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Joseph James Benson, 36, is headed to trial for a second-degree murder charge related to the death of a woman in Edgerton last fall.
During a settlement conference held in Pipestone County District Court on Sept. 9, Benson’s attorney, Pamela Neumann, said no agreement had been reached and requested that the case be sent to trial. She said she thought the trial would need to be around a week and a half, to allow a couple days for jury selection and around four days of testimony.
Judge Kayla Johnson suggested an eight-day trial be scheduled. It was later scheduled for March 2 to March 11.
According to a criminal complaint filed Nov. 5, deputies with the Pipestone County Sheriff’s Office responded to a report of a possible domestic assault at an Edgerton residence on Nov. 2. The report came from the property owner, who told law enforcement that Benson and his girlfriend were house sitting for her and she had received a message from Benson indicating that he had killed the woman, according to the complaint.
Officers arrived at the residence and detained Benson, who told the officers “there’s a dead body upstairs,” according to the complaint. Officers entered the house and found a woman who had no pulse. She was transported to the Ramsey County Medical Examiner’s Office for an autopsy. A provisional report indicated that the cause of death was likely asphyxia and stated that the manner of death was homicide, according to the complaint.
A mental examination was ordered for Benson in April and Neumann told Judge Johnson at that time that Benson did not recall what occurred. According to an order for examination signed by Judge Johnson and filed on April 15, the defense intended to assert a mental illness or cognitive impairment defense. The mental health examination report was filed with the court in June, but is not available for public viewing.
Benson is being held in Nobles County Jail with bail or bond set at $250,000 with no conditions or $100,000 with the conditions that he neither use nor possess alcohol or drugs, submit to random testing, obtain permission before leaving the state, make and maintain contact with an attorney, keep his attorney informed of his contact information, remain law abiding, and make all future court appearances.