Murder suspect pleas not guilty

Charles "Chad" Newport pleaded not guilty Wednesday to first-degree murder charges in connection with the death of 19-year-old Melissa Hanson.

Newport's preliminary hearing is scheduled for June 29 in El Dorado County Superior Court. If convicted, he could face 25 years to life in prison.

El Dorado County Sheriff's deputies took Newport into custody Monday for violating probation and because they found "a note that expressed his involvement in Hanson's death."

Hanson's body was found in her bedroom closet by her mother Saturday around 6:30 a.m. at the 800 block of Clement Street.

After hearing noise coming from the room, her mother knocked on Hanson's bedroom door around 6 a.m. and a received a response from an unknown male. Minutes later she entered the room and found her daughter's body, South Lake Tahoe Police said.

Newport, 19, avoided police before he was found Monday afternoon near the parking lot of Angora Lake Trailhead. Deputies reported that he was "under the influence" of a drug and arrested him for violating probation.

In August, Newport was sentenced to three years of probation and seven months in the El Dorado County Jail for his involvement in a home invasion Jan. 31, 2000 at the 3100 block of Oakland Avenue. He was released Dec. 21, after serving four months of his sentence.

Hanson and Newport were "known acquaintances" and "had associated together with other friends the evening prior to her death," said South Lake Tahoe Police Detective Martin Hewlett. "They all were partying at an apartment and then went to a bar."

Newport, represented by court-appointed defense lawyer Simon Harvey, has not made a statement concerning the case, Hewlett said.

Police plan to withhold findings of Hanson's autopsy until they get the results of toxicology tests. Detective Hewlett said the test results, which were given top priority, should arrive in about a month.