Formal charges filed in Bartlesville grandmother's homicide

BARTLESVILLE, Okla. - Washington County prosecutors on Friday formally filed a charge of murder in the first degree against a Bartlesville man accused of beating his grandmother to death with a baseball bat.

Twenty-year-old Brandon William Capps, who appeared Friday in Washington County District Court for his initial appearance, was also charged with petty larceny, driving without a license, unlawful receipt, transaction, acquisition of proceeds, possession of a controlled dangerous substance and unauthorized use of a vehicle.

A concerned neighbor noticing 81-year-old Clara Hammer's mail piling up and her vehicle missing checked on her and found her dead near her front door Wednesday afternoon.

Bartlesville police called to the scene found Hammer with head injuries and a bat near her body, according to a court affidavit released Thursday.

They quickly determined her grandson, 20-year-old Capps, the primary suspect in her murder and arrested a few hours later after finding him his grandmother's Oldsmobile.

Along with the killing, Capps admitted to stealing jewelry and selling it to a local store.

A judge set his bond Thursday at $1 million.