A 40-year-old man from the northern Iowa town of Greene was found guilty in the stabbing death of his wife. A Butler County jury took less than an hour to convict Thomas Petersen Monday of first-degree murder.
Petersen was charged with killing his 36-year-old wife, Judy, at their home in June of last year. He was arrested after a car chase near Kadoka South Dakota several hours later.
The couple’s two-year-old son was in the vehicle during the chase but was not hurt. Petersen took the stand on Monday and admitted stabbing at his wife, but denied that he was trying to kill her. When sentenced, Petersen faces the mandatory term of life in prison without the opportunity for parole.
By Bob Fisher, KRIB, Mason City