Dassel, Minnesota, man alleged to have shot wife in front of their children

Dale Morin, West Central Tribune, Willmar, Minn.
·4 min read
1

Jan. 2—LITCHFIELD

— A rural

Dassel,

Minnesota, man who last week surrendered himself to law enforcement at his home after

reporting that he shot his wife

is now charged in the homicide alleged to have been witnessed by their two children.

Bryan William Demarais, 35, made his first court appearance Tuesday in Meeker County District Court on a second-degree murder charge and two felony counts of child endangerment.

The death of his wife Kayla Demarais, 29, was ruled a homicide resulting from multiple gunshot wounds, according to an autopsy report from the Midwest Medical Examiner's Office.

According to the filed criminal complaint, a search of the residence in the 22000 block of 713th Avenue yielded multiple .22-caliber rounds found near Kayla Demarais' body in the living room area of the home. Court documents do not identify her by name, but she was named in an earlier news release by the

Meeker County Sheriff's Office

.

Neither of the children were physically harmed, and the Meeker County Sheriff's Office said they have been placed in protective custody.

On the morning of Dec. 28, 2023, Bryan Demarais called law enforcement from his residence to report that he had shot his wife and requested a law enforcement response. According to the criminal complaint, he also advised the dispatcher that children were present in the home and he had told them to stay back.

He requested the children be removed from the home through a window in another room where they would not have to see their mother.

He then stated that he had shot his wife repeatedly in the head but said he "may have hit a couple other spots," according to the complaint. He said he had shot his wife with a .22-caliber firearm, which was sitting on top of a washing machine in the home.

According to the complaint, when the dispatcher asked for the identity of the victim, Bryan Demarais immediately responded by saying, "her name was (Kayla)."

An

online fundraising page at gofundme.com/f/kayla-marie-demarais

has been set up by a family member of Kayla's in Georgia.

"My beautiful sister was taken from this world, leaving 2 young children and a family devastated," Casey Watts wrote on the page seeking funds to help the family with expenses related to Kayla Marie Demarais' death and to bring her children to Georgia.

When law enforcement arrived at the home on Dec. 28, Bryan Demarais came out and was arrested. He advised officers that he had anxiety and needed medication to calm him down. He indicated he was not injured and denied any further medical assistance.

He also told officers two children were in the home along with his wife, but she was dead.

Officers entered the home and found Kayla Demarais in the living room with apparent gunshot wounds to her head. According to the complaint, she did not have a pulse, and was declared dead at the scene.

An 11-year-old male and 8-year-old female were located in a bedroom and assisted in exiting the home through the window.

During follow-up interviews conducted separately with the two children, each said their parents had a fight on the morning of Dec. 28, and that Bryan Demarais returned home soon after leaving for work. According to the complaint, the two were in a bedroom playing video games while their parents were arguing in the kitchen area.

The children then heard a gunshot and saw their mother fall to the floor in the living room. She reportedly told the two to call 911, before Bryan Demarais allegedly yelled, ordering them to "close the door," before saying he would call 911. According to the complaint, the children then heard more gunshots before Bryan Demarais called 911.

When he was interviewed, Bryan Demarais said that he and his wife had argued the previous evening about financial problems and ongoing marital issues. He told officers his wife was involved in an extramarital relationship and that he found messages on his wife's phone that morning from the other man.

Demarais said he was so mad before leaving for work that he told their two children there would be a divorce, according to the complaint. He said he only got angrier after speaking with his wife on the phone while heading to his place of employment in

Hutchinson

and immediately hung up. According to the complaint, she attempted to call him two more times, but he did not answer. He also stated he couldn't recall any events after declining her calls.

According to the criminal complaint, Bryan Demarais suffers from medical conditions that can result in short-term memory loss. He qualifies for caregiver services and had designated Kayla Demarais as his primary caregiver.

Bryan Demarais' supervisor told law enforcement that Demarais had arrived late for a 9 a.m. shift on Dec. 28. He said Demarais told him that his marriage was over and appeared to be extremely distraught. The supervisor offered additional support services, but Demarais declined, according to the complaint. The supervisor then allowed him to go home for the rest of the day.

Demarais' next court hearing is currently scheduled March 25. The document specifying bail conditions after his appearance Tuesday morning was not available from Minnesota Court Records Online as of Tuesday afternoon.