By Melody Hanatani
Daily Press Staff Writer

DOWNTOWN, LA — A preliminary hearing still has not been scheduled in the case of the so-called “Black Widows” — a pair of elderly women accused of murdering two homeless men in order to cash in on their life insurance policies.

The defendants — Helen Golay, 75, of Santa Monica, and Olga Rutterschmidt, 73, currently of Hollywood and originally from Hungary — are scheduled to appear in Los Angeles Superior County Court on Nov. 2 in a third attempt to schedule a preliminary hearing, said Roger Jon Diamond, Golay’s defense attorney.

The women are each charged with two counts of murder and two counts of conspiracy to commit murder for financial gain in connection to the deaths of the two homeless men. In the past two months, both Golay and Rutterschmidt have pleaded not guilty to the charges.

At the time she was charged, Golay owned three Santa Monica apartment buildings, including her residence at 2817 Third St. near Ocean Park.

A preliminary hearing for the women was expected to be scheduled first on Aug. 29, and then on Oct. 5, but Rutterschmidt’s defense requested more time and the hearing scheduling was postponed, Diamond said on Tuesday. Diamond added that the postponement was granted despite Golay’s objections.

“She wants to have a speedy preliminary hearing,” Diamond said. “The delays are being caused by the co-defendant’s request for time.”

Rutterschmidt’s attorney, LA County public defender Michael Sklar, was not available for comment as of press time.

By law, Golay is entitled to a preliminary hearing within 10 days of arraignment, however, since Golay is being tried along with a co-defendant, the process can be delayed as the judge works to balance the needs of the two women.

Golay and Rutterschmidt — dubbed the “Black Widows” in media reports — were arrested May 18 on federal charges of mail fraud. The charges were related to their reported attempts to collect millions of dollars in life insurance payments for Kenneth McDavid and Paul Vados.

Murder charges in connection with the deaths of McDavid and Vados were subsequently filed against the women in Los Angeles County Superior Court on July 31.

Investigators say Golay and Rutterschmidt befriended the two men while each was homeless, convinced them to sign the women onto their life insurance policies, and cashed in on more than $3 million in payouts when the two men were killed in similar hit-and-run accidents.

McDavid, 51, of Westwood, was killed in 2005, and Vados, 73, who was also born in Hungary, was killed in 1999.

The federal judge dismissed the charges of mail fraud on Aug. 16, giving prosecutors the option to re-indict the two women if they are found not guilty of the murder charges.

“Once the jury says they’re not guilty in state court, we want her to be free,” Diamond said. “We don’t want her to be picked up and recycled in the federal system.”