Victim's husband arrested after fatal Belgrade shooting
The husband of a woman killed Sunday during a shooting in Belgrade is in police custody, according the Belgrade Police Department.
Authorities issued a press release late Thursday afternoon announcing the arrest of 46-year-old Joseph Paul DeWise on charges of deliberate homicide. His bail is set at $1 million.
Police were called about 9 a.m. Sunday to a Belgrade home, where they reportedly found one person dead and another injured from apparent gunshot wounds.
Lauren DeWise was later identified as the woman killed.
According to police documents one of Lauren DeWise's roommates came home Sunday just before 9 a.m. She found the back door broken with large boot prints in the snow outside that door. She told police she ran upstairs to find Lauren DeWise dead and her other roommate, Ashley Van Hemert, calling out for help.
Police say she immediately suspected Joseph DeWise was to blame.
Joseph DeWise was initially brought in for questioning at about 10:30 a.m. Sunday. During the interview, court documents say he started rubbing his hands on his thighs. They say DeWise claimed to be having a panic attack.
After regaining his composure he told police he was in bed by midnight the night before Lauren DeWise was found and woke up at 8 a.m. for church. Phone records confirmed he was at church later that morning.
They also showed his location services had been off since Dec. 28 and turned back on Sunday at 9:15 a.m.
Investigators found Joseph DeWise had texted Lauren DeWise several times the night before. He invited her to church with him and she declined.
When police interviewed Lauren DeWise’s roommate they say she told them about Lauren DeWise and her husband's abusive relationship. She claimed to have seen bruises on Lauren DeWise in the past.
She told police Lauren Dewise came to live with her in November to flee the abuse.
Documents say the couple was planning to talk about the divorce the day Lauren DeWise was killed.
Claims of abuse were echoed by coworkers and friends of Lauren DeWise. One stated Joseph DeWise threatened to take his wife’s life if she left him.
During the investigation police found the tread pattern of the boot print outside the Belgrade home matched DeWise’s boots. The shell casings found in the home also matched a gun belonging to him.
Court documents say the couple had one child together.
Belgrade Police Chief E.J. Clark said he wanted people to know his department is not hiding anything, but this is still a very active investigation so he will not say outside of what is in the document.
County records say Joseph DeWise has a court appearance Friday morning.
Ashley Van Hemert remains in the hospital.
