Maddox Released On Bond, Wants Case Dismissed
July 28, 2016 at 4:25 p.m.
By Shawn Hogendorf-
Maddox, 45, is accused of murdering his wife, Southwest Newspapers reporter Ruth Anne Maddox, 45, in the estranged couple's Prior Lake townhome in the 16400 block of Timber Crest Drive last November.
He had been in Scott County Jail since his arrest on Nov. 12, but posted $1 million bail bond and was released Friday afternoon. It was posted by Goldberg Bail Bonds.
Judge Jerome Abrams ruled that bail would remain at $1 million with conditions, including not leaving the state, remaining law-abiding, showing up for court appearances and not having contact with Ruth Anne's family during a bail hearing in February.
Defense attorney Fred Bruno is requesting the charges against Maddox be dismissed or the evidence in the case be excluded in a jury trial due to what Bruno says are violations of state statute and federal constitutional amendments.
The alleged violations in turn would not allow Maddox to confront the evidence and get due process in the case, according to the motions filed by Bruno.
Judge Abrams will address these motions during Maddox's hearing set for 8:30 a.m. Thursday in Scott County court.
When asked for a comment about the motions filed by the defense, County Attorney Pat Ciliberto said it is policy of the Scott County Attorney's Office to try cases in court, not in the media.
Questioning police
According to the motions filed by the defense on April 29, Bruno is requesting that charges against Maddox be dismissed because "critical evidence" in the case, namely the body of Ruth Anne, was "intentionally released" by law enforcement for destruction without notifying the defense.
In the motion, Bruno claims that action deprived the defense of the due process right to independently test and evaluate evidence; to compare the physical evidence with written reports; and to perform DNA and other types of genetic, chemical and biological testing.
According to police, Ruth Anne's body was sent to her family's home state of Indiana after an autopsy was performed by the regional medical examiner prior to cremation, which followed Ruth Anne's funeral service.
On Nov. 12, police found Ruth Anne's body wrapped in a tent in the garage of the estranged couple's townhome.
The Minnesota Regional Coroner's Office ruled the cause of death a homicide due to blunt force head and neck injuries.
In the event that the judge does not grant the motion to dismiss the charges, Bruno wrote that any expert testimony by forensic pathologists or medical witnesses should be excluded in a jury trial.
Bruno asks that if charges are not dismissed, the judge should grant the defense a jury instruction stating if Ruth Anne's body wasn't released by the state for cremation, it would have been favorable evidence for the defense; or the state must pay for expert services for evaluation and testimony of an independent forensic pathologist.
Bruno also requested that evidence police gathered during an initial search be excluded in a jury trial due to alleged infringements on Maddox's constitutional rights.
According to police, without being questioned, Maddox stated, "I might as well save you the trouble; you will find Ruth Anne's body in the garage," during the execution of a search warrant.
In the motion, Bruno claims evidence in the case should be excluded from jury trial, claiming:
* There was no arrest or search warrant for Maddox;
* There was no specificity in the warrant, as it did not name the person to be seized;
* There was no probable cause to seize Ruth Anne's body from the scene;
* There was no probable cause to arrest Maddox because "no objective probable cause existed or was articulated to establish a crime had been committed" by Maddox;
* No felony probable cause and no reason for arrest because Maddox's arrest was "warrantless as to him;"
* The presumed warrant did not establish grounds for a link between Maddox's townhome and alleged probable cause for a crime because the focus of the arrest was to investigate an "allegedly missing person."
* That prior to the execution of the first search warrant, any information gathered was done by an allegedly unconstitutional intrusion on Maddox's property as there was no search warrant, arrest warrant, "articulable suspicion" or probable cause to believe a crime occurred;
* That no tape recording was taken of police reading Maddox his Miranda rights.
In the motion, Bruno also called the initial search of the townhome "a fishing expedition," motivated by intent to arrest Maddox and seize evidence.
Bruno also plans to question the time the warrant was executed by law enforcement, as it "failed to articulate a sufficient basis to support the night-time execution."
Also, Bruno will ask Judge Abrams to suppress any and all statements made by Maddox prior to being given the Miranda statement, as Bruno claims Maddox was in custody during the time of questioning and had not been given his Miranda warning.
Furthermore, Bruno is asking the judge consider a Wong Sun violation also known as "Fruit of the Poisonous Tree," meaning anything obtained following and derived from the first warrant obtained by police at about 2:20 a.m. on Nov. 12, 2008 be excluded from the case.[[In-content Ad]]That evidence includes: everything recovered from the Maddox home, all of Maddox's statements, all subsequent and derivative warrants, all administrative requests for evidence including administrative subpoenas, e-mail subpoenas, ISP subpoenas, "pings" (signals cell phones emit as they travel between cell towers) or GPS information seized for any cell phone account or device used by Maddox, all subpoenas, all recordings including Maddoxís jail calls and all evidence gathered from the time of the initial warrant.
Bruno also requested that in the event of suppression by the court, the judge dismiss all charges against Maddox for lack of probable cause.
Bruno also requested an evidentiary hearing to determine all issues detailed in the motions.
Other motions
Bruno also made a motion to allow defense an inspection of the bedroom door and all the hardware on the door, the medical examiner's notes, media and documents and verification of the documents.
In the case that anything was deleted, shredded or otherwise disposed of, the defense wants the opportunity to obtain a written statement from the responsible party as to why the documentation was destroyed.
Bruno also asked to review law enforcement notes, media and documents, financial records of Ruth Anne, computers and media of Ruth Anne, digital copies of all photos and video, DNA evidence, a witness contact list, any informants including names, addresses and phone numbers, names of jailhouse informants and cremation approval.
The motions by the defense to dismiss of exclude evidence are a normal and expected part of any criminal case, Ciliberto said.
Requests for any and all notes and reports that are part of any law enforcement investigation are also a normal and expected part of a criminal case, he said.
In addition to having the chance to review and question evidence in the case, Bruno also filed a motion to dismiss "Blakely Enhancements" in the case, which allege particular cruelty during the alleged crime, violation of a position of trust and attempting to conceal evidence.
"These enhancements are, in effect, amendments to the [criminal] complaint, which seek to punish the defendant [Maddox] with higher sentences that typically allowed by the Minnesota Sentencing Guidelines," Bruno wrote in a motion.
In February, the prosecution filed a motion for an upward departure from state sentencing guidelines, from 25 years in prison to 40 years in prison.
Bruno stated in the motion that is was "logically impossible" for Maddox to attempt to conceal evidence because Ruth Anne's body remained at the scene of the alleged crime, noting that Maddox "cooperated with law enforcement" by telling police that the body was in the garage of the townhome.
But according to search warrants filed by the Prior Lake Police Department with assistance from the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension on Dec. 2, police believe on Nov. 11, Maddox went to Sears at the Mall of America to buy luggage, spackle and a spackle knife, then went to Walgreen's in Bloomington before driving Ruth Anne's car to the airport dressed as a woman, parked it and left a note stating she was "leaving."
Police believe Maddox then got on the light-rail train back to the Mall of America, where he caught a bus to the park-and-ride in Savage, according to search warrants filed in the case.
According to the criminal complaint, Maddox did not allow officers into the townhome the first time they made contact with him and refused to sign a missing person's report on behalf of Ruth Anne.
Bruno stated in the motion that Maddox and Ruth Anne were husband and wife living in the same home and there is "no evidence to establish that the defendant used his status to lure the decedent either into the home or into a confrontation."
Bruno went on to state that there is evidence that shows both Maddox and Ruth Anne lived separately within the home and the alleged confrontation that led to Ruth Anne's death occurred in a commons area near Maddox's bedroom.
Maddox, 45, is accused of murdering his wife, Southwest Newspapers reporter Ruth Anne Maddox, 45, in the estranged couple's Prior Lake townhome in the 16400 block of Timber Crest Drive last November.
He had been in Scott County Jail since his arrest on Nov. 12, but posted $1 million bail bond and was released Friday afternoon. It was posted by Goldberg Bail Bonds.
Judge Jerome Abrams ruled that bail would remain at $1 million with conditions, including not leaving the state, remaining law-abiding, showing up for court appearances and not having contact with Ruth Anne's family during a bail hearing in February.
Defense attorney Fred Bruno is requesting the charges against Maddox be dismissed or the evidence in the case be excluded in a jury trial due to what Bruno says are violations of state statute and federal constitutional amendments.
The alleged violations in turn would not allow Maddox to confront the evidence and get due process in the case, according to the motions filed by Bruno.
Judge Abrams will address these motions during Maddox's hearing set for 8:30 a.m. Thursday in Scott County court.
When asked for a comment about the motions filed by the defense, County Attorney Pat Ciliberto said it is policy of the Scott County Attorney's Office to try cases in court, not in the media.
Questioning police
According to the motions filed by the defense on April 29, Bruno is requesting that charges against Maddox be dismissed because "critical evidence" in the case, namely the body of Ruth Anne, was "intentionally released" by law enforcement for destruction without notifying the defense.
In the motion, Bruno claims that action deprived the defense of the due process right to independently test and evaluate evidence; to compare the physical evidence with written reports; and to perform DNA and other types of genetic, chemical and biological testing.
According to police, Ruth Anne's body was sent to her family's home state of Indiana after an autopsy was performed by the regional medical examiner prior to cremation, which followed Ruth Anne's funeral service.
On Nov. 12, police found Ruth Anne's body wrapped in a tent in the garage of the estranged couple's townhome.
The Minnesota Regional Coroner's Office ruled the cause of death a homicide due to blunt force head and neck injuries.
In the event that the judge does not grant the motion to dismiss the charges, Bruno wrote that any expert testimony by forensic pathologists or medical witnesses should be excluded in a jury trial.
Bruno asks that if charges are not dismissed, the judge should grant the defense a jury instruction stating if Ruth Anne's body wasn't released by the state for cremation, it would have been favorable evidence for the defense; or the state must pay for expert services for evaluation and testimony of an independent forensic pathologist.
Bruno also requested that evidence police gathered during an initial search be excluded in a jury trial due to alleged infringements on Maddox's constitutional rights.
According to police, without being questioned, Maddox stated, "I might as well save you the trouble; you will find Ruth Anne's body in the garage," during the execution of a search warrant.
In the motion, Bruno claims evidence in the case should be excluded from jury trial, claiming:
* There was no arrest or search warrant for Maddox;
* There was no specificity in the warrant, as it did not name the person to be seized;
* There was no probable cause to seize Ruth Anne's body from the scene;
* There was no probable cause to arrest Maddox because "no objective probable cause existed or was articulated to establish a crime had been committed" by Maddox;
* No felony probable cause and no reason for arrest because Maddox's arrest was "warrantless as to him;"
* The presumed warrant did not establish grounds for a link between Maddox's townhome and alleged probable cause for a crime because the focus of the arrest was to investigate an "allegedly missing person."
* That prior to the execution of the first search warrant, any information gathered was done by an allegedly unconstitutional intrusion on Maddox's property as there was no search warrant, arrest warrant, "articulable suspicion" or probable cause to believe a crime occurred;
* That no tape recording was taken of police reading Maddox his Miranda rights.
In the motion, Bruno also called the initial search of the townhome "a fishing expedition," motivated by intent to arrest Maddox and seize evidence.
Bruno also plans to question the time the warrant was executed by law enforcement, as it "failed to articulate a sufficient basis to support the night-time execution."
Also, Bruno will ask Judge Abrams to suppress any and all statements made by Maddox prior to being given the Miranda statement, as Bruno claims Maddox was in custody during the time of questioning and had not been given his Miranda warning.
Furthermore, Bruno is asking the judge consider a Wong Sun violation also known as "Fruit of the Poisonous Tree," meaning anything obtained following and derived from the first warrant obtained by police at about 2:20 a.m. on Nov. 12, 2008 be excluded from the case.[[In-content Ad]]That evidence includes: everything recovered from the Maddox home, all of Maddox's statements, all subsequent and derivative warrants, all administrative requests for evidence including administrative subpoenas, e-mail subpoenas, ISP subpoenas, "pings" (signals cell phones emit as they travel between cell towers) or GPS information seized for any cell phone account or device used by Maddox, all subpoenas, all recordings including Maddoxís jail calls and all evidence gathered from the time of the initial warrant.
Bruno also requested that in the event of suppression by the court, the judge dismiss all charges against Maddox for lack of probable cause.
Bruno also requested an evidentiary hearing to determine all issues detailed in the motions.
Other motions
Bruno also made a motion to allow defense an inspection of the bedroom door and all the hardware on the door, the medical examiner's notes, media and documents and verification of the documents.
In the case that anything was deleted, shredded or otherwise disposed of, the defense wants the opportunity to obtain a written statement from the responsible party as to why the documentation was destroyed.
Bruno also asked to review law enforcement notes, media and documents, financial records of Ruth Anne, computers and media of Ruth Anne, digital copies of all photos and video, DNA evidence, a witness contact list, any informants including names, addresses and phone numbers, names of jailhouse informants and cremation approval.
The motions by the defense to dismiss of exclude evidence are a normal and expected part of any criminal case, Ciliberto said.
Requests for any and all notes and reports that are part of any law enforcement investigation are also a normal and expected part of a criminal case, he said.
In addition to having the chance to review and question evidence in the case, Bruno also filed a motion to dismiss "Blakely Enhancements" in the case, which allege particular cruelty during the alleged crime, violation of a position of trust and attempting to conceal evidence.
"These enhancements are, in effect, amendments to the [criminal] complaint, which seek to punish the defendant [Maddox] with higher sentences that typically allowed by the Minnesota Sentencing Guidelines," Bruno wrote in a motion.
In February, the prosecution filed a motion for an upward departure from state sentencing guidelines, from 25 years in prison to 40 years in prison.
Bruno stated in the motion that is was "logically impossible" for Maddox to attempt to conceal evidence because Ruth Anne's body remained at the scene of the alleged crime, noting that Maddox "cooperated with law enforcement" by telling police that the body was in the garage of the townhome.
But according to search warrants filed by the Prior Lake Police Department with assistance from the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension on Dec. 2, police believe on Nov. 11, Maddox went to Sears at the Mall of America to buy luggage, spackle and a spackle knife, then went to Walgreen's in Bloomington before driving Ruth Anne's car to the airport dressed as a woman, parked it and left a note stating she was "leaving."
Police believe Maddox then got on the light-rail train back to the Mall of America, where he caught a bus to the park-and-ride in Savage, according to search warrants filed in the case.
According to the criminal complaint, Maddox did not allow officers into the townhome the first time they made contact with him and refused to sign a missing person's report on behalf of Ruth Anne.
Bruno stated in the motion that Maddox and Ruth Anne were husband and wife living in the same home and there is "no evidence to establish that the defendant used his status to lure the decedent either into the home or into a confrontation."
Bruno went on to state that there is evidence that shows both Maddox and Ruth Anne lived separately within the home and the alleged confrontation that led to Ruth Anne's death occurred in a commons area near Maddox's bedroom.
Have a news tip? Email info@whitewaterpublications.com or Call/Text 360-922-3092
e-Edition
Local Events