Cianflone found fit for trial in murder solicitation case

FAYETTEVILLE -- A Lincoln woman charged with hiring a hit man to kill her estranged husband is mentally fit to stand trial, according to an evaluation from the Arkansas State Hospital.

Jamie Lee Cianflone, 48, of 312 W. Pridemore Drive, was arrested in September 2014 in connection with felony solicitation to commit capital murder.

Cianflone thought she was hiring a hit man to kill her estranged husband who lives in Florida, but the hit man turned out to be an undercover detective who was wearing a wire, according to an arrest report.

Police had been tipped to Cianflone's intent by a confidential informant and set up a sting operation.

Cianflone told the detective she could gain financially by killing her husband, according to the report. Cianflone told the detective her husband had cheated her out of large sums of money for child support and other things and she wanted what was rightfully hers.

Cianflone also told the detective she wanted her estranged husband killed so brutally that, "his own mother would not be able to identify the body."

Cianflone agreed to pay $5,000 for the murder, according to the report.

Cianflone told doctors she felt drugged the day she met with the undercover detective and felt her boyfriend had set her up. Cianflone also said she was scared, panicked and intimidated by the detective and just wanted to be home and away from the man. She felt she was in danger when he showed her a machete.

Cianflone suffered from major depressive disorder, panic disorder, post-traumatic stress disorder and had borderline personality traits at the time of the evaluation, according to the mental evaluation.

But, doctors say Cianflone did not have a mental disease or defect at the time of the alleged conduct and she did not lack the capacity to appreciate the criminality of her conduct and did not lack the capacity to conform her conduct to the requirements of the law.

Cianflone is being held at the Washington County Jail in lieu of $50,000 bond. Her trial is set for Aug. 19 in Washington County Circuit Court.

NW News on 07/09/2015

Upcoming Events