Yosemite killer’s life on line at trial

? It was one of the most infamous crimes in California history: Three women were kidnapped while visiting Yosemite National Park and savagely killed. Months later, the handyman at their hotel was caught after beheading a female nature guide and gave the FBI a detailed confession to all four murders.

Now, three years later, Cary Stayner is finally going on trial for killing the tourists.

Stayner already is serving life without parole in federal prison after pleading guilty to killing the park guide, Joie Armstrong.

But state prosecutors want to execute him.

Stayner, 40, who once said he would prefer the death penalty to life in prison, has pleaded innocent by reason of insanity. Executing him will require a trial, scheduled to start Monday, that is expected to last almost three months and cost taxpayers $3 million. Then there are the appeals.

“You have to imagine there are better ways of spending the money, even though I support the death penalty,” said Ken Hawkins, the auditor for Mariposa County, where the killings occurred.

The county has an annual budget of $31 million, but already has spent $940,000 on the case and expects to shell out at least $2 million more for the prosecution’s costs and Stayner’s defense. Most of the costs are being reimbursed by the state.

“Even if you are successful in getting the death penalty, that’s still setting up 15 years of appeals,” Hawkins said. “If you’re just looking at dollars and cents, you think about what could be spent on children in schools, roads. You think about what you’re trading just to drive home a point that the guy should be executed.”

Mariposa County Dist. Atty. Christine Johnson did not return calls. Prosecutors handling the case refused to comment.

Stayner is charged with murder, kidnapping and special circumstances that could bring the death penalty.