SHAWANO (NBC 26) — A Shawano County man accused of killing his wife in 2016 was ordered to stand trial Thursday, according to court records.
James Radford, 40, appeared in court for a preliminary hearing, where Marathon County Circuit Judge LaMont Jacobson found probable cause to proceed with the case and bound him over for trial.
Radford pleaded not guilty to one count of first-degree reckless homicide with use of a dangerous weapon.
Radford was charged April 11, 2025 — exactly nine years after the death of his wife, Sabrina Radford. Court records show he was taken into custody five days later, and a judge set his cash bond at $800,000.
On April 11, 2016, 25-year-old Sabrina Radford was found dead in the Town of Fairbanks in Shawano County. At the time, James Radford told investigators she shot herself following an argument about infidelity.
According to the criminal complaint, James Radford told investigators Sabrina had both hands on the gun when she fired a shot into her chest. However, the Wisconsin State Crime Laboratory found evidence that Sabrina was holding her phone when she died, contradicting his account.
The complaint also states the crime lab found no blood or blowback material on the barrel or muzzle of the gun, which investigators said did not support James Radford’s claim that Sabrina fired the weapon close to or against her chest.
A scheduling conference is set for Aug. 5. Jacobson said another judge will take over the case because he plans to step down from the bench.
