Joseph Patterson might be sentenced to spend the rest of his life behind bars, but his time in a courtroom isn't over yet.
The man who was convicted of 2nd degree murder of a two-year-old boy is now facing kidnapping and assault charges involving the mother of that child.
KELOLAND News was in the courtroom in 2014 when a jury found Patterson guilty of killing two-year-old Tyrese Ruffin.
Today, Patterson's defense team tried to show a judge that evidence in his new case needs to be suppressed.
Joseph Patterson walks into a Minnehaha Courtroom today looking to change evidence in his case.
The prosecution states that on June 24th, 2014, Patterson, while out on bond before his murder trial, went to the apartment of Tyrese Ruffin's mother. There, he's accused of holding her against her will, hitting and choking her. She testified in court today, saying it was an argument that turned physical, including being punched in the ribs and having a pillow put over her face.
Two officers who arrived at the scene also testified today. They both said after knocking and not hearing an answer, they called their supervisor, who gave them the go-ahead to enter the apartment. After getting a key from a friend of the alleged victim, the officers went inside. There they said they found Patterson and the women. The officers testified she was trembling and pale.
Patterson's defense team asked a lot of questions on why the officers entered the home without a search warrant. They asked both the officers, and the supervising sergeant when it's ok to enter a building without a warrant.
Judge Brad Zell didn't get to hear the final arguments from either the state or the prosecution today, so he didn't make a final decision on whether the evidence from the hearing would be suppressed for Patterson's criminal trial. Which means for now, the questions still remain.
One thing was decided today. Judge Zell agreed to postpone the trial from October to January.
Patterson's defense team also filed a motion to move the trial out of Minnehaha County because of the high media attention around this case and his murder trial in Lincoln County.
Zell agreed these cases are getting a lot of publicity. While he didn't officially deny the request, he said the best chance of finding fair and impartial jurors would come from the largest collection of people here in Minnehaha County.
The judge said if the trial would be moved, it would take place in Aberdeen.
The man who was convicted of 2nd degree murder of a two-year-old boy is now facing kidnapping and assault charges involving the mother of that child.
KELOLAND News was in the courtroom in 2014 when a jury found Patterson guilty of killing two-year-old Tyrese Ruffin.
Today, Patterson's defense team tried to show a judge that evidence in his new case needs to be suppressed.
Joseph Patterson walks into a Minnehaha Courtroom today looking to change evidence in his case.
The prosecution states that on June 24th, 2014, Patterson, while out on bond before his murder trial, went to the apartment of Tyrese Ruffin's mother. There, he's accused of holding her against her will, hitting and choking her. She testified in court today, saying it was an argument that turned physical, including being punched in the ribs and having a pillow put over her face.
Two officers who arrived at the scene also testified today. They both said after knocking and not hearing an answer, they called their supervisor, who gave them the go-ahead to enter the apartment. After getting a key from a friend of the alleged victim, the officers went inside. There they said they found Patterson and the women. The officers testified she was trembling and pale.
Patterson's defense team asked a lot of questions on why the officers entered the home without a search warrant. They asked both the officers, and the supervising sergeant when it's ok to enter a building without a warrant.
Judge Brad Zell didn't get to hear the final arguments from either the state or the prosecution today, so he didn't make a final decision on whether the evidence from the hearing would be suppressed for Patterson's criminal trial. Which means for now, the questions still remain.
One thing was decided today. Judge Zell agreed to postpone the trial from October to January.
Patterson's defense team also filed a motion to move the trial out of Minnehaha County because of the high media attention around this case and his murder trial in Lincoln County.
Zell agreed these cases are getting a lot of publicity. While he didn't officially deny the request, he said the best chance of finding fair and impartial jurors would come from the largest collection of people here in Minnehaha County.
The judge said if the trial would be moved, it would take place in Aberdeen.