Killer N.C. stepmom faces drug charges

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CHARLOTTE, N.C., Jan. 3 (UPI) -- Elisa Baker, the North Carolina woman convicted of killing her 10-year-old stepdaughter, faces a plea hearing for federal drug-related charges, authorities say.

Baker, 43, indicted by a federal grand jury last May on seven counts involving prescription painkillers, will have a plea hearing Thursday in U.S. District Court in Charlotte, the Hickory Daily Record reported.

Baker's attorney has filed documents indicating a deal had been worked out with prosecutors, the newspaper said.

Baker is the stepmother of Zahra Baker, the young Australian cancer survivor found dismembered in Caldwell County in the fall of 2010.

Baker pleaded guilty to second-degree murder and was sentenced to 14-18 years in prison.

If convicted of all the drug charges, she could face a maximum penalty of 115 years in prison and a fine of $4.2 million.