ST. LOUIS – For the first time in months, accused killer Pam Hupp was in court Monday. She’s charged with murdering Louis Gumpenberger, a mentally challenged man, in O’Fallon, Missouri.
Hupp’s story has gathered national attention, including multiple investigations by NBC’s Dateline.
Hupp was straight-faced as she walked into a St. Charles County courtroom Monday afternoon wearing an orange jumpsuit and shackles on her wrists and ankles. She was also visibly thinner than when she was last seen by the public, with graying hair that reached just below her shoulders.
Attorneys met to file a number of motions in the case. But, court was only in session for a few minutes before Circuit Judge Jon Cunningham called a recess and talked with attorneys in his chambers.
After returning to the courtroom, Judge Cunningham ruled the attorneys weren’t ready to officially submit those motions.
Before court was adjourned, however, Hupp’s team did ask the judge that nothing regarding the circumstances around her mother's death be allowed at the trial.
Hupp’s mother, Shirley Neumann, was found dead in 2013 beneath the balcony of her home in a senior living community near Fenton. In November 2017, the St. Louis County medical examiner changed the manner of Neumann’s death from “accidental” to “undetermined.”
Judge Cunningham ruled in favor of the defense after prosecutors didn’t object.
After Monday’s hearing, Hupp's attorney said the motion was not about guilt or innocence, but about fairness.
“We have much more faith in the judge and the courts in setting the conditions of fairness for a fair trial as opposed to the prosecutor's office in this case,” said Nick Williams.
Prosecutors declined to comment Monday.
A new motion hearing is set for June 8. Hupp’s trial is expected to begin in September.
