WINONA, Minn. – More charges may be imminent against Adam Fravel in the slaying of Madeline Kingsbury. Already the charges have been escalated from second-degree murder to first-degree murder. New court documents indicate additional new albeit lesser charges that Fravel was a violent domestic abuser. The new documents were provided to Fravel’s attorney, Zachary Bauer, to prepare for a hearing in December at which charges can be amended. The documents list 14 witnesses, mostly friends and family of Kingsbury, who already are on record that they were aware of domestic abuse and that she had informed Fravel that she was moving out on him and taking their two children with her.
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Toward trial
New charges would put pressure on Fravel to consider a plea deal. A plea of guilty to a lesser charge would pre-empt a trial. The case would move then to sentencing and perhaps a lesser sentence through negotiation. The existing first-degree murder charge, which came from a grand jury indictment, can mean 25 years in prison and possibly life. Minnesota doesn’t have a death penalty. So far Fravel, age 28, has been in jail six months awaiting trial. His bail: $3 million.