Jacob and Margaret Kempainen sit with their lawyers during their preliminary examination in 97th District Court at the Houghton County Courthouse on Monday. From left are David Gemignani, Jacob Kempainen, Margaret Kempainen and Antonio Ruiz. (Houghton Daily Mining Gazette photo by Mary Christine Stevens)

HOUGHTON — The preliminary hearing for a Wisconsin mother and son accused of killing a Hancock Township relative in December took place Monday in Houghton’s 97th District Court after a postponement in late May.

Margaret Kempainen, 50, and Jacob Kempainen, 21, of Hartland, Wisconsin, are accused of conspiring to kill Alvin Kempainen, who was Jacob’s grandfather and Margaret’s father-in-law.

The 86-year-old man was found dead of a gunshot wound in his home on Dec. 19.

Houghton County Prosecutor Dan Helmer opened the preliminary examination by informing Judge Nicholas J. Daavettila that he had homicide plea deals prepared for Margaret and Jacob Kempainen, which they rejected.

Four witnesses were called during the examination, the goal of which was to prove probable cause and send the mother-son duo to a trial in circuit court. Alan Kempainen was the first to take the witness stand. He explained that his ex-wife, whom he recently divorced, claimed to have taken his minor daughter, KK, on a trip to Chicago, under the pretense that Margaret’s brother had been shot and they wanted to check on him. The two left home around Dec. 7. By tracking their debit card transactions, Alan determined they were far off course. He called in a welfare check for his daughter, and was informed by police that Margaret and KK were in Colorado, along with his son, Jacob.

After noticing a transaction in Menomonie, Wisconsin, Alan suspected the trio was heading toward his father Alvin’s home. Text message evidence showed Alan alerting his father, saying, “I don’t know what to tell you, they may be looking for money, they may be looking for shelter, I don’t know what, but they may be on their way there.” Alvin responded he would let the family in and speak with them, and would provide Alan with an update. The update never came.

Testimony from KK, the second witness called, helped to paint a more complete picture of what happened in Alvin Kempainen’s home. KK’s 90-minute testimony explained she and her mother left their home to get away from KK’s father, whom Margaret claimed was “doing some satanic stuff, and that we were going to some new world that (Margaret) wanted us to go to.” The pair was joined by KK’s brother, Jacob, in Wisconsin. From Wisconsin, they moved on to Colorado.

When asked why they chose Colorado, KK explained it was her decision. Margaret asked the children where they should go, and KK chose Colorado. KK’s mother allegedly convinced the girl she was a necromancer, someone capable of communicating with spirits and controlling the souls of the dead. KK claimed one of these spirits spoke to her, saying to go to Colorado.

KK also explained her mother was trying to convince her and Jacob that their father, Alan, was possessed by the devil. KK claims a vision showed her grandfather, Alvin, dead in his home after trying to bring the souls of people her father allegedly killed to heaven. It was noted that there is no evidence of these murders by Alan Kempainen. Margaret also said she was visited by the spirit of Alvin, who explained he was dead and there were “no hard feelings.”

After deciding Colorado was too expensive, the trio decided to head back to Michigan and live off the land. Assuming Alvin was dead, they were going to move into his home and use his land to farm and hunt. However, Alvin was still alive.

When KK, Margaret and Jacob arrived late at night, they saw Alvin through the windows of his home. According to KK’s testimony, she waited in the car as Margaret and Jacob entered the house. She then heard two gunshots, which are thought to be the ones that killed her grandfather, and her mother and brother exited the home a few minutes later.

KK testified that her mother “didn’t look like she regretted it,” but Jacob appeared like he “wanted to kill himself.”

KK claimed Jacob told her he shot their grandfather in the head. Jacob and Margaret then walked through the house, searching for satanic objects. They saw Alvin was still alive, and Margaret told Jacob to shoot him again through the chest. The group then traveled to Iowa, where they were intercepted by police. KK admitted she lied to authorities in Iowa, saying she didn’t want to get her family in trouble.

Defense attorney David Gemignani, representing Jacob Kempainen, asked KK about texts she sent to her friends the night Alvin died. The first read, “Hey, I was told to consult you about my murderous thoughts and feelings and soon-to-be potential actions.” Further messages showed KK claiming she wanted to murder someone, and the idea of murder felt like an “old hobby.” KK admitted to claiming she was friends with Satan and Lucifer. As KK left the courtroom, her mother, Margaret, told her she loved her. KK ignored her and silently left.

The third witness, police Detective O’Keefe from Clear Lake, Iowa, assisted in the original investigation and interviews with the three Kempainens. He confirmed Jacob’s gun, believed to have been used to kill Alvin Kempainen, was found in Jacob’s car during a search. O’Keefe also said Margaret told interviewers she believed Alvin had committed suicide. No bullets were recovered from Alvin’s home.

Dr. Petio Ketov performed the autopsy on the victim’s body. He testified the death could not have been suicide, as Alvin was shot twice. Ketov explained a person could only live for seconds after being shot in the head like Alvin. This wouldn’t have left enough time to shoot himself in the chest. The trajectory of the bullet wounds also showed the shooter was almost a foot away, so Alvin couldn’t have been holding the gun.

In his closing statement, Helmer told Daavettila that “Margaret Kempainen didn’t pull that trigger, but she’s the reason that trigger got pulled.”

Daavettila found the prosecution had shown probable cause for the mother and son to face trial on charges of homicide, two charges of open murder, and conspiracy to commit the crime of homicide. The suspects will be bound over to the 12th Circuit Court, where they will stand trial. Both will be held in Houghton County Jail without bond.