Woman charged with Salt Lake City slaying makes court appearance

SALT LAKE CITY — Mary Nancy Hanson, the woman charged with shooting her former daughter-in-law to death, had little to say Monday during her initial appearance in court.

Hanson, 70, appeared before 3rd District Judge Denise Lindberg through a satellite TV connection between the Salt Lake County Jail and the Matheson Courthouse in downtown Salt Lake City.

Hanson is charged with murder, a first-degree felony, for allegedly gunning down Tetyana Nikitina, 34, on Jan. 29 when Nikitina was leaving the Salt Lake CAP Head Start school, located in Millcreek at 336 E. 3900 South, after Nikitina had attended a training session for employees.

A witness said Hanson walked up to Nikitina's car and began shooting inside, then reloaded a gun, opened the car door and started shooting again, according to court documents.

Nikitina died from four gunshot wounds to the head, according to a state medical examiner.

Hanson had no expression on her face as the judge read the charges and explained that Hanson needed to fill out an affidavit of indigence to ensure that she qualifies for a court-appointed attorney.

At one point, Hanson appeared to be unable to hear what Lindberg was saying and asked a few questions about the paperwork in a quiet voice.

"I'd like to talk to my attorney," Hanson said.

Tawni Hanseen, a public defender, was in the courtroom representing Hanson. The judge told Hanson that Hanseen planned to visit her in jail soon to discuss the case.

Hanson is being held on $1 million bail. Her next court date is a Feb. 22 scheduling conference with 3rd District Judge William Barrett.

Nikitina was married to Hanson's son, Dale Jankowski, in 1999, but she filed for divorce in 2005. The two got a bifurcated divorce in 2006 in which the union was dissolved, but many significant issues were still not settled, and the protracted fight was ugly. The couple was still going through a legal tug-of-war up through December 2009.

The couple had two children, ages 7 and 9, who are now in Jankowski's custody.

e-mail: lindat@desnews.com