said Howard was the last person to walk into Jeanette Scholten's room at The Chatt Inn before her mother and brother found her dead inside. Video, texts and witnesses led police to charge him with criminal homicide, according to previous Times Free Press reports.
Howard, who is considered a Class A offender, now faces a possible sentence of 15 to 60 years in prison, with the stipulation that he must serve 85% of that sentence. Judge Don Poole has set a sentencing date for January 7, 2020, the release states.