GARDEN CITY, N.Y. (AP) -- Maureen Steeves started what seemed like a normal day in suburbia cooking and doing laundry while her estranged husband ran errands and took their two teenage sons to a high school football game.
But later that day she was found unconscious on the kitchen floor. And three days after that, David Steeves took their sons to England on one-way tickets.
Maureen Steeves died at the end of October and an autopsy found the cause of death was potassium cyanide poisoning. Prosecutors say her husband had laced her coffee with the lethal chemical.
Authorities say David Steeves, who was arrested after he returned from England, didn't want to see his wife dating anyone else after they divorced. Prosecutors also have suggested he may have gotten instructions for killing wife from ``The
Mujahideen Poisons Handbook,'' which was found on his laptop computer.
Steeves, 43, was charged with second-degree murder in his wife's Oct. 31 death.
He has denied allegations that he poisoned her coffee with cyanide, but Suffolk County Assistant District Attorney Janet Albertson is confident that authorities have the man who killed Maureen Steeves.
``He gave the police a seven-page written statement confessing his guilt,'' Albertson said after Steeves was ordered held without bail.
A criminal complaint quotes Steeves as saying: ``I sprinkled enough cyanide in her cup of coffee to kill her.''
Steeves' attorney, Joseph Hanshe, claims the purported confession was the product of hours of abuse and coercion by detectives.
No reason has been given for the breakup of the couple's marriage. Hanshe says Steeves had confided in his wife five years ago that he thought he might be gay, but never acted on his impulses.
``He believed he was, but he never cheated on his wife,'' the lawyer said.
Maureen Steeves was stricken on Oct. 18 at her estranged husband's home in Center Moriches on Long Island.
Authorities and Steeves' lawyer say it was not unusual for her to visit the home since the couple's two children lived with their father.
Hanshe says that when David Steeves returned home that day, the house was filled with smoke from food burning on the stove and his wife was lying unconscious on the kitchen floor.
On Oct. 21, after Steeves was told his wife was brain-dead, the British native bought one-way tickets and flew to Manchester, England, with his children. Hanshe says Steeves was distraught and was seeking consolation from relatives.
``He wanted to deal with it, but his only relatives were in England,'' Hanshe said.
A week later, Steeves returned to the United States with the boys and was arrested when he arrived in New York. Hanshe says Steeves had been in contact with law enforcement officials during his travels.
Hanshe contends that detectives kept Steeves in a tiny room for 12 hours until he confessed and that they manhandled his client.
A police spokesman declined to comment.
State Department of Correctional Services records indicate Steeves served a year in prison for burglary in the mid-1980s. Hanshe said Steeves was in his teens at the time of the offense and had not been in legal trouble for more than 20 years.
The couple's sons, 16 and 14, are being cared for by the victim's brother.
TM & Copyright 2008 CBS Radio Inc. and its relevant subsidiaries. CBS RADIO & EYE Logo TM & Copyright 2008 CBS Broadcasting Inc. Used under license. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. TheAssociated Press contributed to this report.
1010 WINS is the 24-hour all-news radio station for New York City, New Jersey, Connecticut and Long Island including Manhattan, Brooklyn, Queens, Bronx, Staten Island, Nassau County, Suffolk County, Fairfield County, Bergen County, Essex County, Long Island, Westchester County, and Rockland County. Listen on air and online for breaking world news, New York City news, New York City traffic and transit, Tri-State area traffic and transit, New York sports, New York City weather, tri-state weather and much more. Download free podcasts and listen to New York news and audio press conferences. Listen online to top New York radio news broadcasters including John Montone, Judy DeAngelis, Steve Torre, Sandy Kenyon, Dr. Brian McDonough, Lee Harris, Paul Guanzon, Mark Hilan, Lori Madden, Juliet Papa, Doug O'Brien, Terry Sheridan, Al Jones, Steve Kastenbaum, Carol D'Auria, Brian Carey, Sandi Klein, Mona Rivera, Susan Richard, Catherine smith, Glenn Schuck, Alice Stockton-Rossini, INS. 1010Wins.com is also available in HD Radio. www.1010wins.com
E-Mail Story
Print Story
