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Judges sentences Coward woman to life for husband's murder

By Traci Bridges - SCNow.com

April 19, 2012

Sandra Bratschi Sanders finally on Thursday got to hear a word she has been waiting to hear since her brother disappeared nearly eight years ago.

Guilty.

After a four-day trial in general sessions court in Florence, Sanders’ former sister-in-law, 48-year-old Brenda Miles Bratschi of Coward, was convicted of murder in the 2004 death of Randy Bratschi.

Minutes later, Circuit Judge Craig Brown sentenced Brenda Bratschi to life in prison. She was also convicted of burying a body without notice or inquiry, for which she received a three-year sentence. She was given credit for time served on that sentence.

“It’s indescribable. I couldn’t be happier now that it’s over and we can go on with our lives,” Sanders said after the sentence was announced. “I know Randy’s smiling down at his little sister. The day we got the call that he had disappeared, I promised him I would never give up and I would see this through. And I didn’t give up. Randy can rest in peace now, and so can we.”

In sentencing, members of the court audience learned Brenda Bratschi actually confessed to her husband’s murder but claimed it was in self-defense. That confession was suppressed on legal grounds and never heard by the jury.

“We knew she had confessed, but it couldn’t be used,” Sanders said. “That was hard, but we had to have faith in the justice system.”

Without the confession, the cornerstone of the state’s case became a domestic dispute the Bratschis had about six weeks before Randy Bratschi disappeared.

During that incident, Brenda Bratschi beat Randy Bratschi with a wooden Ozark tire thumper commonly used by truck drivers to strike the tires on 18-wheelers to check air pressure. Randy Bratschi suffered multiple contusions and severe facial injuries in that attack. Brenda Bratschi was arrested and charged with assault and battery with intent to kill in that case.

In closing arguments Thursday, 12th Circuit Asst. Solicitor Matt Ozment said Brenda Bratschi attacked Randy Bratschi that day because he was about to discover she’d been withdrawing large amounts of money from his bank account.

“She was about to get caught spending all the money,” Ozment said. “That assault and battery with intent to kill case was her first attempt to kill Randy Bratschi.”

Randy Bratschi recovered from that attack, and Brenda Bratschi was prohibited by a family court order of protection from contacting Randy Bratschi. But according to witnesses, she violated that order on two separate occasions just a few days before he disappeared on Nov. 26, 2004.

That morning, Randy Bratschi left his job at Smurfit-Stone Container just before 7 a.m. and was never seen or heard from again. Investigators believe Randy Bratschi made it home from work that morning because they found his work clothes and lunch containers there.

“Here’s what I think happened: Randy came home that day and before he could get his boots off, before he could let his dog out, Brenda ambushed him,” Ozment said during his closing statement.

Investigators later found Randy Bratschi’s Isuzu Rodeo abandoned at Bluff Landing, off Old River Road in Pamplico. Brenda Bratschi’s nephew testified he saw Randy Bratschi driving the Isuzu on Nov. 28, but several law enforcement officers and a few hunters who went by the bluff that weekend said the Isuzu was parked in the same spot from the night of Nov. 26 until it was found.

Jerome Eaddy testified Wednesday that he saw Brenda Bratschi, dressed in camouflage, leaving that landing after dark on Nov. 26. Eaddy said he gave her a ride from the landing.

Searches of Randy Bratschi’s vehicle and residence yielded no immediate clues to his whereabouts, and the case eventually grew cold.

That was until July 2009 when Marty McDonald purchased the land where Bratschi’s mobile home sat. McDonald testified Tuesday he stumbled upon Randy Bratschi’s body shortly after the mobile home was moved from its foundation. McDonald said he was shocked when he discovered a human skull wrapped in a tarp where the mobile home was sitting.

Earlier in the week, Brenda Bratschi’s attorney Lee Herron implied her son, Frankie Miles, might have had something to do Randy Bratschi’s disappearance. On Thursday, Herron called Miles to the stand, but Miles refused to testify.

“I invoke my Fifth Amendment right. I do not wish to answer any questions,” Miles responded, his voice shaking, to all three questions Herron asked him.

Miles is charged with misprision of a felony in connection with the case.

Miles, along with several of Brenda Bratschi’s sisters and family members, were in the courtroom for the verdict and sentencing. Two of her sisters spoke to the judge on her behalf, saying their sister has made mistakes but they will never believe her capable of such a heinous act.

“Brenda’s guilty of a lot of things – the forgery – she’s cleaned my bank account out more than once,” her sister Deborah Miles said, “but Brenda is not a violent person. There is just no way she did this.”

Wanda Matthews, Brenda Bratschi’s older sister, expressed sympathy for Randy Bratschi’s family but said her sister is no killer.

“I’ve never doubted for one minute my sister’s innocence,” Matthews said, begging the judge for mercy and leniency. “Until the day I take my last breath, I’ll believe in her innocence.”

Brenda Bratschi sobbed uncontrollably as her family members spoke – breaking down at the mention she might never see her elderly mother again. She eventually had to sit down in a chair as sentencing continued and indicated through her attorney she could not compose herself enough to address the court.

Defense asks for directed verdict in Coward woman's murder trial

SCnow.com

April 18, 2012

Florence, S.C. - The judge presiding over the trial of a Coward woman charged with the murder of her husband will rule on a motion in the case at 9 a.m. Thursday.

Testimony continues in Coward woman's murder trial

Bratschi accused of murder her husband

By Traci Bridges - SCNow.com

April 17, 2012

Florence, SC. - Testimony Tuesday in the trial of a Coward woman charged with the murder of her husband focused on a domestic dispute between the couple about six weeks before Randy Bratschi disappeared.

But the circumstances surrounding that October 2004 incident are at the center of dispute in the case.

Brenda Bratschi maintains it was Randy Bratschi that attacked her. The state contends it was the other way around.

On Tuesday, jurors heard recordings of 911 calls from both Bratschis, and their accounts differed greatly.

In her call to 911, Brenda Bratschi screams to the dispatcher that her husband just attacked her with a garden tool but says she managed to get away.

“He hit me,” she screams on the recording, much of which is unintelligible. “I ran away and got in my vehicle. I hit him several times. He tried to kill me.”

Brenda Bratschi tells the dispatcher she has left the residence and is on the way to Coward Town Hall to report the incident.

But minutes later, the jury heard a different story from Randy Bratschi via his call to 911.

“My wife’s trying to kill me,” he says, breathing heavily. “We were on the way to my work, and she said she had to use the bathroom so I turned around and went home. I was going to the car and she started hitting me with a club. I don’t know what happened. She just hit me and kept hitting me.”

Randy Bratschi goes on to say that he has a gun and is going to shoot Brenda Bratschi if she returns.

“If she comes in, I’m gonna kill her. I’m gonna have to help myself,” he says. “I’m afraid of her.”

Brenda Bratschi did not return to the residence that day. When officers arrived, they found Randy Bratschi bruised and bleeding. They also recovered half of a wooden tire thumper commonly used by truck drivers to strike the tires on 18-wheelers to check air pressure. That is the club investigators claim Brenda Bratschi used to attack her husband.

Randy Bratschi was taken to a Lake City hospital for treatment. Dr. Ernest Atkinson, who treated Randy Bratschi after that incident, testified Tuesday that the injuries were “pretty severe.”

“He had multiple contusions and pretty severe facial injuries,” Atkinson said.

Atkinson said the injuries were not life-threatening but added they very well could have been.

“Looking at the injuries sustained here, these were pretty strong blows,” Atkinson said, “so if it had the right place, yes, it could have killed him.”

Brenda Bratschi also went to the hospital, but investigators testified Tuesday her only visible injury was a small laceration on her thumb. She was later arrested and charged with assault and battery with intent to kill.

The state, led by 12th Circuit Asst. Solicitor Matt Ozment, maintains that assault was the beginning of the end for Randy Bratschi.

After her arrest, Brenda Bratschi was prohibited by a family court order of protection from contacting Randy Bratschi, but she violated that order on two separate occasions just a few days before he disappeared on Nov. 26, 2004.

One of those occasions was just four days before at the home of Susan Hill, with whom Randy Bratschi had become romantically involved by that time.

Susan Hill testified Tuesday that she met Randy Bratschi many years ago when the two worked together at Stone Container. She said they “hung out in the same group of friends” and became closer after the domestic dispute between him and his wife.

Hill said she and Randy Bratschi eventually began dating but were only alone together for the first time just a few days before he disappeared. She said Randy Bratschi came to her house the Sunday before he disappeared and encountered Brenda Bratschi on a dirt road near Hill’s house.

“Brenda was sitting out on my dirt road,” Hill said. “He was a little nervous.”

Minutes later, Hill said Brenda Bratschi called her home.

“She said, ‘Have fun with my husband’ and hung up,” Hill said.

Hill said she and Randy Bratschi continued their date, heading out to a local nightclub and also spent time together the following day. She said they didn’t hear from Brenda Bratschi again.

On cross-examination, defense attorney Lee Herron had several questions about that night.

“Did Randy come running inside screaming, ‘Oh my gosh, she’s here. Call the police. She’s going to hurt me’? Did you hear any screaming or raised voices outside?” Herron asked.

Hill admitted Bratschi did not seem too alarmed by the encounter and said she didn’t hear any arguing outside.

“Isn’t it true that Brenda approached Randy, shined a flashlight in his face and said, ‘Hmm, I wonder how long this has been going on’ then simply turned around and walked away?” he continued.

Hill said she was inside when the encounter took place and couldn’t comment on what happened between Randy and Brenda Bratschi.

A few days after that, on Nov. 26, 2004, Randy Bratschi left his job at Smurfit-Stone Container and was never seen or heard from again. Investigators later found his Isuzu Rodeo abandoned at Bluff Landing, off Old River Road in Pamplico.

Searches of his vehicle and residence yielded no immediate clues to his whereabouts. Several searches were conducted, but the case eventually grew cold.

That was until July 2009 when Marty McDonald purchased the land where Bratschi’s mobile home sat. McDonald testified Tuesday he stumbled upon Randy Bratschi’s body shortly after the mobile home was moved from its foundation. McDonald said he was shocked when he discovered a human skull wrapped in a tarp where the mobile home was sitting.

“At first I thought it was a gourd, but I found out real quick that it wasn’t,” McDonald said.

Dr. Kendra Ortega, a forensic DNA analyst from the North Texas Health Science Center, testified that the bones sent to her from the Florence County Sheriff’s Office matched that of Randy Bratschi. Ortega testified that she came to the conclusion by comparing DNA samples from Bratschi’s blood relatives and children.

Testimony in the trial is slated to resume at 9 a.m. Wednesday in the 11th floor courtroom at the Florence City-County Complex. Circuit Judge Craig Brown is presiding.

Testimony to begin Tuesday in case of Coward woman accused of husband's murder

By Patricia Burkett - Scnow.com

April 16, 2012

FLORENCE- Testimony will begin Tuesday morning in a Florence courtroom, in the case of a Coward woman charged in her husband's murder.

Brenda Miles Bratschi, 46, of 100 Lynch Road, is charged with murder in the death of 54-year-old Randy Delyn Bratschi. He disappeared in late 2004 and was presumed dead.

Randy Bratschi was last seen leaving his job at Smurfit-Stone Container in Florence on the morning of Nov. 26, 2004. He didn’t take his diabetes medication with him, which cast suspicion on the circumstances of his disappearance. Bratschi’s Isuzu Rodeo was later found abandoned at Bluff Landing, off Old River Road in Pamplico.

Jury selection took place Monday morning in the case, followed by a hearing regarding a previous incident involving the couple.

The prosecution and defense ended up picking a jury that consists of nine women and five men.

That hearing was held outside of the presence of the jury members, who were dismissed Monday afternoon.

Testimony came from Florence County Sheriff's Office Investigator Kathleen Streett, who responded to a domestic incident involving the Bratschis.

Streett told the court that she visited Randy at a hospital following an altercation at the Bratschi home, in which Randy said Brenda attacked him with a baseball bat type of weapon.

The weapon was later identified as a wooden club commonly used by truck drivers to strike the tires on 18-wheelers to check air pressure.

During the hearing, Streett read from a statement Randy gave after the altercation.

Randy's statement indicated that he and his wife were driving to the bank, when she told him she had a stomach ache and wanted to return home.

He wrote that when they arrived home, he was attacked by his wife.

"Out of the blue, I felt a blow to the back of the neck that brought me to my knees. I managed to turn around but was kind of in and out of consciousness," the statement read.

"At this time, Brenda was beating me repeatedly about my body with a wooden club truck drivers use to check the air in their tires. I was continuously beaten until the stick broke," it continued.

Streett told the court that she felt Randy's life was in danger and encouraged him to seek a protective order from a judge.

Randy's statements were used to further convey the danger which he felt.

"I have several broken bones in my face, cracked ribs and several bruises and lacerations. I do believe Brenda was attempting to kill me and I am afraid for my life," the statement read.

Brenda was later prohibited by a family court from contacting Randy Bratschi, but she violated that order on two separate occasions just days before he disappeared.

During the hearing Monday, a judge decided that the jury would be allowed to hear about the previous incident during the current murder trial.

Prior to the discovery of Randy's remains, searches of his vehicle and Old Georgetown Road residence gave no clues to his whereabouts, and several foot searches for Bratschi yielded no results.

The case grew cold until nearly five years later in July 2009 when Chris Springs and his cousin were moving a trailer from Randy Bratschi’s former residence and found human remains under the trailer.

Those remains were sent to the Medical University of South Carolina in Charleston for further analysis to help determine their identity and possible cause of death.

Those tests were unsuccessful, as were DNA tests by State Law Enforcement Division scientists, so the remains were sent to the Health Science Center at the University of North Texas for mitochondrial DNA analysis.

Soon after those scientists identified the remains as those of Randy Bratschi, Brenda Bratschi was arrested during a traffic stop and charged with murder in the death of her husband.

A circuit judge denied bond for Brenda Bratschi.

Brenda Bratschi remains in custody at the Florence County Detention Center in Effingham.

Testimony is slated to begin Tuesday morning at the Florence City-County Complex.

Widow pleads not guilty to husband's slaying, denied bond

By Patricia Burkett - SCNow.com

January 15, 2010

A woman accused of killing her husband, whose remains were found last summer and identified last month five years after he was reported missing, has pleaded not guilty to the crime.

Twelfth Circuit Court Judge Ralph King Anderson Jr. denied bond for 46-year-old Brenda Miles Bratschi, of 100 Lynch Road, Coward, who was arrested during a traffic stop the morning of Dec. 7 and is charged with murder in the death of Randy Delyn Bratschi.

Randy Bratschi, 54, disappeared in late 2004 and was presumed dead.

“Randy had a big heart and all of these people had big hearts. But in this courtroom, looking at this woman, our hearts have shrunk to nothing,” he said.

“I just want to say that human beings deserve mercy, and this is an animal,” Randy Bratschi’s daughter told the court.

Twelfth Circuit Solicitor Ed Clements III, who is prosecuting the case, said the hearing is a long time coming for Randy Bratschi’s family.

“The Bratschi family have been through a long, long, hard, tortuous journey to get to this point today,” he said.

Randy Bratschi’s sister, Sandra Sanderson, spoke after the hearing about the ordeal her family has had to endure.

“It was very difficult, but again I want to thank the Florence County Sheriff’s Department, the solicitor’s office and anyone who has had a (part) in this case,” she said. “We feel that the judge made a good decision today and we’re happy with his decision and we have a lot of confidence in the people that are handling this case.”

Clements said he is eager to bring some closure to Randy Bratschi’s family.

“I feel so sorry for them to have so many questions for so long,” he said, “and now some of the questions have been answered and we’re gonna work very, very hard to answer the remaining questions they have and bring justice in this case.”

Sanderson said she’s looking forward to the day her family knows someone has been held responsible for her brother’s disappearance.

“We’ve been doing this for the past five years and we’re gonna see it through ... we just want justice for our brother,“ she said.

Brenda Bratschi had been out on bond since October 2004 when she was arrested and charged with assault and battery with intent to kill in connection with the assault of her husband. She’s accused of beating Randy Bratschi with a wooden club commonly used by truck drivers to strike the tires on 18-wheelers to check air pressure.

She later was prohibited by a family court order of protection from contacting Randy Bratschi, but she violated that order on two separate occasions just days before he disappeared.

Randy Bratschi was last seen leaving his job at Smurfit-Stone Container in Florence the morning of Nov. 26, 2004. He failed to bring his diabetes medication with him, which cast doubt on the circumstances of his disappearance.

Investigators also became suspicious when they found later Randy Bratschi’s Isuzu Rodeo abandoned at Bluff Landing off Old River Road in Pamplico, Florence County Sheriff Kenney Boone said in a previous interview. Searches of his vehicle, as well as his Old Georgetown Road residence, yielded no clues to his whereabouts.

Several searches were conducted for the missing man, including one in February 2005, when about 100 volunteers took part in an in-depth, acre-by-acre search of two tracts of land in lower Florence County.

Men moving a trailer from 2100 N. Old Georgetown Road, Coward, Randy Bratschi’s former residence, found the remains underneath the trailer July 16.

The remains were sent to the Medical University of South Carolina in Charleston for further analysis to help determine their identity and possible cause of death, Florence County Coroner M.G. “Bubba” Matthews said, but to no avail.

Laboratory technicians at the State Law Enforcement Division were unable to extract any usable DNA from the remains because of their level of decay, so the remains were sent to the Health Science Center at the University of North Texas for mitochondrial DNA analysis. The results showed the remains were those of Randy Bratschi.

The Health Science Center at the University of North Texas determined in late July the identity of remains found in January in Horry County as those of Alice Donovan, 44, of Galivants Ferry. Donovan was abducted Nov. 14, 2002, from the Conway Wal-Mart parking lot by two men who escaped from a Kentucky jail.

After Randy Bratchi’s disappearance, his widow was arrested April 3, 2008, and charged with 13 counts of forgery. In that case, she was accused of taking two checkbooks from a Lake City resident sometime between February and March and using them to spend $5,200.

She was arrested again May 21 and charged with forgery-value $5,000 or more, Florence County Detention Center booking reports show. She is accused of cashing checks belonging to someone else without permission at various locations in Florence County, Boone said in an earlier press release.

The night of her Dec. 7 murder arrest, her son, 23-year-old Frankie Miles, of 101 E. Friendfield Road, Coward, was arrested and is charged with misprision of a felony in connection with the case. He was released the following morning on a personal recognizance bond.

Miles was in court Friday morning for his mother’s plea and bond hearing but didn’t speak during the proceedings.

Bond denied for woman connected to husband's 2004 death

Wmbfnews.com

December 7, 2009

Remains found on missing man's property to undergo more testing

SCNow.com

July 31, 2009

Investigators have been unable to determine the cause of death for the person whose remains were found July 16 at the property owned by a missing Florence County man. The case, however, is still being investigated as a homicide.

Florence County sheriff’s investigators responded late that afternoon to the scene, 2100 N. Old Georgetown Road, Coward, the former residence of Randy Delyn Bratschi, Florence County Sheriff’s Capt. Mike Nunn said.

Bratschi, 54, disappeared in late 2004. He is presumed dead by deputies, but it is not clear whether the body found on his former property is his.

Witness Chris Springs said he and his cousin were moving a trailer from the property when they found a body underneath the trailer.

The remains were sent to the Medical University of South Carolina in Charleston for further analysis to help determine their identity and possible cause of death, Florence County Coroner M.G. “Bubba” Matthews said, but to no avail.

Laboratory technicians at the State Law Enforcement Division were unable to extract any usable DNA from the remains because of their level of decay, so the remains are being sent to the Health Science Center at the University of North Texas for mitochondrial DNA analysis. It may be a month or longer before the results are available.

The Health Science Center at the University of North Texas determined last week the identity of remains found in January in Horry County as those of Alice Donovan, 44, of Galivants Ferry. Donovan was abducted Nov. 14, 2002, from the Conway Wal-Mart parking lot by two men who escaped from a Kentucky jail.

Those men, 31-year-old Chadrick Evan Fulks and 26-year-old Branden Leon Basham, were convicted in federal court of murdering Donovan and are awaiting execution. Fulks’ was the first federal death conviction in South Carolina.

Randy Bratschi was last seen leaving his job at Smurfit-Stone Container in Florence the morning of Nov. 26, 2004. He failed to bring his diabetes medication with him, which cast doubt on the circumstances of his disappearance.

Investigators also became suspicious when they found later Randy Bratschi’s Isuzu Rodeo abandoned at Bluff Landing, off Old River Road in Pamplico, Florence County Sheriff Kenney Boone said in a previous interview. Searches of his vehicle, as well as his Old Georgetown Road residence, yielded no clues to his whereabouts.

Several searches have taken place for the missing man, including one in February 2005, when about 100 volunteers took part in an in-depth, acre-by-acre search of two tracts of land in lower Florence County.

Meanwhile, Bratschi’s wife, 45-year-old Brenda Miles Bratschi, of 100 Lynch Road, Coward was arrested May 21 and is charged with forgery-value $5,000 or more, Florence County Detention Center booking reports show. She is accused of cashing checks belonging to someone else without permission at various locations in Florence County, Boone said in a press release.

Brenda Bratschi previously was arrested April 3, 2008, and charged with 13 counts of forgery. In that case, she was accused of taking two checkbooks from a Lake City resident sometime between February and March and using them to spend $5,200.

She had been out on bond since October 2004 when she was arrested and charged with assault and battery with intent to kill in connection with the assault of her husband. She’s accused of beating Randy Bratschi with a wooden club commonly used by truck drivers to strike the tires on 18-wheelers to check air pressure.