People v. Kovacich

Opinion

HOCH, J.

In 1982, Janet Kovacich disappeared after telling her husband that she was leaving him and taking their two young children with her. The *868husband, defendant Paul Ralph Kovacich, Jr., was controlling and abusive in the marriage; he admitted to cheating on her and was seen in the arms of another woman within two days of her disappearance; he played no active role in searching for her despite the fact that he was a trained dog handler with the Placer County Sheriff’s Department; and he told his new girlfriend that his wife “wasn’t coming back.” In 1995, a portion of Janet’s skull…