Sussex man, 76, charged in Waukesha shooting case
Waukesha - A 76-year-old man was charged Thursday in Waukesha County Circuit Court with attempted first-degree intentional homicide, two counts of first-degree recklessly endangering safety with a dangerous weapon and seven other crimes after Waukesha police said he shot at them while they were responding to a domestic violence complaint Tuesday afternoon.
Richard A. Petarius of Sussex had gone to the Waukesha residence of his ex-wife armed with a 12-gauge shotgun a few hours after he had been in court and was found in contempt of the terms of the couple's 2010 divorce.
According to a criminal complaint:
Phyllis Petarius, 75, lives at the Wyndwood Condominiums in the 1800 block of E. Racine Ave. Richard Petarius was inside his ex-wife's condominium when two police officers arrived around 4:15 p.m. As one officer was interviewing her at the entrance to the residence, the suspect appeared inside holding a shotgun and pointed it at the officer. One of the officers started shooting at Petarius as his ex-wife was pulled outside to safety. Petarius fired two shots at the officer. The second officer also fired shots into the room. No one was struck by the gunfire.
Phyllis Petarius was treated at Waukesha Memorial Hospital for a broken arm and other minor injuries. She suffered the broken arm when Richard Petarius pushed her onto the concrete floor of a garage as he forcibly entered the residence.
He surrendered to police at 5:16 p.m.
On Thursday, Richard Petarius was charged with 10 crimes. One is misdemeanor violation of a 2010 domestic abuse restraining order.
In addition to attempted homicide of the police officer and two felony counts of recklessly endangering safety with a dangerous weapon, Petarius was charged with six other felonies. They are: armed burglary; false imprisonment with use of a dangerous weapon; intimidating a victim with a dangerous weapon; possession of a firearm contrary to a domestic abuse injunction; possession of a short-barreled shotgun; and attempted aggravated battery of an elderly person.
Court Commissioner Thomas Pieper set bail at $500,000, ordered Richard Petarius to have no contact with his ex-wife and prohibited him from possessing any knives, weapons or firearms.
A court hearing is scheduled for 10 a.m. Thursday.
Waukesha County court records indicate the court imposed a four-year restraining order on Richard Petarius in 2010, at the time of the divorce, in response to domestic violence complaints. The restraining order prohibited him from contacting Phyllis Petarius and possessing firearms.
