February 2, 2015 at 4:26 p.m.
Preliminary hearing set for suspect in 2003 Rhinelander homicide
Preliminary hearing set for suspect in 2003 Rhinelander homicide
Latoya J. Wolf, 33, who has been charged with first-degree intentional homicide (as party to the crime), in connection with the death of Kenneth "Punky" Wells, made an adjourned initial appearance Friday in Branch II of Oneida County Circuit Court via video teleconference. Her public defender, Chris Gramstrup, was in court.
Gramstrup was appointed to the case after it was determined that none of the lawyers with the local public defender's office could take the case due to possible conflicts of interest. He waived further reading of the criminal complaint and asked for a preliminary hearing for his client. Branch II Judge Michael Bloom scheduled that hearing for March 3.
In the interest of disclosure, Bloom advised Gramstrup that an earlier investigation of the crime took place while he was district attorney. How-ever, he noted that the detective conducting the earlier investigation did not share much of what he had learned with him.
"Anyone who has read the criminal complaint (in this case) knows more than he told me," Bloom said.
Wells' body was recovered from the Wisconsin River behind the Trig's Riverwalk Centre on July 1, 2003. Although court records indicate Wolf first told police she had information about Wolf's death back in 2012, she was not charged until Jan. 19.
According to court documents, Wolf began giving investigators information concerning Wells' death in February 2012. Subsequent interviews were conducted as recently as March 2014. Wolf's statements are described in the criminal complaint as being very detailed and containing information that only someone who witnessed the death would be able to share.
Wolf told police she witnessed an altercation between Wells and at least one man at the Elbo Room bar on the night of his death. She also told investigators that her party moved to the Longbranch Bar after the altercation. Sometime later that night, Wolf said she saw a couple of men beat and kick Wells. Wolf admitted to helping to place a plastic bag over Wells' head and roll him into the river.
The initial autopsy conducted by an assistant medical examiner in the Fond du Lac County Medical Examiner's office revealed that Wells died of "probable freshwater drowning." The manner of death was ruled "undetermined."
Court documents indicate other individuals believed to have been involved in the crime have been interviewed since 2012. As of Friday, Wolf is the only person facing charges in connection with Wells' death.
Jamie Taylor may be reached at [email protected].
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