Man Kills Mother In Wisconsin, Leads Police On 3-County Chase

MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) -- What started as a homicide investigation in Hudson, Wis., turned into a high speed chase with police dodging gunfire.

Authorities in Wisconsin say a man stabbed and killed his mother, and then set his own apartment on fire Saturday night. They say he then took police on a chase through three counties while shooting at squad cars.

He eventually crashed his car near Highway 8 in Taylor's Falls, and shot and killed himself.

It's a complicated case, and the crime scene spans three counties. But it all began near Hudson, Wis., on North Meadow Drive when police got a call around 11:30 p.m. Saturday.

Authorities found the family of 28-year-old Logan Reese hiding in the garage. They said he used a stick to beat his sibling and stab his own mother. Officers found 49-year-old Charlene Wold dead inside her home late Saturday night, with multiple stab wounds.

Police then began searching for the suspect, her 28-year-old son Logan Reese, who had already driven away.

Shortly before 1 a.m. Sunday, deputies received a 911 call from Reese's neighbor in Glenwood City, Wis., saying the suspect's apartment was on fire.

"Then we all got outside and the fire department, then the SWAT team is here and we go 'What the heck is going on?' Then they wouldn't let us near the building anymore," a neighbor said.

One of Reese's neighbors is a volunteer firefighter.

"The initial page that went out indicated there was an armed suspect. I couldn't leave my house. I didn't know if he was in my garage or next to it or anything," Michael Barstad said.

Police found Reese driving on Highway 12. He led them on a 50-mile chase while shooting at the officers. Reese eventually crashed into a median barrier on highway 8 near Taylor's falls. He fired several more shots, and officers found him dead in his vehicle.

Back in the victim's township, neighbors told WCCO Charlene and her husband were known for hosting neighborhood parties, and her death is shocking in such a quiet neighborhood.

Wold owned Spots Professional Pet Grooming in Lakeland, Minn. Flowers and cards were outside the front door of it Sunday afternoon.

"There are certain places you go as a community and this was one of them," said Lakeland Mayor Richard Glasgow. "Everybody I know brings their dog down here."

Glasgow didn't only brag about the business.

"You know people when you talk to them they just have bubbling, full of life personality," he asked. "That's what (Wold) had."

Glasgow said he talked to Wold late last week about starting a "Lost Pet" forum on her business' Facebook page.

"She was so excited about it. She says 'we'll talk later next week.' And then I heard the police scanner go off last night and I listened to the whole thing and this morning somebody told me everything and it just broke my heart," he said. "This touches our community, you know this is home, this is what it means to be a community."

The St. Croix County Sheriff's Office released a statement saying, in part: "Our hearts go out to the family in this case. I would also like to thank the various agencies who assisted and continue to assist my office with this investigation."

The St. Croix County Sheriff's Office is leading the investigation for the Wisconsin areas of the crime, while Chisago county Sheriff's Office will investigate what happened in Minnesota.

If you would like to help the Wold family, you can donate to their GoFundMe page.