Mecklenburg County prosecutors said Thursday they will not seek the death penalty against Michael Neal Harvey.
He is charged with murder in connection with the death of Valerie Hamilton, the daughter of Concord Police Chief Merl Hamilton.
Harvey, who has a lengthy police record, has also been charged with being a habitual felon. He was convicted for sexual assault on a woman in New York in 1995 and has a string a felony offenses in North Carolina.
Hamilton, 23, was found dead in a storage building in Charlotte on Sept. 18, 2010, after Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police initiated a three-day search for her. She met Harvey at Thomas Street Tavern in the Plaza-Midwood neighborhood of Charlotte earlier that week, and left the bar with him, according to police.
When she didn't show up at work, friends and family grew concerned.
An autopsy showed that Hamilton died of an overdose of heroin and cocaine. The medical examiner's report said that lack of medical attention was a central issue in Hamilton's death.
Harvey claims Hamilton overdosed and died in her sleep, and that he didn't kill her. Witnesses that night told police that Hamilton looked like she needed medical attention, but that Harvey didn't seek help.
Chief Hamilton and his family aren't commenting on the case against Harvey.
In a statement released on Jan. 21, in response to the medical examiner's report, Chief Hamilton wrote, "The report and those proceedings are part of the judicial process and because of that, comments should only come from those investigating or prosecuting the case as they deem appropriate.
"Our only goal as a family is to try and get through life without Valerie. She is missed every second of every day with every aspect of life diminished without her beautiful personality experiencing it with us."
News partner WSOC-TV contributed to this report.
Contact online editor Ben McNeely: 704-789-9131
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Michael Harvey, center, appears in front of a judge with his public defender Michael White, left, in Niagara County Court in Lockport, N.Y., Tuesday, Sept. 21, 2010. Harvey waived extradition and is wanted on a murder warrant in the killing of Valerie Hamilton, a preschool teacher and swim instructor whose body was found in a Charlotte self-storage unit on Saturday. (AP Photo/ David Duprey)
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Valerie Hamilton
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Hundreds of Concord residents hold up candles during a vigil to remember Valerie Hamilton, the daughter of Concord Police Chief Merl Hamilton, who was found dead over the weekend after being reported missing last week. Federal authorities arrested a suspect in Valerie's death, Michael Neal Harvey, earlier Monday in Niagara Falls. Credit: Photo by James Nix
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Independent Tribune
Published: February 10, 2011
Published: February 10, 2011
CHARLOTTE, N.C. --
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