Jeremy Ratliff
Reporter
Following a plea agreement last Friday morning, a two-year-old homicide case appears to be headed for closure.
As part of the agreement, 22-year-old Tyler R. Monroe of Merrill pled guilty to a reduced charge of 2nd Degree Intentional Homicide as a repeater, in connection to the death of his father, Kevin Monroe.
Additional felony charges of Hiding a Corpse, Take and Drive Vehicle without Consent, two charges of Convicted Felon in possession of a firearm and two charges of Felony-Bail Jumping will be read-in for sentencing purposes. In addition, Monroe and his attorney would be allowed to argue sentencing according to the agreement, but would not be allowed to argue any less of a sentence than 20 years of initial confinement and 20 years extended supervision. The state would be free to argue for any sentence, including the maximum sentence of 66 years (46 years initial confinement and 20 years extended supervision).
Monroe was initially charged in February of 2016 with 1st Degree Intentional Homicide; Hiding a Corpse; Take and Drive Vehicle without Consent; two charges of Convicted Felon in possession of a firearm and two charges of Felony-Bail Jumping, after being taken into custody in the apparent stabbing death of his father.
According to court records, an autopsy performed Jan. 13, 2016 (one day after Kevin Monroe’s body was discovered) at the University of Wisconsin Hospitals in Madison, ruled Kevin Monroe’s cause of death to be the result of “sharp force homicide” caused by 26 stab wounds, including four fatal wounds to the liver, three fatal wounds to the right lung and multiple other wounds to the face, neck, torso, shoulder, thigh and shin.
According to a criminal complaint filed by the Merrill Police Department, with the office of Lincoln County District Attorney Galen Bayne-Allison, Kevin Monroe’s body was discovered by a friend on the floor of his bedroom in an apartment he shared with his son.
A pre-sentence investigation has been ordered in the case, with the next court activity set for a scheduling conference on June 28.