Jackson County Man Found Guilty of Murder

After roughly an hour of deliberation, a Jackson County jury today found an area man guilty of first-degree murder in the 2022 shooting of his wife. 58-year-old Christopher Prichard of Bellevue, was charged in Iowa District Court of Jackson County with first-degree murder and first-degree robbery in the death of his estranged wife, 55-year-old Angela Prichard. The jury this afternoon found Prichard guilty on both counts after deliberating for roughly one hour. The verdict came after four days of testimony from over two dozen witnesses. Authorities found Angela Prichard dead from an apparent gunshot wound the morning of Oct. 8, 2022, at Mississippi Ridge Boarding Kennels, the business she operated near Bellevue. The two were separated at the time of her death. A sentencing hearing has been set for March 22. A conviction of first-degree murder carries a mandatory life sentence in Iowa.