By Kim McDarison
Charges have been filed against Elizabeth M. Durkee, the 36-year-old Fort Atkinson resident who was listed as a “suspect” in an AMBER Alert released by the Wisconsin Department of Justice Friday.
Durkee is scheduled to appear in Jefferson County Circuit Court before Judge Robert F. Dehring, Jr., according to records released today through the Wisconsin Circuit Court Access website. Her initial appearance is scheduled for 1:15 p.m.
Charges filed against Durkee include: first-degree intentional homicide; strangulation and suffocation; arson of a building without the owner’s consent, and mutilating a corpse.
The charges listed are all felony charges, with first-degree intentional homicide — a class A felony — bringing a possible penalty of life in prison.
Durkee was identified as a suspect by the Department of Justice Friday in an AMBER Alert, which noted that Durkee was last seen leaving what the department identified as a “suspicious” fire which had occurred at approximately 10:44 a.m. Friday at a residence on Foster Street in Fort Atkinson.
According to the Fort Atkinson Fire Department, a body had been found by firefighters in the house, located at 415 Foster Street. Details about the identity of the deceased person were not released.
The AMBER alert details specified that a “deceased individual was located in the fire.”
Details within the alert went on to state that “Durkee was seen leaving the fire scene with 2-year-old Emma Schoonover,” whom, the alert continued, was believed by the department to be in “great danger.”
The AMBER alert was canceled about an hour after it was released. The Department of Justice updated the alert to note that “the child has been found safe.”
Court documents released today in advance of the 1:15 hearing indicate that there is a motion before the court to seal some information about the victim and information presented by a witness.
Court documents list Durkee’s address as 415 Foster St.
The photos above show the aftermath of a fire which took place Friday at 415 Foster St. A body was found in the house, which was described as a total loss by Fort Atkinson Fire Chief Daryl Rausch. The Fort Atkinson Police Department has since closed Foster Street to all but residential traffic. An investigation is underway by the State Fire Marshal’s Office which operates within the Wisconsin Department of Justice.
Kim McDarison photos.
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