Documents: Murder suspect laughed after knocking victim out with 2×4 board
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POCATELLO — Timothy Blaney was so irate when he found his wife in bed with another man that he grabbed a 2-by-4 piece of wood and beat the the man unconscious, according to court documents and incident reports obtained by EastIdahoNews.com.
The 22-year-old victim, Skylar Huffield, was rushed to the Portneuf Medical Center, where he died.
Blaney, 20, was charged with first-degree murder Thursday and could face the death penalty.
Court documents show Blaney and his wife separated in February but are still legally married and have a child together.
Blaney recently moved to Oregon, and his wife met Huffield on Facebook. They began having a relationship in Pocatello earlier this week, according to documents.
Incident reports show Blaney’s wife and Huffield were in bed together at a home on the 3800 block of Hawthorne Road around 3 a.m. Wednesday.
Blaney’s wife told investigators that she was awakened by Blaney turning on the lights in the bedroom.
Blaney asked, “Is this the guy you’re sleeping with?” then left the room and returned with a piece of wood, according to documents.
“Blaney began striking Huffield in the head with the 2-by-4 as he was lying on the bed,” documents state. “(Blaney’s wife) said she climbed over Huffield and grabbed Blaney around the waist in an effort to prevent him from hitting Huffield but was unable to stop him.”
A man who was sleeping in the front room on a couch heard the commotion and woke up. He saw Blaney walking back and forth from the bedroom to the kitchen.
“I caught my wife sleeping with another guy, he woke up and I knocked him back out,” Blaney allegedly told the man.
“(The witness) said Blaney laughed as if this was amusing to him,” reports state.
Blaney’s wife called police and he left the home in his vehicle. Officers arrived and Huffield was unresponsive, so paramedics were called.
A short time later, an officer spotted Blaney at a Pocatello gas station. He was arrested and taken into custody.
Huffield was rushed to Portneuf Medical Center and had massive swelling to his brain, according to court documents. Doctors told detectives he would not survive his injures, and he was pronounced dead at 2:22 p.m. Wednesday.
Blaney was arraigned Thursday in Bannock County. Magistrate Judge Rick Carnaroli ordered that Blaney remain in the Bannock County Detention Center on a $1 million bond.
Randall D. Schulthies is the public defender representing Blaney, who is due back in court for a preliminary hearing on June 8.
Blaney faces a potential death penalty or imprisonment of life. Bannock County prosecutors have 60 days to determine if they will seek the death penalty.