Last year, Joey Patterson allegedly murdered the two-year-old son of Minnesota Vikings running back Adrian Peterson. This week, Patterson allegedly kidnapped and assaulted the deceased boy’s mother, Ashley Doohan.
How did the criminal justice system allow an accused child murderer out of jail to allegedly brutalize a woman he has already victimized? One might ask a similar question about how Patterson could have been allowed to walk free after previous child-abuse charges to allegedly kill the woman’s child.
A grand jury indicted Patterson, 27, for murder in October. The accused murderer faced a bond of $750,000. After his arraignment, his family took the unusual step of posting the full $750,000 bond for his release. The accused killer of the little boy has a long arrest record and a history of violence against women. He was also arrested for assaulting a three-year-old in 2012. For that incident, a court ordered Patterson to undergo family violence classes. Despite that long history of violence against women and children, the state put no conditions on Patterson’s recent release on bond.
Out on bond from the murder charges, police arrested Patterson for the new crime on Wednesday. He faces charges of 1st-degree kidnapping, aggravated assault, interference with emergency communication, and 3rd-degree injury to property. The Minnehaha County State’s Attorney reported that Patterson knocked out Miss Doohan and held against her will for over an hour. Authorities also reported that the woman had visible injuries on her neck.
In South Dakota, kidnapping in the first-degree is a Class C felony punishable by up to life in prison and/or a $50,000 fine. Aggravated assault is a Class 3 felony and is punishable by fifteen years in prison and/or a $30,000 fine. The remaining charges are misdemeanors.
Follow Warner Todd Huston on Twitter @warnerthuston or email the author at igcolonel@hotmail.com