76-year-old Duchesne man charged in wife’s death is incompetent

DUCHESNE — A judge says a 76-year-old Duchesne man isn’t competent to stand trial in his wife’s stabbing death, but may be after time in a Utah mental hospital.

The Salt Lake Tribune reports (http://bit.ly/Mx8QfQ) Charles Dodd was ordered last month to treatment at Utah State Hospital. Another hearing is set next June.

Dodd faces a murder charge after his 82-year-old wife, Mary Ratliff, was found dead in the couple’s home Aug. 13. Authorities say Ratliff was lying on a hospital-type bed, while Dodd was unconscious in the same room with a puncture wound in his chest.

Dodd told police his wife was in constant pain and the couple discussed "ending it."

A friend was tipped off after receiving a package from Dodd with a suicide note and $7,000 for burial expenses.