A man accused of forcing his way into his brother’s house in Mineral and assaulting his brother, who then threw a tow ball hitch at him and fractured his skull, was arrested Saturday on a $100,000 warrant.
Bail was reduced to $50,000 after he had his preliminary hearing in Lewis County Superior Court on Monday.
The incident occurred after Tim Carl Saterdal, 57, allegedly got into an argument with his brother outside his brother’s residence on state Route 7 in Mineral on Jan. 18.
Saterdal allegedly continued to argue with his brother after he told him to leave. When his brother tried to go inside his residence and close the door, Saterdal allegedly “shoved his way inside and punched (his brother) multiple times with a closed fist,” according to court documents.
The victim reportedly fell and landed on his back on the floor.
He reported that Saterdahl “continued to come inside, so he threw a tow ball hitch at him, which struck Tim in the head,” according to court documents.
Saterdal then reportedly fell to the ground, got back up, grabbed the victim and fell back to the ground with him.
The victim then reportedly “yelled for help and for someone to call 911.”
Saterdal was reportedly sitting in the passenger seat of a truck outside the residence “with blood running down the left side of his face” when a deputy arrived. When questioned, he reportedly said that his brother “had thrown a metal object at him for no reason,” according to court documents.
Saterdal was taken to Arbor Health Morton Hospital, where medical personnel determined Saterdal had a fractured skull.
He was charged a few days later on Jan. 22 in Lewis County Superior Court with one count each of residential burglary and fourth-degree assault.
The $100,000 warrant for his arrest was issued the same day.
“He was in the hospital for a while and he’s reporting he had no idea (about this case),” defense attorney Rachael Tiller said during Saterdal’s preliminary hearing on Monday. “I know that Mr. Saterdal was quite surprised regarding these allegations.”
Lewis County Superior Court Judge Joely Yeager granted the prosecution’s request to lower bail from the $100,000 set in the warrant to $50,000 due to the age of his criminal history, but Yeager denied Tiller’s request for a lower bail amount due to the extent of that history.
Referring to the 52 warrants on Saterdal’s record, Yeager said, “That’s the most warrant history I’ve ever seen.”
Arraignment is scheduled for Thursday, May 22.
