Crime & Safety

Apple Valley Man Gets Life Without Parole for Murder of Wife, Unborn Child

A jury earlier convicted Roger Earl Holland on two counts of first-degree murder and two counts of second-degree murder

A man convicted of murdering his wife and unborn child was sentenced Tuesday afternoon to two consecutive life terms without the possibility of parole, the Star Tribune reported.

The sentence came the same day as the early morning conviction of Roger Earl Holland on two counts of first-degree murder and two counts of second-degree murder for the death of his wife, 37-year-old Margorie Ann Holland, and their unborn child.

Holland’s sentence was mandatory under state law.

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The conviction followed a two-week trial and a jury deliberation of about 10 hours.

Holland pushed his wife down the stairs of their Apple Valley townhome in March. She was 15 weeks pregnant.

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The couple both served in the Minnesota National Guard. Holland told police that at the time of the incident, he was out picking up breakfast, according to a complaint filed by the Dakota County Attorney's Office.

However, a suspicious Internet search, a scan of text messages on his phone and evidence at the scene pointed to foul play and a relationship that was rocky and on the verge of ending. Days before the incident, Margorie Holland had texted her husband asking for a divorce. 


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