Her husband expected her to take a plea deal in the murder of a Tempe ballerina

TEMPE, AZ (AZFamily) —The case of a ballerina allegedly murdered at the hands of her husband went to court on Tuesday with an unexpected twist: it now appears that he plans to reach a deal with prosecutors.

Colleen Hoopes died in 2022. Question: Was it murder or a fatal mistake?

The 25-year-old once captivated audiences with her elegance and grace as videos show her dancing on stage.

“You could tell how happy she was when he danced. That’s where she showed the most joy,” said her sister, Michaela Buckley.

A Tempe ballerina fulfilled her dream as a dancer Arizona Ballet until everything changed May 2022.

Two shots were fired and Colleen was hit in the chest. The person who pulled the trigger? Her husband.

“Christopher Hoopes, June 28, 1985.” – her husband said in court this week.

After the shooting, Christopher told police that his wife had surprised him in the middle of the night and that he thought it was an intruder, so he went to get his gun.

He pleaded not guilty to second-degree murder.

The trial was scheduled to start this month but was delayed due to the increased number of experts, so in terms of updates, the judge informed the defense that she was not satisfied with the current state of affairs.

“We are on the day of the hearing and I have no information and I have to wait until the day of the hearing for an answer. So why don’t you tell me what’s going on,” said the irritated judge.

Both defense and state took turns talking; this included claims that their experts said some data was incorrect.

So who are their experts?

Court documents show the defense team is working with several people. These include a cell phone expert, a ballista, a forensic psychiatrist and a pharmacologist who will likely analyze what medications Christopher was taking at the time and whether it affected his judgment.

“There is a lot of data from a lot of different sources that essentially needs to be verified and combined,” prosecutors said.

Because of this, she stated that there was no way they would be ready for trial until late summer or early fall, but then the defense attorney said the following:

“Our plan is to resolve this case, your honor,” the defense attorney said, meaning it is likely only a matter of time before a plea agreement is reached.

Another settlement conference is scheduled for the end of February, during which all experts should conclude their talks.

The judge set a trial date for May 2025, but the case will likely be resolved sooner.

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