A bail hearing for James Douglas Phillips, who is accused of second-degree murder in the death of his estranged wife Louise, has been pushed forward.
The hearing was originally scheduled for March 29 in Salmon Arm, but now shifts to Kamloops courthouse on March 17. The hearing will determine if Phillips is to remain in jail while awaiting trial.
Louise Phillips was found dead of stab wounds in her rural Salmon Arm apartment at 10:15 p.m. Feb. 18. Her husband was also found injured inside the residence.
Phillips, 55, was arrested March 4 upon his release from Kelowna General Hospital, where he had been under medical care since the Salmon Arm RCMP responded to a report of a domestic disturbance at Louise’s apartment. He was taken into police custody without incident.
Police would not comment on the type of injuries sustained by James Phillips.
“Uniformed officers who were first on the scene that evening were faced with the sombre discovery of Louise Phillips dead in her home, with her estranged husband on the scene and both persons suffering from apparent stab wounds,” said RCMP spokesperson Cpl. Dan Moskaluk.
After initially deeming the death to be suspicious, RCMP now believe Louise’s death to be a homicide.
“Our investigation confirmed this matter was a domestic-related disturbance and our findings indicated the couple were legally separated. James Phillips had returned to reside at the home in Salmon Arm last year off and on,” stated Moskaluk.
Most recently, Phillips was living in Castlegar while attending an educational employment retraining program.
“Historical police record checks of the couple did not uncover any previously reported domestic violence-related incidents,” Moskaluk added.
