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VERNAL — William Robert Feldmiller was sitting alone in the back of a police car, his hands cuffed behind his back, when he made one of his first statements about the fatal stabbing of his roommate, a Vernal police detective said Wednesday.
“He said, 'I told you I'd kill you,'” detective Shawn Lewis testified during a preliminary hearing in 8th District Court, where Feldmiller is charged with murder, a first-degree felony.
Feldmiller's statement, Lewis said, was captured by a recording device inside the patrol car. It was the first of many that police say the 61-year-old made about his alleged role in the death of Mark Lane “Joe” Bedwell.
Feldmiller was interviewed by police three times following the Jan. 20 stabbing, which he called emergency dispatchers to report.
Lewis said he was told the men had been drinking throughout the day — toxicology tests show Feldmiller's blood-alcohol content was nearly three times the legal limit for impairment in Utah — and started to argue about what the detective called “household responsibilities.”
“There was a lot of finger pointing,” Lewis said.
Feldmiller told investigators he became enraged, drew a small hunting knife he carried in a sheath on his belt, and advanced toward Bedwell “ranting and raving.” Bedwell, who was seated at a table, stood up and grabbed Feldmiller's shoulders, according to Lewis.
“(Feldmiller) told me that he stabbed him three times,” the detective said.
Lewis testified that Feldmiller told him the first knife blow caused Bedwell, 46, to lose his balance. Feldmiller stabbed his roommate a second time as he fell backward, Lewis said.
“After Mr. Bedwell had fallen to the floor, he stabbed him a third time,” Lewis said.
A medical examiner report showed that the first stab wound penetrated Bedwell's heart, causing his death.
Lewis said Feldmiller told him he intended to stab Bedwell, just not three times. He also said he has difficulty controlling himself when he loses his temper.
“I intended to stab him, but I didn't mean to kill him,” Lewis said, reading Feldmiller's response to one of his questions from an interview transcript.
Following Lewis' testimony, Judge Ed Peterson ordered Feldmiller to stand trial on the murder charge. A three-day trial is scheduled to begin Aug. 29. Feldmiller remains in the Uintah County Jail, where he is being held in lieu of $250,000 cash.
E-mail:geoff@ubstandard.com
