U.P. Man Linked To 3 Murders Gets 40 Months In Prison

MANISTIQUE, Mich. (AP) - An Upper Peninsula prosecutor is defending how he handled the case against a man initially charged with murder in the deaths of three people whose bodies were found in a burned-out car.

Ken Brunke was sentenced Thursday to at least 40 months in prison for obstruction of justice and lying. He was charged with murder last year, but those charges were dropped.

Schoolcraft County prosecutor Tim Noble says charges were dropped because a witness died and another recanted.
Noble says "much has been made" about his lack of experience as a prosecutor. He says he sought advice from other prosecutors and regularly consulted a former judge.

Another defendant, Garry Cordell, is serving a life sentence for the murders. The victims were Carrie Nelson, Heather Aldrich and Jody Hutchinson.