Police report shows violent attack between Rexburg man and wife
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This article contains graphic content of violent nature. It may not be suitable for all audiences.
DUBOIS, Wyoming — Officers were forced to ram a patrol vehicle through a locked gate to rescue an abused woman and her family at a remote cabin in Wyoming last month.
That’s according to a police report obtained by EastIdahoNews.com from the Circuit Court of Fremont County, Wyoming. The report shows Michael James Larson of Rexburg attacked and threatened to kill his 42-year-old wife.
“I will kill you and get away with it, because I have it all planned out,” Larson allegedly told his wife during the incident.
Larson, a local doctor, was at the cabin with his wife and several children for Thanksgiving. The incident allegedly occurred over several hours during the early morning of Nov. 28. In the report, the wife told police Larson had been drinking. Following a verbal argument, she said Larson dragged her outside by her hair, threatened her and repeatedly hit and kicked her.
Following the incident Larson was jailed in the Fremont County Jail and charged with misdemeanor domestic battery/assault.
EastIdahoNews.com has reached out to Larson for comment, but he has not responded to requests.
The reported abuse
According to Deputy Bobby Eggleston’s report:
At some point the wife said she found herself on the ground and Larson began slamming her head against the floor repeatedly, according to the report.
The police narrative shows the children were asleep when the incident began, but sometime during the domestic altercation they awoke and tried to help their mother. One of the children began elbowing Larson in the stomach attempting to get him off of the victim. The other children attempted to shield the victim from Larson’s blows.
The narrative indicates Larson left the cabin in a vehicle for approximately 40 minutes. While Larson was gone, the wife contacted an extended family member and requested the person call 911.
Larson returned and according to the report, the abuse continued.
Larson then left the room and fell asleep on a couch. The wife and children pretended to be asleep awaiting police.
The police response
The 911 caller provided deputies with combinations to two locked gates on the property. Police were able to bypass the first gate with the combinations, but the codes would not work on the second gate.
“Due to the urgency and unknown severity of the call and being that there were children involved in the family fight, I elected to drive through the locked gate,” Eggleston wrote in the report.
Upon arriving at the residence Eggleston said a woman ran out of the house toward his vehicle. He observed “blood around her nose area and a large contusion on the right of her forehead area.”
The woman told the deputy there were children in the house and Larson was not letting them leave.
Moments later, Larson came out of the house and quickly approached Eggleston’s patrol vehicle. The report shows Eggleston gave Larson an order to stop and to raise his hands. Larson partially complied with the order by raising his hands, but continued to approach. His left hand was in a fist.
Eggleston drew a Taser and pointed it at Larson’s chest. He stopped and was detained in a police vehicle.
Deputy Jesse Jones observed in the report that the wife was frantic, crying and had several observable injuries. The cabin also was in disarray, with “blankets strewn about and the trash receptacle was smashed,” Jones wrote.
Eggleston found several clumps of hair, which appeared to belong to the adult victim and observed a small amount of what appeared to be blood.
The wife was transported by ground ambulance to Sage West Lander Hospital. Eggleston reported observing multiple bruises on her “arms, legs, shoulders, and back area.”
In a followup interview later that day, the wife told police she had discovered the second gate’s combination had been changed. She believed Larson had changed the combination when he left in his car.
“Due to the urgency and unknown severity of the call and being that there were children involved in the family fight, I elected to drive through the locked gate,” — Sheriff Deputy Bobby Eggleston
Larson’s arrest
During the arrest, Larson told officers he was in the wrong and to “just take him in.” Larson admitted to police he put his hands on his wife, however, when Jones asked if Larson had hurt her, Larson said “I don’t think so.”
EastIdahoNews.com reached out to Fremont County Prosecutor Patrick LeBrun about the misdemeanor domestic battery/assault charge, but did not get a response Friday, Dec. 11.
Larson was booked into the Fremont County Jail with a $2,500 bond.
Larson was bailed out of jail by Jefferson County Prosecuting Attorney Robin D. Dunn, who co-signed a cash surety bond on Nov. 30. It is unclear if Dunn represents Larson. EastIdahoNews.com has reached out to Dunn for comment, but has not received a response.
As a condition of Larson’s release, Wyoming Circuit Court Judge Robert B. Denhardt issued a no-contact order. Larson “is not to have direct or indirect contact with anyone who could be considered a witness in the case.”
Several immediate family members are listed on the no-contact order.
Additionally, a temporary restraining order was authorized by Bonneville County Magistrate Judge Earl Blower on Wednesday, Dec. 9, against Larson as part of a domestic divorce proceeding, according to court documents obtained Wednesday, Dec. 9.
Larson’s next court hearing in Fremont County, Wyoming, is scheduled for Jan. 19.