by Dennis Dalman
editor@thenewsleaders.com
The cause of a tragic death at a residence just south of Rice last October has officially been ruled a suicide by the Benton County Sheriff’s Department and the Anoka County Medical Examiner’s Office.
At 1 p.m. Oct. 14, the sheriff’s department received a call of a gunshot wound at a residence in Rockwood Estates Mobile Home Park about two miles south of Rice.
A woman there, Tammra Baker, 44, was pronounced dead at the scene, and an investigation began. The long process included an autopsy, toxicology testing, interviewing and forensic examinations of evidence found at the death scene.
Baker’s husband had stated she used a firearm to commit suicide in their home.
The sheriff’s office and the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension spent many hours during the next several days at the scene searching for and gathering evidence.
Benton County Sheriff Troy Heck said the process took a long time because all involved wanted to be sure the evidence found at the scene was completely consistent with the eyewitness testimony given by Baker’s husband. Such evidence and subsequent tests included gun-shot residue and DNA analysis of the surfaces on the firearm.
The autopsy report corroborated evidence found by the sheriff’s department and the BCA.
Besides the BCSD and the BCA, those involved at the scene of the incident included the Rice Police Department, the Rice Fire Department, Gold Cross Ambulance and the Midwest Medical Examiner’s Office.
