Minnesota man accused of hiding stolen ruby slippers from "Wizard of Oz" is dead, prosecutors say

A federal judge dismissed the charges Monday against a Minnesota man accused of hiding a stolen pair of ruby slippers that Judy Garland wore in the 1939 musical "The Wizard of Oz" after prosecutors informed the court that he died on Sunday.

Jerry Hal Saliterman, 77, of Crystal, who had been in poor health with lung disease and other ailments, had been scheduled to change his plea to guilty in January but that hearing was postponed indefinitely after he was hospitalized.

Federal prosecutor Matthew Greenley notified the court in a one-page motion Monday that Saliterman died Sunday but did not say how or where. U.S. District Judge Patrick Schiltz granted the request and dropped the charges.