Former Colfax man makes initial court appearance for first degree intentional homicide
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RICHARD SEEHAVER
By LeAnn R. Ralph
MENOMONIE — A former Colfax man has made an initial appearance in Dunn County Circuit Court on a single charge of first degree intentional homicide in the death of another former Colfax man at his home in Menomonie.
Richard W. Seehaver, 52, appeared before Judge Rod Smeltzer January 8.
Seehaver is accused of killing John Matthew Likeness, age 54, at a house where they both lived on 15th Street Southeast in Menomonie on the afternoon of Sunday, December 30.
During the initial court appearance January 8, Seehaver appeared by video conferencing from the Dunn County Jail with Attorney Jonathan Lundeen, who was handling initial appearances that day.
Seehaver asked for his attorney, Shelly Tomtschik, who was in the courtroom, listening to the proceedings, and was told Lundeen would be representing him for the initial appearance.
Seehaver asked the court for a speedy preliminary, which means he has a right to have a preliminary hearing scheduled within 10 days.
A preliminary hearing in the case was scheduled for Monday, January 14.
During a preliminary hearing, witnesses give testimony, and then a judge determines whether there is probable cause to bind the defendant over to be arraigned on the charges.
Dunn County District Attorney Andrea Nodolf told the court she had sent a letter to the public defender who is defending Seehaver saying that Likeness’s body was being held by Ramsey County Medical Examiner’s Office pending a possible request for an additional autopsy.
Likeness’s family would like to have his body released to them so they can proceed with burial, Nodolf said.
If a request for another autopsy is not received, Nodolf said she plans to release Likeness’s body to his family on January 18.
Crossbow
According to the criminal complaint, the provisional report from the Ramsey County Medical Examiner’s Office by Dr. Kelly Mills indicates Likeness sustained a crossbow wound to the left chest and three sharp force injuries to the neck. Dr. Mills reported the cause of death was the crossbow wound, and the manner of death was homicide.
According to the complaint, the Menomonie Police Department received a 911 call at about 3:18 p.m. Sunday, December 30, 2018, from an unknown man reporting an altercation at 603 15th Street SE in Menomonie. Dispatch informed the police officer responding to the residence there was a man yelling and what sounded like a physical altercation.
The officer knew John Matthew Likeness and Richard W. Seehaver resided at the residence. As the officer walked past the first window on the southeast side of the residence, he saw a man, later identified as Likeness, sitting in a La-Z-Boy chair, and it appeared that Seehaver’s arms were wrapped around Likeness’s neck. The officer did not see any signs of struggling and went to knock on the front the door. When the officer did not hear anything, he walked back to the window where he observed something sticking out of Likeness’s chest, according to the complaint.
Other officers arrived on scene, and while one officer requested medical assistance, the first officer attempted to breach the door but discovered it was dead bolt locked. While other officers obtained tools to breach the door, the first officer observed through the window that Seehaver appeared to be wiping Likeness’s chest. The officer banged on the window with his flashlight to get Seehaver’s attention, and when Seehaver walked toward the window and asked the identity of the officer, the officer saw blood on Seehaver’s face and on his clothing, the complaint states.
Seehaver came outside and told officers his “house mate might be inside.” A UW-Stout police officer stayed with Seehaver while other officers entered the residence and located Likeness in the living room. Likeness, who appeared to be deceased, was seated in the chair with an arrow sticking out of his chest, a large wound in his jaw and neck area, and blood all over his body. A knife was found on a blanket on the floor next to the chair where Likeness was seated, according to the complaint.
Seehaver was transported to the Dunn County jail, and officers noted Seehaver had quite a lot of blood on his clothing, with the highest concentration on his left thigh and abdomen.
Aliens
Dunn County investigators spoke with Seehaver shortly after midnight on December 31.
Seehaver told investigators he had lived in the house with Likeness for a few months and had lived with Likeness in Cedar Falls before that.
At the beginning of the interview, Seehaver told investigators about “talking to the radio and television and being asked to join them” and also spoke about “alien beings and not being the devil,” according to the complaint.
Seehaver told investigators “that for the past 52 years, he had been reared for his role in an evil organization to take part in the ‘upper echelon’ of troopers. The defendant explained that to get into the upper echelon, he had to make a choice,” the complaint states.
Investigators asked what had happened to Likeness, and Seehaver said he had felt sorry for him. When investigators asked what Seehaver had done about feeling sorry for Likeness, Seehaver said he had “put him out of his misery.” When asked how he had done that, Seehaver said, “I shot him.”
Seehaver went on to tell investigators he had shot Likeness with a bow while Likeness was sitting in a chair, and when investigators asked if Likeness had died right away, Seehaver said, “No, I had to cut his throat, too,” according to the complaint.
Seehaver told investigators he had sliced Likeness’s throat with a butcher knife and that he had been “trained to be quite violent and has been quite violent also.”
Seehaver said he had killed Likeness because Likeness “was a miserable, miserable [expletive].”
Seehaver also told investigators he did not want Likeness to see him shoot and described how had he had knelt on the steps and how he had positioned the bow, which was sighted for 30 to 40 yards. Since Likeness was seated only about 30 feet away, Seehaver told investigators, “the arrow didn’t drop as much as if he had been shooting the full length the bow was sighted for,” according to the complaint.
Seehaver said he wanted Likeness “to die as quickly and painlessly as possible.”
Butcher knife
When investigators asked Seehaver where he thought Likeness was now, Seehaver replied, “He’s dead,” and said he hoped he would “get a medal” for killing Likeness.
Seehaver told investigators he had shot Likeness dead, but that he was not quite dead.
“The cops were knocking on the door, so I cut his [expletive] throat to hurry it around a (little) bit. I did it,” the complaint states.
Seehaver also told investigators he had to go to the kitchen to get a butcher knife.
“The defendant stated that he knew it was not alright to kill or murder people but also stated that he felt justice was done and that Likeness was taken out of his misery,” according to the complaint.
Seehaver told investigators that “for the past 52 years, he was a very violent person, not being afraid to kick cops if he had to. He said that he was not afraid to sit time if he had to and that he did 12 ½ years in the state system. He also said he knew ‘full well that I am not going to get out of this,’” according to the complaint.
Methamphetamine
Investigators asked Seehaver if he had used methamphetamine, and Seehaver said he had smoked meth the day before with a woman, but that he had not used meth on the day of the homicide, according to the complaint.
Seehaver told investigators the woman lived in the house with them and that drugs would not have been introduced into the house if she had not brought drugs to the house, the complaint states.
Seehaver is considered a repeat offender because he was convicted of the felony possession of an electric weapon in Sawyer County in February of 2016.
As a repeat offender, Seehaver could face up to another four years in prison if convicted of the underlying crime.
First degree intentional homicide is a Class A felony that, upon conviction, carries a sentence of life in prison.
Because Seehaver used a dangerous weapon, if convicted, the maximum prison term could be increased by up to five years.
Likeness
According to information provided by his family members, John Matthew Likeness graduated from Colfax High School in 1982.
He was born October 15, 1964, in San Jose, California.
After graduating from Colfax, Likeness studied political science for two years at UW-Eau Claire.
Likeness served in the United States Army, 101st Airborne Division, from 1983 to 1993. He served at Fort Campbell, Kentucky; Fort Bragg, North Carolina; and at Heritzo Base in Nuremberg, Germany, in 1987.
His missions included Panama, Grenada, Somalia; and the Gulf War: Desert Shield and Desert Storm.
After receiving an honorable discharge from the United States Army, Likeness moved back to California in 1994.
“John was proud to have served our country, and although a disabled Veteran, he spent this last year (2018) embracing independence while exploring the U.S. by railway. John traveled with his mobility scooter, a few satchels, and his beloved companion dog, Sienna. He was scouting for a new community to continue his independence: an affordable city with a Veteran friendly community and an accessible infrastructure accommodating to those with physical limitations. John ultimately chose the familiar city of Menomonie, and it was there he purchased his first home in October, 2018,” according to his family.
