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Opening statements are expected to begin Monday afternoon for the trial of Todd Kendhammer in La Crosse County, Wisconsin. Kendhammer is accused of beating his wife Barbara to death, and then faking a car accident to cover up the crime.
Kendhammer reportedly told authorities that on the morning of September 16 between 7:30 and 7:45am he and his wife of 25 years were on their way to pick up a truck in order to repair its windshield. Authorities say that GPS information placed their cell phones at a neighbor’s house at that time, and the owner of the truck said he did not arrange for the Kendhammers to repair the windshield.
Kendhammer claimed while he and Barbara were driving, a metal pipe fell off of a flatbed truck, going through their windshield, killing Barbara. Suveillance video showed a car that looked like their Toyota Camry in the area, but no sign of such truck. A study from a state crime lab found that the pipe hit the windshield at least once before it broke through the glass, and that there was no blood on the pipe.
A medical examiner’s report said that Barbara’s injuries did not match Todd’s account of what happened. Meanwhile, a Sheriff’s report said that Todd was found with bloody knuckles, as well as scratches on his neck and chest.
Prosecutors claims that Todd assaulted Barbara, and that she was not in the car at the time the pipe went through the windshield.
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