NATCHEZ — The woman arrested on charges of killing her live-in boyfriend waived her right to a preliminary hearing Tuesday.

Mary Louise McQuarters, 52, 317A Dumas Drive, was arrested Sept. 30 on charges of murder.

By waiving her preliminary hearing, which determines if a person charged with a felony should be tried for the crime, McQuarters was bound over to a grand jury. The grand jury will determine whether or not there is enough evidence to try McQuarters.

Also at the hearing, Municipal Judge Jim Blough set McQuarters’ bond at $50,000.

“They had requested her bond be set at $35,000, but I’m going to set it at $50,000,” Blough said.

The judge’s original orders at McQuarters’ October arraignment set her bond at $75,000 and did not allow her to post it until after the victim’s funeral.

McQuarters, dressed in a yellow jail uniform, talked with family members in the courtroom Tuesday. Family members said they hoped to have her bonded out by the weekend.

McQuarters is charged with murdering Pete Jackson, 53, in the residence they shared.

Natchez Police said they found Jackson lying dead on the bedroom floor. Police said at the time there was a large amount of blood all over the house.

Jackson apparently died from blunt force trauma to the back of his head. He also had a puncture wound to his left wrist, the coroner said at the time.

Neighbors said they heard the couple fighting the night before, police said.

McQuarters was arrested the day after Jackson was found.

A trial date will only be set if a grand jury indicts McQuarters.