Accused of murder: Jury selection begins in the case against Daniel Bartelt
WASHINGTON CO. (WITI) -- A jury trial begins Monday, August 11th for 20-year-old Daniel Bartelt -- accused in the murder of Jessie Blodgett.
Bartelt faces four felony charges in the case: two counts of first degree intentional homicide, one count of first degree recklessly endangering safety and one count of false imprisonment.
Jessie Blodgett
One count of first degree intentional homicide is related to the death of 19-year-old Jessie Blodgett. Blodgett was found dead inside her home on July 15th.
The other three charges are related to an alleged attack at a Richfield Park on July 12th.
CLICK HERE to read more about the Richfield Park case.
Bartelt issued a dual plea of not guilty, and not guilty by reason of mental disease or defect to the charges against him -- back in November.
In the Jessie Blodgett case, the young actress had just wrapped up a performance of Fiddler on the Roof. According to a search warrant, Blodgett had gone to a cast party following a Sunday matinée. Her mother remembers her coming home after 1:00 a.m. Monday, July 15th.
The search warrant said her mother placed clothing in Blodgett’s room around 8 a.m., and discovered her daughter in bed alone. However, the girl’s mother didn’t notice whether she was alive. Blodgett’s mother left for work, and returned after noon. That’s when she discovered her daughter deceased.
According to the complaint, police found ligature marks on Blodgett’s neck, left wrist and ankles. The preliminary autopsy findings are that Blodgett died of "ligature strangulation." Police also found a "roll of tape underneath Blodgett's footboard." Investigators say they later discovered fingerprints on the tape that matched Bartelt's.
Investigators also recovered evidence thrown away at Woodlawn Park, where a camera captured a picture of Bartelt.
Bartelt was reportedly a friend of Blodgett's, and a classmate at Hartford Union High School, where both were active in the music program. The two had apparently recently reconnected.
The complaint indicates Bartelt told officials he had learned of Blodgett's death from a friend, and had even attended a vigil for Blodgett at Jessie's parents' house on July 16th.
The complaint says a detective investigating this case found among Bartelt's possessions a disc that "contained portions of what appears to be a novel titled 'Red is Red' by 'Joseph Bartelt.'"
"Joesph" is Daniel Bartelt's middle name.
The complaint says a "portion of the novel focuses on Jessica...and Jessica's college experiences." Another portion of the novel details a character named "D" beating another character into a coma using a pillowcase filled with Legos.
The complaint also referred to a search of Bartelt's laptop, which recovered a search with the parameters "serial killer wiki," a Wikipedia search for "list of serial killers by number of victims," which leads to a webpage that defines a serial killer as "a person who murders two or more people in two or more separate events over a period of time, for primarily psychological reasons, which may range from a few hours to many years."
The complaint says the list shows serial killers from the 20th Century to present day by number of victims.
The complaint says other serial killers were searched by name.
According to the criminal complaint, Bartelt's parents told officials he had dropped out of college at UW-Stevens Point after a semester, and had returned home, at which time his parents said he appeared depressed.
Both Bartelt and Blodgett participated in local theater. The two even recorded a song together. A demo of their recording was posted on YouTube. Listen to it just below.
Bartelt now faces life in prison.
Jessie Blodgett's death is Hartford's first homicide in 15 years.
Related stories: