By DALE WETZEL Associated Press Writer , The Associated Press - BISMARCK, N.D.
A Bismarck man was charged with murder Friday after authorities said he beat his wife to death in front of her 3-year-old son.
Derek Bollinger, 27, told South Central District Judge Sonna Anderson during his initial court appearance that he felt "horrible" about the incident.
Anderson set a $500,000 cash bond for Bollinger, 27, who was charged with murder and child abuse after Jessica Bollinger, 30, was found unconscious in the couple's south Bismarck home.
Jessica Bollinger was taken to a hospital where she died shortly after 1 a.m. Friday, Bismarck police said.
Derek Bollinger was arrested without incident at his parents' rural Burleigh County home about 3 1/2 hours later. Police Lt. Bob Haas said Bollinger himself had called 911 to report the assault.
Cynthia Feland, an assistant Burleigh County prosecutor, said during a news conference Friday that investigators took crutches and a stool from the Bollingers' home as possible weapons used in the alleged attack. Bismarck Police Chief Keith Witt said Jessica Bollinger was beaten about the head and torso.
Derek Bollinger, wearing shackles and a gray-and-black striped jail uniform, kept his head bowed during much of his initial court appearance late Friday afternoon, muttering his replies to Anderson's questions.
He said he was unemployed and requested a court-appointed attorney. As he responded to Anderson's question about what he thought his bond should be, Bollinger spoke briefly about the assault before the judge cut him off.
"Feel horrible for what happened," Bollinger said. "Thought she was OK."
Pamela Nesvig, an assistant Burleigh County state's attorney, suggested the $500,000 cash bond and said Bollinger should be prohibited from contacting his wife's son. Anderson agreed.
Nesvig described the assault as a "horrific beating." Jessica Bollinger had previously been granted a protective order against her husband in August, and another woman obtained one against him in February 2009, Nesvig said.
Haas said authorities went to the Bollingers' home last August on a domestic violence complaint. He said Jessica Bollinger didn't want to pursue charges against her husband, and Derek Bollinger was not arrested.
Derek Bollinger's criminal record includes convictions for drunken driving and driving with a suspended license, court documents indicate. Nesvig said Bollinger had no violent crimes on his record.
Nesvig said Bollinger was convicted in August 2001 of attempting to flee police. He was given a 30-day suspended jail sentence and ordered to perform community service.
Haas said the Bollingers had been married for less than a year. Derek Bollinger is not the boy's biological father, and he never adopted the boy, Haas said.
The child was taken into custody by Burleigh County child protective services, Haas said.
Derek Bollinger called 911 at 12:18 a.m. Friday from his parents' home near Sterling, about 25 miles east of Bismarck, Haas said.
Burleigh County sheriff's deputies later arrested Bollinger at his parents' home.
No comments:
Post a Comment