A community's thank you

Utahns breathed a collective sigh of relief Friday when police announced that searchers had recovered Lori Hacking's remains at the landfill.

Police and firefighters from agencies across the valley that volunteered for this detail had spent weeks combing through 4,600 tons of trash searching for the remains of 27-year-old Hacking, who hasn't been seen since July 18. A search of the Salt Lake Valley Solid Waste Facility was launched after her husband, Mark Hacking, allegedly confessed to his brothers that he had killed her and left her body in a Dumpster near the University of Utah.

The volunteers' work, which has been dirty and dangerous, resulted in finding remains Salt Lake Police Chief Rick Dinse described as those of a "petite" person. They later were identified through dental records as Lori's.

Dinse, speaking at press conference Friday afternoon, spoke of the deep emotional investment the searchers and landfill personnel had in locating Lori's remains. "The emotional toll builds over time. You have a lot of personal investment in this kind of thing," he said. Public safety and landfill personnel alike wept when they learned of the discovery of her body in the area of the landfill where police had said they believed she might be located.

The search had two phases, beginning with night-time searches with the assistance of cadaver dogs. Although those efforts were not successful, Dinse said their work was equally important because it helped to narrow the massive search field. But by late August, searchers were upbeat but acknowledged they may not be successful in their efforts given the sheer size of the search area and hundreds of tons of debris at the landfill. "Needle in a haystack may not even describe it," Dinse said.

The wave of emotion when Lori's remains were located Friday morning attested to the searchers' deep desire to return her body to her family for proper burial. No one was comfortable with the idea of the landfill being her final resting place.

Thanks to the dedicated searchers, a family will find closure and the state will have key evidence in a pending homicide case. On behalf of all Utahns, we thank all who volunteered to bring Lori home and to further justice on her behalf.