Widow indicted in Atlanta-area day care slaying

By the CNN Wire Staff - The widow of a man gunned down outside his son's suburban Atlanta day-care center plotted his death with her cash-strapped lover for nearly $3 million in insurance and other assets, prosecutors alleged Thursday.

A grand jury indicted Andrea Sneiderman on murder, racketeering, perjury and other charges Thursday morning, DeKalb County, Georgia, District Attorney Robert James announced. According to the indictment, she and her then-boss, Hemy Neuman, had been having an affair for about seven months before husband Rusty Sneiderman was killed in November 2010.

The Sneidermans were having marriage problems at the time, while Neuman and his wife were in similar straits and facing bankruptcy, according to the charges.

"Neuman and Andrea Sneiderman conspired together to murder Rusty Sneiderman so that they could enjoy a life together, eliminate Neuman's debt problems and fully benefit from the assets the Sneidermans had acquired, as well as the proceeds of Rusty Sneiderman's life insurance policies," the indictment states.

Rusty and Andrea Sneiderman had two small children and about $960,000 in the bank, according to the charges. Rusty Sneiderman's life insurance policy paid out $2 million plus interest, prosecutors allege.

But in a written statement to reporters, Sneiderman's defense team said they "categorically deny each and every one of the charges that were filed against Andrea today."

"We are looking forward to a vigorous and complete defense to ensure that Andrea is fully exonerated of these false accusations," said J. Tom Morgan, a former DeKalb County district attorney. "We are confident that, when an unbiased jury hears the facts of this case, it will be clear that Andrea is innocent."

Neuman already is serving a sentence of life in prison without parole in the killing. During his trial, both prosecutors and defense lawyers accused Sneiderman of having an affair with him -- an allegation she denied under oath.

A jury found Neuman guilty but mentally ill in March. Neuman's lawyers argued that Sneiderman had "manipulated" him into killing her husband, and said Thursday's indictment could boost his chances of a successful appeal.

"The indictment today is clear confirmation of exactly what our defense was," said Doug Peters, one of Neuman's attorneys. "Andrea was an adulterer, liar, and master manipulator."

Sneiderman was arrested at her parents' home in Putnam County, about 80 miles east of Atlanta, after a grand jury returned the indictment Thursday morning, James said. Her attorneys accused James of turning the arrest into a "media circus," saying they had already offered to surrender Sneiderman if charges were brought.

James said prosecutors won't seek the death penalty against Sneiderman. In a statement released through their attorneys, Rusty Sneiderman's family said the charges were "another important step in the pursuit of justice" for him, but the arrest of their in-law "brings us no joy."