Joel Clow pleads not guilty to charges in relation to death of Traci Lynch

Joel Clow has pleaded not guilty tocharges relating to the death of 40-year-old Traci Lynch in Pleasant Grove in July.

Clow, 46, did not appear in P.E.I. Supreme Court on Friday. A lawyer who entered the plea on his behalf also told the court Clow elected to be tried by judge alone, rather than by judge and jury.

Clow is charged with one count of first-degree murder and one count of indecent interference with a human body.

He is also charged with uttering threats and interfering with a peace officer in connection with an incident in May in the community of Tracadie. He has pleaded not guilty to those charges as well, whichwill be rolled into the same trial.

Clow remains in jail.

A trial has been set for May 24, 2016. The Crown expects the trial will last three weeks.

Lynch was found dead on a rural property north of Charlottetown on July 24.

She was from Pictou, N.S., but had been living in Pleasant Grove with her young son.