TOWSON, Md. — A Baltimore County judge ordered Dwight Rust Jr. to be held without bail Wednesday after he was charged with first-degree murder in the 2002 disappearance of his wife, Michelle Rust.
Rust appeared virtually in Baltimore County District Court the day after police arrested him; a grand jury brought the first-degree murder indictment on Monday.
In court, the State's Attorney's team argued that at the time of Michelle Rust's disappearance, Dwight Rust was having an affair and taking steps to start a new life with another woman. Prosecutors argued the murder charge should keep Rust in custody; the judge cited public safety concerns in denying bail.
Jeremy Eldridge, Rust's defense attorney, called Dwight Rust a victim in the case, and said Rust has never failed to cooperate with police. Eldridge was flanked by Dwight Rust's current wife, family and friends outside the courtroom.
"They indicted Mr. Rust based on, what they would say is evidence from 2005, which were simply statements given to the police," Eldridge said.
READ MORE: Husband charged with murder in Michelle Rust's 2002 disappearance
"There is no forensic evidence, no DNA, no latent fingerprints. There is no witness that has come forward to say that they saw a crime occur or had evidence that a crime occurred. The police simply cannot solve Michelle's disappearance and have chosen, although we have no new evidence in 21 years, to blame Dwight Rust Jr.," Eldridge said.
"I’ve never seen a case with less evidence charged since I've been a lawyer," Eldridge added.
In July 2002, Rust told police Michelle left in the morning to pick things up for their son's birthday party but did not return. Not long after she vanished, her father-in-law found her Dodge van parked with nobody in it about 10 minutes away on Zion Road in Halethorpe.
Prosecutors told WMAR-2 News they would not comment after succeeding in court.
Rust is scheduled to appear in Circuit Court at 9 a.m. Monday.
This story was reported on-air by a journalist and has been converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. Our editorial team verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy.
