By Kim McDarison
Elizabeth Durkee, the Fort Atkinson woman accused in June of allegedly setting her grandmother’s house on fire after allegedly suffocating her to death, has entered a plea of not guilty.
Durkee appeared with her attorney Amber Rumpf Tuesday, Sept. 21, in Jefferson County Circuit Court to enter her plea.
Durkee has been charged with four felony counts, including first-degree intentional homicide, a felony A charge; strangulation and suffocation, a felony H charge; arson of a building without the owner’s consent, a Felony C charge, and mutilation of a corpse, a felony F charge.
Charges stem from a series of events that allegedly took place beginning June 7, when, according to a criminal complaint filed by the Fort Atkinson Police Department with the Jefferson County District Attorney’s office on June 15, Durkee told officers she covered her 72-year-old grandmother’s nose and mouth with flower-colored duct tape and remained in the room until her grandmother’s body stopped moving.
The complaint alleges that Durkee told law enforcement officers that she performed this act at her grandmother’s request.
According to the complaint, Durkee, 36, and her 2-year-old daughter, who were living at the residence located in the 400 block of Foster St., in Fort Atkinson, stayed in the house until June 11, when the complaint alleges, Durkee set the house on fire. She and her daughter, according to the complaint, then left the residence in her car.
Firefighters found the remains of Durkee’s grandmother while extinguishing the house fire.
While developing information about the fire and Durkee’s whereabouts, the complaint alleges that police became concerned that the 2-year-old child could be in danger. An AMBER alert was released.
On June 12, Durkee and the child were located at a Super 8 Motel in Delavan at which time Durkee was taken into custody.
The child was turned over to family members at Durkee’s request, according to the complaint.
On Tuesday, in response to the court’s inquiry, counsel indicated that a “speedy trial” would not be requested, according to court documents filed on the Wisconsin Circuit Court Access website.
According to documents filed, “the defense requests that these matters be scheduled far enough out to allow for the considerable amount of discovery to be reviewed.”
The court further inquired as to whether there was a victim present that wished to be heard regarding scheduling. The record indicates that there was no response given to the court’s inquiry.
Durkee is scheduled to appear again in court for a pre-trial conference on Oct. 20. A status conference has also been scheduled for Jan. 6, 2022.
If convicted of the charges, Durkee faces the possibility of life in prison.
An earlier story about the fire and the discovery of a body inside the building, including the criminal complaint filed with the district attorney’s office, is here: https://fortatkinsononline.com/homicide-defendant-alleges-grandmothers-death-was-mercy-killing/.
The charred remains of a home, located in the 400 block of Foster Street, stand after the Fort Atkinson Fire Department extinguished a house fire in June and found a body inside. The house was home to Elizabeth Durkee, 36, her 72-year-old grandmother, and Durkee’s 2-year-old daughter. The body has since been identified as that of Durkee’s grandmother. Durkee has been charged with suffocating her grandmother and setting the home on fire. She recently entered a plea of “not guilty” to the charges filed against her. File photo.
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