Marine opts to delay his plea in murder case

A Marine charged with murdering a prostitute after they met in Waikiki in May was arraigned Wednesday morning in a Kaneohe Bay military courtroom but reserved the right to enter a plea of guilty or not guilty at a later date.

Master Sgt. Nathaniel Cosby, 39, is charged with unpremeditated murder, murder while engaging in an inherently dangerous act, voluntary manslaughter, obstructing justice, and attempting to patronize a prostitute.

The body of 29-year-old Ivanice "Ivy" Harris was found May 20 in kiawe brush near Yokohama Bay on the Waianae Coast.

Military judge Col. Jim Carberry said a trial date is set for March 17. Carberry also ordered that Cosby not be shackled while in the office of his defense counsel with his attorneys.

Cosby is being held in the brig on Ford Island. An explosive ordnance disposal specialist, Cosby had arrived in Hawaii from his duty station in Iwakuni, Japan, on May 15 for a mission to China with the Joint POW/MIA Accounting Command.