Dean Penney formally pleaded not guilty to first-degree murder in Corner Brook Supreme Court this afternoon.

Penney was charged almost one year ago in the presumed death of his estranged wife, Jennifer Hillier-Penney.

She disappeared from the St. Anthony area almost exactly eight years ago, on November 30, 2016.

There has been no sign of her since.

Penney was arrested in Deer Lake last December and has been held in custody ever since, appearing in court today via Zoom from the West Coast Correctional Centre in Stephenville.

Earlier this year, a judge ruled there was enough evidence to go to trial following a preliminary inquiry.

Today’s formal arraignment on the first-degree murder charge would usually come with trial dates.

But that didn’t happen.

Instead, a judge will be named to deal with pre-trial issues and applications — known as case management — that could bog down the trial proper.

Trial dates are expected to be set through that process.