Samantha Murphy: Ballarat murder trial fast-tracked after Patrick Stephenson pleads not guilty

Court hears Stephenson denies murdering Ballarat woman after her family last saw her leaving to go on a run

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The Victorian man accused of killing missing Ballarat woman Samantha Murphy has pleaded not guilty to murder, with his case being fast-tracked to the state's supreme court.

Patrick Stephenson, 23, appeared in the Ballarat magistrates court via video link, charged with the murder of Murphy. She was last seen more than nine months ago when she left her Ballarat East home to go for a run.