OREGON CITY, Ore. — Michel Fournier, accused of killing his estranged wife Susan "Phoenix" Lane-Fournier, was arraigned Tuesday afternoon in Clackamas County Circuit Court on a single charge of second-degree murder.
The arraignment, initially scheduled for Monday, was delayed and ultimately held at the county jail due to technical issues with a video conferencing system between the jail and the courtroom. As a result, no one was allowed inside for the proceedings, including Lane-Fournier's brother and two sons, who had been present in the courtroom.
A jail staff member at the front desk confirmed Fournier was arraigned on a second-degree murder charge and denied bail.
Lane-Fournier, 61, was reported missing after she didn't show up for work on Nov. 22. She was initially reported to have gone hiking in the Mount Hood National Forest with her two dogs, but it's not clear if that actually happened. Friends in the small town of Welches spent days canvassing the area looking for her.
A friend ultimately found her body near East Highway 26 and East Miller Road in Clackamas County on Friday. Her death was ruled a homicide, and Fournier, 71, was arrested and charged the same day. Multnomah County Sheriff's deputies found the bodies of two dogs the following day, suspected to be Lane-Fournier's dogs.
Court documents show Lane-Fournier had initiated divorce proceedings a month earlier. Speaking to KGW at a vigil held Monday night, a friend named Cari Gesch said Lane-Fournier had been afraid to serve the divorce papers to Fournier and was concerned that he would hurt her or her dogs.
The manager at the shop where Lane-Fournier worked said she had begun to bring her dogs to work with her and had mentioned that she had told him she was going through personal issues.
During the vigil, Lane-Fournier's son Jesse Lane said his mother's "Phoenix" nickname stemmed from a difficult period in her life when Lane's father was killed in a car crash.
Lane told people at the vigil a phoenix is a mythical creature that rises from its own ashes.
"I remember her collapsing on the ground," Lane said. "I remember it shaking her to the core. I remember her now being a single mom trying to take care of two kids."
Friends are now stepping in to help with the sons' latest tragedy by supporting online fundraising efforts to help her sons Jesse and Kota Lane rise from their own ashes.