Ozark County, MO. – Rebecca Ruud is a woman charged with the murder of her daughter fours years prior, and her bench trial has been rescheduled from March 7th, to June 27th. While the reason for the rescheduling is unclear, her charges are not. Ruud is charged with first-degree and second-degree murder, abuse or neglect of a child, tampering with physical evidence and abandonment of a corpse.
Savannah Leckie, age 17 at the time, was given up for adoption by Ruud and spent most of her life in Minnesota until circumstances brought her back. Ruud reported Leckie missing after a fire had happened on her property, stating that she “had run away because she felt guilty over the fire”. After a few weeks of failed searching by volunteers, human remains were found in a burn pile on Ruuds property. Further investigation revealed other human remains and attempts to hide or dispose of the remains.
Further evidence drove the case forward when Ruud later gave a box to her husband, which contained a recorder with incriminating evidence on it with a discussion between Ruud and her lawyers.
