Ken Huber - Police Chief of Highmore South Dakota for 8 years, then of Miller South Dakota up until October - did shoot his wife Pam Huber in the forehead, and kill her.
I have converted the Affidavit In Support Of Probable Cause pdf file into text form, and the complete text is in the comments section of this entry. The affidavit shows clearly that Ken tried telling one of his daughters what to say to 911, and Pam's son Jeremy tells of Ken's abuse of his mother.In the affidavit the intimidation tactics of Ken Huber with his weapon are clear. What's heartbreaking is that this is just a glimpse of the man that Pam and the children lived with every day.
Hyde County District Attorney Jennifer Lowrie - who Ken beckons to his crime scene - admits to police she sleeps with the chief and helped him out of some scary trouble in Miller. Ken Huber was a one-man police department in an isolated small town that is the seat of a sparsely populated county.The question of what took so long - ten days - to arrest him is still unanswered.
I am grieving Pam's stolen life, her death, and praying for her family, friends, and community.
Funeral services will be 10 a.m., Wednesday, Nov. 7, 2007, at Our Savior Lutheran Church, Highmore, with David Peterson officiating. Burial will be in the Highmore Cemetery. Visitation will begin at 5 p.m., Tuesday, Nov. 6, at the church, followed by a 7:30 p.m. prayer service and P.E.O. service. In lieu of flowers, memorials are preferred to Missouri Shores Domestic Violence Center in Pierre or any local Domestic Violence Center. Luze Funeral Home of Highmore has been entrusted with arrangements. Guestbook for Pam is here.Previous blog entries:
IN CIRCUIT COURT
ReplyDeleteSIXTH JUDICIAL CIRCUIT
Crim. No. __________
AFFIDAVIT IN SUPPORT
OF PROBABLE CAUSE
STATE OF SOUTH DAKOTA
SS: COUNTY OF HYDE
STATE OF SOUTH DAKOTA,
Plaintiff,
v.
KENNETH C. HUBER,
619 2nd STREET SW
HIGHMORE, SD 57345-0325
DOB: 10-22-1966
Defendant.
STATE OF SOUTH DAKOTA
: SS COUNTY OF HUGHES
Comes now Jason Baldwin and upon duly first sworn on oath deposes and says:
Your Affiant is a Special Agent for the South Dakota Division of Criminal Investigation. Your Affiant is federally deputized by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and is currently assigned to the Northern Plains Safe Trails Drug Task Force. Your Affiant has been employed as a law enforcement officer in the State of South Dakota for the past 11 years and has been assigned to the Northern Plains Safe Trails Drug Task Force the last 2 1/2 years. Your Affiant has attended and completed an eight-week basic law enforcement certification class in South Dakota. Your affiant is also a Certified Crime Scene Investigator by the International Association of
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Identification.
On Sunday, October 28th, 2007, I was called at approximately 11:54 p.m. by State Radio Dispatch advising that there had been a shooting in Highmore, South Dakota. State Radio indicated that Ken Huber, whom your affiant knows as the past Chief of Police in Highmore, serving from 1990 to 2007, reported he had accidentally shot his wife in the head while moving his gun, I then responded to Hyde County and began an investigation into the shooting of Pam Huber, Prior to my arrival, Pam had been transported to the Miller Hospital, and was eventually transported to Avera McKennan in Sioux Falls. She died on November 2nd, 2007, but never regained consciousness.
I arrived at the Huber home about 1:17 a.m. on 10/29/07. When I arrived, Jennifer Lowrie (Lowrie), Hyde County State's Attorney, was present along with members of local law enforcement. I then spoke with Lowrie outside Pam and Ken Huber's residence. Lowrie said she was a family friend of Pam and Ken Huber. Lowrie said she had gone shopping in Huron with Pam, Ken, ["K"REDACTED] (12 year old daughter of Pam and Ken) and
["S"REDACTED] Huber (11 year old daughter of Pam and Ken) on 10-28-07 and then returned to Highmore. The last time she spoke with Ken prior to the incident was on 10-28-07 at about 10 p.m. for about 50 minutes over the telephone. According to Lowrie, Ken was asking details about a court appearance of Lowrie's on
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Monday. Lowrie stated that Ken called because he knjsw that she was nervous about her court appearance.
Lowrie stated she received a phone call about midnight from Ken, ["K"REDACTED] and ["S"REDACTED] Huber. They were on a speaker phone and Ken said there has been an accident, "Please come," then the phone went dead. Lowrie got to the residence before any law enforcement or EMS personnel. Lowrie went inside through the front entry way and walked down the hallway. Once inside, ["K"REDACTED] told Lowrie "You have to help her." In the hall Lowrie saw blood marks on the wall. ["K"REDACTED] and Lowrie went to the bedroom, and then ["K"REDACTED] left. Pam Huber was lying on the bed on her back. Ken was artificially breathing for Pam Huber on the bed. Ken was also talking to Pam, saying "Breathe baby, it is going to be OK." Lowrie was handed the phone by ["S"REDACTED] Huber for her to talk to the 911 operator. When she grabbed the phone, she saw a handgun lying on the bed. Ken asked Lowrie if anyone was coming. Lowrie reported that twice through the night, Ken grabbed her by the coat and said, "Promise me you will take care of my girls," shaking Lowrie. Ken also stated that he did not know what happened,.it was an accident and he told Lowrie that he did not hear it (the gun) go off.
Lowrie reported that she is having problems in Highmore because of all the "stuff" going around. Lowrie spoke of having a falling out with the Sheriff Mike Volek, and believed
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that Volek was spreading rumors about Ken and Lowrie.
Lowrie said that Ken was her "only link to law enforcement in the community." I asked what the rumors were. Lowrie responded that the rumor was she and Ken were having a sexual relationship.
I then asked Lowrie if she was having sexual relations with Ken. Lowrie replied, "Is that important?" I told her it was. Lowrie then confirmed that yes, they were having sexual relations. Lowrie believes that Pam knew. This is because Lowrie and Pam have had several talks. In these talks Lowrie reports that Pam stated Lowrie would be a good stepmother for the kids.
Lowrie reported that Ken and Pam have been talking about divorce, Lowrie said that when Ken took the Chief of Police job in Miller, this was to get the ball rolling on the divorce proceedings. Lowrie said that there have been no official papers filed, nor attorneys retained, but they had been talking about it. Ken had called Lowrie and told her about conversations with Pam.
Lowrie reported to me that she and Pam have had discussions about Lowrie's relationship with the girls and how the girls like Lowrie.
Lowrie said she represented Ken after he had been served a Restraining Order in Miller, S.D. where Ken was acting as the
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Chief of Police. This took place the summer of 2007. A husband was claiming that his wife was having an affair with Ken Huber. The kids were afraid of Ken Huber. The husband petitioned for the Restraining Order because Ken Huber had taken the wife and kids on a ride in Ken's personal car and had spun out. Lowrie said that she represented Ken and the result was a civil restraining order, not a criminal one, so Ken could keep his law enforcement certification.
Lowrie reported that earlier on Monday morning October 29th, Ken Huber was placed in handcuffs by the officers at the hospital. She claimed to be his "civil attorney" as well and tried to claim she was representing Ken in this shooting. Ken asked at this point if law enforcement has talked to ["S"REDACTED]
Your affiant prepared an Affidavit and Search Warrant on the morning of 10-29-07. This Search Warrant was executed on the body and residence of Ken Huber on the morning of 10-29-07. Blood, urine, hair, finger nail scrapings, buccal swabs, and clothing were taken.
Your affiant spoke with Agent Severson on 10-29-07 and 10-30-07. On 10-29-07, at 5 a.m. Agent Jim Severson of the South Dakota Division of Criminal Investigation interviewed ["S"REDACTED] Huber. Agent Severson also interviewed ["K"REDACTED] Huber at 5:30 a.m. They are the daughters of Ken and Pam Huber. When the shot was fired, ["K"REDACTED] was in her separate bedroom asleep but
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["S"REDACTED] was in bed with her mother. Right after the shot was heard by ["S"REDACTED] Ken immediately told ["S"REDACTED] to wake up her sister and get the bags, meaning the medical equipment. The girls relayed to Agent Severson that Ken was in control of the whole situation. The girls reported that Ken made no excited utterances after the gun went off.
Agent Severson states that both ["S"REDACTED] and ["K"REDACTED] described Lowrie as a close family friend. After the initial 9-1-1 call, their father handed the phone to ["K"REDACTED] and told her to call Lowrie, telling Lowrie to get there because mom had been shot. Both ["S"REDACTED] and ["K"REDACTED] confirmed these facts.
Your affiant spoke with Agent Leuning on 10-29-07 and 10-30-07.
Agent Nate Leuning interviewed ["S"REDACTED] Huber on 10-29-07 at 8:45 a.m. ["S"REDACTED] stated that on Sunday, Lowrie went with their whole family to Huron for shopping. ["S"REDACTED] reported that she went to her parent's room about 10 p.m. to watch TV and fall asleep, which is a normal routine for her. She thought that her mom, dad, and she were watching TV. Both her mother and father were awake, ["S"REDACTED] said that there was no indication of fighting, they were just watching TV. ["S"REDACTED] said that Ken usually keeps his gun in the gun safe, however on this evening the gun belt was on the nightstand, with the gun in the holster. Sometimes he keeps it in the dresser by the mother's nightstand. ["S"REDACTED] reported that as she was
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almost asleep, she noticed her father get up. She saw her father take the gun off the nightstand and walk in front of the bed to the closet, holding the gun down to his side. ["S"REDACTED] reports Ken then wanders towards the door of the bedroom. ["S"REDACTED] was getting close to sleep and the next thing she reports is hearing the shot. ["S"REDACTED] notices her dad in the hallway immediately after the shot. As will be demonstrated, this is contrary to what Ken tells ["S"REDACTED] to say on the 911 tape.
["S"REDACTED] said that Ken has the habit of pointing the gun towards the ceiling when he empties it, and then he will dry fire it to make sure there is no bullet in there. ["S"REDACTED] reported that she thought it was an accident. When asked why, ["S"REDACTED] said that because immediately after the shooting, her dad told her to do things. ["S"REDACTED] overheard Ken tell Lowrie it was an accident. ["S"REDACTED] does not remember Lowrie's response.
ATF Agent Emmit Warkenthein interviewed an ambulance crew member on 10-29-07, who reported hearing Ken say at the residence shortly after the shooting, "We were moving the gun to the cabinet, and it went off." Again as will be demonstrated, this is contrary to what ["S"REDACTED] tells Agent Leuning happened but consistent with what Ken had previously told ["S"REDACTED] to say on the 911 tape.
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Your affiant states that during the execution of the Search Warrant on the Huber household 10-29-07, a briefcase was found in the bedroom of Ken and Pam Huber. Contained within the briefcase were e-mails outlining a relationship Ken had with a woman. (This woman is not Lowrie or the woman from Miller.) These were sent and received in 2004. It was apparent from the content of the e-mails that Pam may have known about this prior relationship between Ken and this third woman.
On 11-05-2001 your affiant reviewed the recorded 911 call of the shooting that occurred on 10-28-2007. During the tape the following exchange took place:
Ken: My wife has been shot.
Ken: I'm here, it was me, it was a accident.
Ken: (In the background talking to his girls) Hang on dial Jennifer.
(Later)
Ken: She was shot in the head-she was shot in the head, it ain't good.
911: Where is she shot?
Ken in background: Right above the left eye...Right above the right eye...Give the phone to Jen to talk to her.
911: What was she shot with?
Ken in background: Glock 40 with black talon.
911: Was he cleaning his gun?
["S"REDACTED] Were you cleaning?
Ken in background: Moving it from the safe over to here.
["S"REDACTED]: He was moving it from the safe over...
Ken: over there...
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["S"REDACTED]: Over to his gun belt and he accidentally pulled the trigger.
On 11-05-2007 your affiant interviewed ["S"REDACTED] Huber. ["S"REDACTED] said Ken, Pam and her were lying in bed watching TV. Pam was lying on the bed with her head a distance from the headboard and her feet hanging over the edge of the bed. ["S"REDACTED] was lying closer to headboard with her left hand near her mother's head. Pam was lying on her back with her head on one pillow and on her left arm. Pam was awake and the light was on. According to ["S"REDACTED] Ken got up and went around to his duty belt which was located on the dresser on Pam's side of the bed. Ken removed his gun from the holster and walked in front of the bed holding the gun in his right had with his finger off the trigger. ["S"REDACTED] described the gun as a Glock with a light/laser attached. Ken stopped at the foot of the bed and placed the gun on the corner of the bed nearest the hallway. Ken used a stool at the foot of the bed and stepped up looking into the closet. ["S"REDACTED] said she did not see him get anything from the closet. Ken got down from the stool, picked up the gun, and walked out of the room. ["S"REDACTED] then heard a shot two or three minutes later.
Your affiant asked if ["S"REDACTED] remembered her dad telling her what happened. ["S"REDACTED] said Ken was yelling "it was an accident"; "I would never do anything to hurt your mom," "make sure to tell the people who would ask you questions about
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that." ["S"REDACTED]went on to say Ken kept repeating it was accidental over and over.
On 11-05-2007 your affiant interviewed ["K"REDACTED] Huber, ["K"REDACTED]| Huber said she wakened by ["S"REDACTED] on the night of the incident. While going to her parent's room ["K"REDACTED] saw a shell casing in the hall. A .40 caliber shell casing was recovered by law enforcement at about the same location as described by ["K"REDACTED].
On 11-05-2007 your affiant was given a report from SA Nate Leuning of his interview of Jeremy Mason. Jeremy is the son of Pam Kuber. Jeremy is not the biological child of Ken Huber. Jeremy lived with Pam and Ken beginning in 1993. Jeremy noticed violence while living with Ken and Pam. On one occasion, Ken administered a restraint hold onto Pam. Ken grabbed her arms and wrists. Ken did lots of name calling and was degrading towards Pam. Jeremy also was the victim of violence. One time Ken struck Jeremy in the face. One other incident occurred some time after 1994 while Jeremy was in high school. During that incident Ken put Jeremy in a restraint. Jeremy believed Ken would get upset with Pam over financial issues.
Jeremy described Ken as very controlling. According to Jeremy, Ken wanted to be in charge for sure. Jeremy did not like Ken. Jeremy described Ken as very needy and materialistic. According to Jeremy, Ken knew guns very well.
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Ken was always showing off his guns. Jeremy said Ken knew all aspects of guns and gun-handling including re-loads. Jeremy remembered that Ken would keep his pistol hanging in the closet in the. belt. Ken was a hunter safety instructor and EMT.
According to Jeremy, Ken was not loyal to his mom. He always made comments about other females in town.
Jeremy said his mother called him the weekend on, about the 19th or 20th of October 2007. Pam wanted to come over and celebrate Jeremy's son's birthday, but money was tight. The next Friday Jeremy talked with Pam on the phone. Pam said she could not come and said, "I'll tell you why later." That was the last time he spoke with his mother. Jeremy does not know what transpired between then and Sunday when his mother was shot.
Based on my examination of the crime scene and the reported events, the "accidental" shooting of Pam Huber is completely contrary to any training Ken Huber has received as a police officer in South Dakota in safe gun handling. Ken Huber has been a police officer since 1990 and is a firearms instructor. He has a total of over 1,115 recorded hours of training received. Ken Huber has also taken two Glock armors courses, 1993 and 2006. Ken Huber is a Hunt Safe instructor for the South Dakota Game Fish and Parks, teaching firearms safety. Ken is a former US Marine.
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The weapon Ken shot Pam with was a Glock pistol equipped with a laser sighting device. I am a firearms instructor. I am trained and have been certified in the operation of Glock handguns. I have taught hunter safety during my employment as a Conservation Officer, The Glock handgun which killed Pam Huber has three safetys. In order for that Glock handgun to fire, the safety device on the trigger itself must be overridden and the trigger must be pulled. It usually takes at least four pounds of pressure to complete a pull of the trigger. Ken Huber was trained to teach and practice gun safety. Because of the extensive training Ken Huber has received on guns and gun safety (particularly Glock handguns), it is almost impossible that the weapon which killed Pam Huber discharged "accidentally" as described by Ken Huber.
Approximately 40 firearms were removed from the Huber residence. Most of these weapons were high quality and well maintained and would have a market value exceeding several thousand dollars. In addition, Ken Huber owned a high quality motor boat and trailer, a late model sports car, an antique restored sports car, a high quality - high value Harley Davidson motorcycle, a Jayco Fifth wheel motor home, a late model four-wheel drive pickup capable of pulling a motor home, and a snowmobile. I am advised that if a divorce were to take place between Ken and Pam Huber, all of the items described above
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would be subject to division between Ken and Pam by a divorce court and would be subject to liquidation for the payment of marital debt. In addition if Pam were to receive custody of the children, Ken would be required to make child support payments and possibly alimony. Ken Huber was unemployed at the time of the shooting.
Because Pam Huber is now deceased, Ken Huber is not exposed to child support or alimony payments nor the automatic liquidation of his guns and vehicles.
Based on the facts above your affiant believes there is probable cause to believe that Ken Huber did commit the offense of Murder in the first degree in violation of SDCL 22-16-4.
Dated this ________ day of November, at Pierre, South Dakota.
Jason Baldwin DCI Agent
Subscribed and sworn to before me this _______ day of November, 2007.
Notary Public - South Dakota My Commission Expires:
(Seal)
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YOUTUBE VIDEO:
ReplyDelete8yr Highmore Police Chief Huber arrested for murder
http://www.youtube.com/v/n32-izhU_g0