Trial for woman charged with 1994 slaying set to start

A trial is expected to begin Tuesday in the case against a woman charged with the 1994 slaying of a successful Newport Beach businessman.

Nanette Packard, 46, is accused of killing her then boyfriend with her lover and former NFL linebacker Eric Naposki, 45, who prosecutors said shot Bill McLaughlin six times on Dec. 15, 1994.

McLaughlin’s body was found by his 24-year-old son Kevin, and his death shocked the quiet Balboa Coves community where he was known. He was also well-known in medical circles for creating a blood-filtering device for collecting plasma. McLaughlin was 55 at the time he was killed.

The case went cold for nearly 15 years when new evidence allowed prosecutors to press Packard and Naposki with charges in 2009. A former Newport Beach detective also came out of retirement and rejoined the force to help prosecutors piece together a case against the two.

At the time of McLaughlin’s death, Packard stood to benefit from a $1 million life insurance policy and stay rent-free at his beachfront home for a year equaling $150,000.

Naposki worked as a bouncer at the Thunderbird Nightclub, just yards away from McLaughlin’s home, and prosecutors allege Packard made a duplicate key giving Naposki access to the home to kill the multi-millionaire.

Naposki was found guilty of first-degree murder, with a sentencing enhancement for committing a murder for financial gain, in July. He is set to be sentenced Jan. 20 and faces a maximum sentence of life in prison.

Packard’s trial is in Santa Ana Central Justice Center, courtroom C40.

lauren.williams@latimes.com

Twitter: @lawilliams30