Courts.
A Skippack Township man accused of torturing his wife for eight hours until she was in critical condition following an argument faces an attempted murder charge, in addition to a dozen other felonies and misdemeanors, now that his case has resumed after competency issues delayed proceedings.
Brian C. Hays, 50, of Bridge Road, was arraigned last August in Montgomery County Common Pleas Court, followed by an incompetency examination and a pre-trial conference in October, and a competency examination in March 2024, per court records.
Common Pleas Judge Wendy G. Rothstein will hold a call of the trial list on Oct. 22, according to the court docket. At the Call of the Trial List, Rothstein will ask the defense and prosecution if the case is planned for trial or guilty plea and entertain motions and pleas, according to the state criminal trial process. It is a final opportunity to work out a plea agreement with the Montgomery County District Attorney.
Hays remains jailed at Montgomery County Correctional Facility on $5 million cash bail.
He has been charged with felony counts of aggravated assault with extreme indifference, aggravated assault with a deadly weapon, kidnapping, and strangulation, along with misdemeanor simple assault (two counts), terroristic threats, false imprisonment, possessing an instrument of crime, tampering with evidence, unlawful restraint, and reckless endangerment, per court documents.
Police were alerted to the incident the morning of June 7, 2023, when an employee who worked for the victim contacted Pennsylvania State Police expressing concern that their boss was in danger.
The employee told police they had called the victim and described them as incoherent. Afterwards, the employee went to the victim’s residence, where they encountered Hays, who allegedly stated that he had assaulted his wife, according to charging documents.
Troopers arriving at the scene encountered Hays at the front of the property and detained him. Police said they located the victim lying nude on a bed in the master bedroom, suffering from a multitude of injuries including her eyes being swollen shut and her body being covered in cuts, scrapes, and bruises.
Police said communication with the victim was extremely difficult, however she indicated that Hays had been torturing her for what she thought was three days, including allegedly striking her with a meat mallet, a meat cleaver, a golf club, and his hands and fist. Due to the extent of the victim’s injuries, she was airlifted to a hospital in Philadelphia, where she was placed in critical condition and a chest tube was inserted, police said.
The criminal complaint states that medical staff were investigating a possible collapsed lung and spleen injuries, and indicated the victim’s breathing and speech were both labored. Ligature marks were observed on the victim’s ankles, later determined to have come from handcuffs, and red marks were observed on the victim’s neck, later determined to have come from the sharp end of a shovel, police said.
The victim reiterated at the hospital that her injuries were caused by Hays, according to the complaint.
Investigators interviewed Hays on the afternoon of the incident, at which point he stated that he and his wife had an argument about her alleged infidelity around 10 p.m. Tuesday night, adding that between that time and 6 a.m. Wednesday morning, he continued to question and assault his wife, police said. Hays allegedly confessed to punching the victim in the face at least 25 times as well as repeatedly banging her head into the ground and kicking her, along with choking her with a shovel and hitting her with various other items, according to the complaint.
Hays told police he placed handcuffs on the victim’s hand and feet to prevent her from escaping, and at some point, the victim stopped responding to him and he had to perform mouth to mouth resuscitation, police said. Despite needing to be resuscitated, Hays said he continued to assault the victim, according to the complaint.
As the interview continued, Hays said he attempted to speak to the victim about not pressing charges, but she wasn’t making any sense and he believed he had hit her too many times for her to properly communicate, police said. Hays then attempted to clean and shower the victim because “he was concerned with how she looked,” however he added that he didn’t call 911 because he was concerned about himself, according to police.
When asked if he thought the victim was scared for her life, Hays responded “F—k yes, she was definitely scared,” according to police.
North Penn Now did not immediately receive a response to a request for comment from Hays’ public defender, however we will add their response to this article if/when received. North Penn Now also reached out to the District Attorney for comment regarding the additional attempted murder charge, which was added after arraignment. A response will be added to the article if/when received.
All suspects and defendants are innocent until proven guilty. This story was compiled using court records and the affidavit of probable cause.
