Opinion ID: 2545369
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 3

Heading: The present charges

Text: On September 2, 1997, Larry Bornholdt left his home in Hutchinson to check his cattle on the land near the defendant's home in Rice County. That same day, the defendant went dove hunting, returned to the house, and told his wife that he was going fishing at a slough approximately 3 miles away. Soon thereafter, Bonnie left her house to drive into Hutchinson to a church meeting. As she was driving down the road, she saw Larry Bornholdt standing next to his Ford Bronco. She stopped to talk to him. She then noticed in the distance the defendant driving towards them. Bornholdt got into his vehicle and drove away. Bonnie testified that she then drove on and the defendant motioned for her to stop. The defendant got out of his pickup truck, walked over to her car, and asked if she had been talking to Bornholdt. When she answered that she had, the defendant hit her on the arm. She got out of the car and tried to talk to the defendant but the defendant kicked her in the shin. The defendant then drove off towards their home and Bonnie continued driving toward Hutchinson. Bonnie decided to return home to talk with the defendant. When she got near her driveway, she saw Larry Bornholdt's Ford Bronco crashed into a tree. Bornholdt was slumped inside. The defendant was standing in the middle of the road behind the Bronco. He looked as though he was in shock. The defendant told her that they needed to call 911 but Bonnie thought that emergency personnel would not be able to find them in time. She and the defendant drove Bornholdt to the Hutchinson hospital. The defendant told Bonnie that he and Bornholdt had gotten into a fight over the gun and Bornholdt was shot. The defendant testified that the revelation of his wife's affair with Bornholdt devastated him and his marriage almost collapsed. However, he and Bonnie were able to reconcile. According to the defendant, seeing his wife talking to Bornholdt on the day of the incident made him angry, although most of his anger was directed towards Bonnie for breaking her promise not to talk to Bornholdt. He admitted hitting Bonnie on the arm and kicking her in the shin. He then drove toward his home. He denied trying to find Bornholdt, stating that he had no idea where Bornholdt had driven to. However, as he was nearing his driveway he saw Bornholdt coming from the east. The defendant pulled to the side of the road. According to the defendant, he wanted to talk to Bornholdt and warn him to stay away from his wife. To assist in this warning, the defendant removed his shotgun from his truck and loaded it. The defendant testified that Bornholdt drove up even with him and stopped. The defendant walked to the passenger side of the Bronco and tapped the barrel of his shotgun on the front window. The defendant testified that he then stuck the barrel of the shotgun into the Bronco and pointed it at an angle toward the roof. The defendant stated that his intention was to warn Bornholdt to stay away from his wife and that he did not point the gun at Bornholdt. According to the defendant, Bornholdt suddenly grabbed the barrel of the gun and attempted to pull the gun out of his hands. The defendant pulled back and his finger accidentally pulled on the trigger, firing the shotgun and hitting Bornholdt. The Bronco then took off, hitting a tree. He testified that he did not really remember his actions after that. The next thing he remembered was walking down the road and his wife driving up. Scott Sellers, a doctor at the Hutchinson hospital, testified that he spoke to the defendant at the hospital when Bornholdt was brought in. The defendant told him that he stuck the shotgun in the window of the truck, Bornholdt grabbed it, and it went off. The defendant was pale and trembling slightly. Sergeant Fred Owston of the Hutchinson Police Department went to the hospital to check on the shooting. While there, he talked to the defendant whom he knew slightly. The defendant told Owston that he had shot the victim and that it was a long and complicated story. The defendant told officers that the shotgun was in his truck, which was parked in the yard in front of his home. The State's evidence cast doubt on the defendant's version of the events. Dr. Deborah Johnson, the coroner who performed the autopsy on Bornholdt, testified that from the position of the wound it was physically impossible for Bornholdt to have been grabbing or attempting to grab the gun when it was fired. Robert Cilwa of the Kansas Bureau of Investigation forensics lab opined that as a result of distance testing he completed, he concluded that the muzzle of the gun was at a distance of greater than 3 feet but less than 8 feet from Bornholdt when it was fired. However, the defendant's expert on ballistics criticized Cilwa's testing for not taking into account that the shot could have come at an angle, and opined that the muzzle of the gun was at a distance of 1 to 2 1/2 feet when it was fired. During the instructions conference, the defendant submitted a proposed jury instruction which would have limited the jury's consideration of the defendant's hitting of his wife in 1992 to his present battery charge. The trial court refused to give this instruction. The defendant also objected to the giving of the following instruction based on PIK Crim.3d 52.06: Evidence has been admitted tending to prove that the defendant committed crimes in December 1992, other than the present crimes charged. This evidence may be considered solely for the purpose of proving the defendant's motive and intent. Further, the defendant objected to the trial court's instruction regarding the presumption of intent. The trial court overruled these objections. The trial court also refused to give an instruction on voluntary manslaughter as a lesser included offense of premeditated first-degree murder. The defendant was found guilty of premeditated first-degree murder in the death of Bornholdt and of misdemeanor domestic battery in hitting and kicking Bonnie on the day of the murder. The defendant was sentenced to life in prison on the murder conviction.