Wadford Pleads Not Guilty to Murder
Aubrey Wadford, arrested late last month for allegedly stabbing Angela Laskey to death, pleaded not guilty on Wednesday to one count of murder. Waford, 39, who appeared in court in custody wearing a blue jail jumpsuit, also denied the special allegation that he used a deadly weapon — a knife — during the killing. He is being held at Santa Barbara County Jail on $1 million bail.
In the early morning hours of October 29, Santa Barbara police officers responded to reports of a domestic disturbance at an apartment on West Los Olivos Street. Inside, officers found the body of 39-year-old Angela Laskey and arrested Wadford, who was present. Police also found Wadford and Laskey’s 2-year-old daughter inside, who was present during the incident but unharmed. Wadford and Laskey — a native of Scotland — weren’t married and it remains unclear whether they both lived at the apartment.
The District Attorney’s Office previously indicated that they plan on bringing evidence of “prior act(s) of domestic violence committed by the defendant” against Laskey. Laskey’s mother has reportedly taken custody of the girl. According to prosecutor Von Nguyen, Wadford will return to court on November 17 to schedule his preliminary hearing.
