Douglas County prosecutors don’t plan on filing more charges right now, in the Jayme Closs case.
They say 21-year-old Jake Patterson held the 13-year-old girl in a rural home in Douglas County. District Attorney Mark Fruehauf initially planned to file charges, around the time of Patterson’s next court date in Barron County on February 6th.
Patterson is already charged in Barron County with kidnapping Closs and murdering her parents. Prosecutors say he confessed to killing James and Denise Closs. If he’s convicted, each murder charge carries an automatic life prison sentence. A judge would then decide whether he would ever be eligible for parole.
Fruehauf says prosecutors consider multiple factors when they decide whether to file criminal charges. He says they include the existence of other charges, and victim-related concerns.
Fruehauf says Douglas County prosecutors can still charge Patterson at any time, within the statute of limitations, for any crime they believe he committed.
