Law&Crime Sidebar - Man Kills Ex-Girlfriend After Getting Out of Jail for Attacking Her: Prosecutors

Episode Date: December 15, 2023

A Minnesota man faces a murder charge after allegedly killing his ex-girlfriend just 11 days after he was released from jail for assaulting her. Prosecutors allege Matthew Brenneman murdered Danicka Bergeson at her apartment and wrapped her body in blankets. When police arrived, they observed Brenneman chugging bleach and convulsing in the bathroom. The Law&Crime Network’s Jesse Weber breaks down the disturbing case with Bergeson’s father.Hosts:Jesse Weber: https://twitter.com/jessecordweberLAW&CRIME SIDEBAR PRODUCTION:Head of Social Media, YouTube - Bobby SzokePodcast Director - Sam GoldbergSenior Director of Social Media - Vanessa BeinSenior Digital Producer - Savannah WilliamsonVideo Editing - Michael Deininger Guest Booking - Alyssa FisherSTAY UP-TO-DATE WITH THE LAW&CRIME NETWORK:Watch Law&Crime Network on YouTubeTV: https://bit.ly/3td2e3yWhere To Watch Law&Crime Network: https://bit.ly/3akxLK5Sign Up For Law&Crime's Daily Newsletter: https://bit.ly/LawandCrimeNewsletterRead Fascinating Articles From Law&Crime Network: https://bit.ly/3td2IqoFor Advertising Inquiries, Please Contact: [e-mail] Licensing Inquiries, Please Contact: [e-mail]&CRIME NETWORK SOCIAL MEDIA:Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lawandcrime/Twitter: https://twitter.com/LawCrimeNetworkFacebook: https://www.facebook.com/lawandcrimeTwitch: https://www.twitch.tv/lawandcrimenetworkTikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@lawandcrimeSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Wondery Plus subscribers can binge all episodes of this Law and Crimes series ad-free right now. Join Wondry Plus in the Wondery app Apple Podcasts or Spotify. Agent Nate Russo returns in Oracle 3, Murder at the Grandview, the latest installment of the gripping Audible Original series. When a reunion at an abandoned island hotel turns deadly, Russo must untangle accident from murder. But beware, something sinister lurks in the grand. View Shadows. Joshua Jackson delivers a bone-chilling performance in this supernatural thriller

that will keep you on the edge of your seat. Don't let your fears take hold of you as you dive into this addictive series. Love thrillers with a paranormal twist? The entire Oracle trilogy is available on Audible. Listen now on Audible. I just want to say how resilient she was and how much joy she brought to our lives. It is the tragic ending in so many domestic violence situations. in Minnesota have upgraded a man's charges to first-degree murder after they say he got out of jail after assaulting his girlfriend, then allegedly went to her home and killed her. It is the case of Danica Burgesson, and we're speaking with her father. Welcome to Sidebar, presented by Law and Crime. I'm Jesse Weber.

Okay, now, before we get into this story, I have to warn you, it's about alleged domestic violence. Details are really not easy to hear. This is a... a tough case. So prosecutors in Minnesota have upgraded charges for 39-year-old Matthew Brenneman, who is accused of killing his ex-girlfriend, former Army medic, 33-year-old Danica Burgesson. He is now charged with a count of first-degree murder and two counts of second-degree murder. We'll get into those in a second. But here's the kicker of this story. 11 days, 11 days before this alleged murder, he was released from jail after attacking Danica. Yeah. So in June, Brenneman pleaded guilty in two separate domestic violence cases for striking, biting, and choking Danica.

But as part of the plea deal, he was released as he awaited sentencing in August, and he agreed to not have any contact with Danica, but now he's accused of going to her apartment and killing her. The building manager called police after hearing yelling and banging sounds from her apartment. This is according to the probable cause statement. and he told police that there had been domestic violence issues between Danica and Brennaman before. But when police got inside the apartment, they say they found Brennamon on the floor of the bathroom convulsing after drinking bleach. They found Danica wrapped up in blankets and a plastic garbage bag over her head. She had apparently been dead for days. Now, officers also found these alleged suicide notes all over the apartment that they say were written by Brenneman.

And they say, quote, I never loved any woman. was romantically involved with as profoundly and honestly as Danica. Then there's another one that says, I blacked out, lost control, and sadly hurt a woman for the first time in my life. That is interesting phrasing. He also allegedly wrote, I can't try to live after this. The end, Matthew. Police took Brennam into a hospital, then they arrested him and booked him into jail.

His bail has been increased to $2 million, and he's expected back in court this upcoming Monday. His public defender has filed a motion to dismiss the second-degree murder charges because she says medical examiner didn't determine an exact cause or manner of death. That motion was filed, though, before the upgraded first-degree murder charge was added, and the judge, by all accounts, hasn't ruled on that motion yet. Now, just to be clear, the indictment now lists three counts against Brennaman, first-degree murder while committing domestic abuse with a past pattern of domestic abuse, second-degree murder while committing a felony, and second-degree murder while under-resolution. straining order for protection. In a statement, Hennepin County attorney, Mary Moriarty said, quote, intimate partner violence requires a powerful response. It is an act that leaves traumatized survivors and devastated families in its wake.

We are aggressively prosecuting those who commit this violence. Okay, so with all of that laid out, and with all of that in mind, I want to talk more about the case, but more specifically, Danica as well. And joining us right now as a very special guest, we are joined by Danica's father, David Bergeson. David, thank you so much for coming here on Sidebar. First of all, not only do we really appreciate you coming on during this difficult time, but I just want to let you know, I am so sorry for your loss. I'm so sorry for what you and the family are going through. It is unimaginable, and I'm so sorry. Well, thank you for having this, and I certainly appreciate the kind of words.

I want to just ask how you're doing, how you and the family are doing at this time. Yeah, it's been it's been a struggle right it's a tragic thing to have to you know take the journey through and it's a long process it continues on and on forever it seems like but i think for the most part we're doing well you know we're a bit spread out these days and getting back to court dates and things like that are sometimes difficult but we've got a lot of support an awful lot of family support a lot of friends that have supported us. And that has really helped, especially initially when we were kind of going through some of the concerns with where the defense was at, where the judges might be taking this from the direction of the court. We had an awful lot of

support and we really appreciated that. That's amazing to hear. That's amazing to hear. And I hope you get continued support throughout the process. You know, just reading about Denise, seeing her she seemed like a lovely young woman she really seemed so special um for for people who don't know what was she like i mean who was she yeah i mean she was uh an incredible personality um so you know vibrant and so full of energy um and so giving i mean i think that was part of her downfall uh getting into the situation with this gentleman who uh you know took her life you know she was um had had had with some things through college, you know, had got herself straight, you know, with military service. But I think just going back historically, you know, Danica came out of the Hennepin County

foster care. We were foster care parents originally, and she moved in with us when she was age six. And then we adopted her when she was nine. And I think through those early years, You know, she had some pretty traumatic life experiences, and I think some of that lived with her throughout her life. But I just want to, you know, say how resilient she was and how much joy she brought to our lives. She was a, you know, a great student. She excelled academically. She excelled athletically. You know, she was on a state championship swim team.

She played rugby in college. When she was in the military, they had, I think, there are 1,200 kids in her battalion that were going through basic training. And she won Soldier of the Cycle, out of all 1,200 kids, she was the most physically fit and scored the highest on her oral exams. So, you know, just she really had some really great qualities, some real leadership qualities. and, you know, it's just a shame to see a life put out like that. It is. It sounds amazing. I mean, she went to the U.S. Army, then goes back to studying animal science,

working at a veterinary clinic, just amazing. You mentioned Brennam. Did you ever meet him? What did you know about the relationship? I never met him. And there really wasn't much of a relationship. I think they might have, you know, been friends. they kind of dated a little bit, but right from the very get-go, I think there were problems.

And, you know, she was pretty badly assaulted early on in that relationship. I want to say in March, I think they started going out a little bit in February, and he assaulted her in March. He was charged with domestic violence, I believe at that time, aggravated assault. And I don't know that he went to jail in that first experience, but I do know shortly thereafter there was another episode where he had a pretty violent exchange with her and he was put in prison and I think he was there for maybe three months.

But yeah, I really didn't know much about him, didn't have any exposure and she didn't talk much about him. Oh, she didn't talk much about him. No, no, so it didn't know a whole lot. I think, you know, from what I can tell, you know, Danica had a, you know, and this is kind of historically, she would, you know, befriend people and try to help people that were struggling. And I kind of have a feeling that this is kind of where this relationship started.

The guy was probably looking for some help. And he found someone that would be his assistant, I guess. David, what do you make of the fact that he was released from jail and then allegedly killed her 11 days later? I don't, that's the part that I think a lot of. people are shocked by. Yeah, I mean, it's, I mean, that's, we feel the same way. I mean, I don't understand. I mean, somebody that has a Danco order, you know, you know, basically a restraining order against him. How does he find a way to go right back to the very address that he can't go

to without anybody being able to follow up on that? And, you know, I think he was there from what we know from cell phone records and some of the things that we've heard to him. I mean, he was there almost immediately after he got out of prison. I mean, almost to the day, perhaps. Did you speak to law enforcement about this, about how he was able to do this, why nobody was checking where he was going, or is this just the system? Is this just the system? It's the system.

It wasn't anybody. Nobody had the responsibility. There's no teeth in what had happened when he was released. There was no nobody that was going to follow up or check on where he was. was at. Unbelievable. Yeah. He was hit with these upgraded charges.

Now first degree murder. What do you think about that? Yeah, we'd been waiting for that to happen. I mean, it was when you read the police report, I don't know if you've had access to read the police report. It's, it's a pretty incredible document to go through and understand what had actually happened. But, you know, we were always wondering why he wasn't charged as first degree, first degree

to start with. But I think in the state of Minnesota, they lead with the second-degree murder charges, and then a grand jury is convened, and then those charges are filed. So it just took time, but working through our prosecutor team, prosecution team, we knew that that was going to come. And, you know, they've been helpful in keeping us abreast of what's been going on. So you feel good about that. Yeah, I mean, the first-degree murder charge is so specific, but it seems to apply here.

about domestic violence. You mentioned what the police report says. One of the other disturbing aspects is when police arrive there, they find Brennamin chugging this bleach. They find these notes all over the place. The notes are very disturbing and telling. What do you think about them?

Yeah, I just, they're very graphic. And it's painful as a parent to see what De Nica must have been going. through and to hear or read what you know his thoughts were you know he's trying to commit suicide and I can honestly tell you I feel good that he wasn't successful because I want him to be able to go through this process and be punished for it you know I mean suicide is an easy way out in my in my view so I'm glad he's you know in custody and he's going through this process and hopefully we'll get you know a true justice out of this by the way David how did you find

out what happened to your daughter? I was traveling. I was in Canada, and her mom, Letitia, had got a visit from the Hopkins Police Department. They came to the house and gave her the news, and then they called me. So as soon as they found out, they did come over with a chaplain and one of the detectives. And when you found out that he was in the apartment, apartment and that he was the main suspect. Were you shocked?

Were you surprised? Or was this like you, because of what happened past, what happened with the past with Danica? We knew immediately who it was, just based on what had gone on previously with the, the Danco order. But yeah, I mean, I don't think, well, we're certainly surprised what happened, but we weren't surprised to hear who it was. And a lot of the details didn't come out until maybe 30, 30 days later.

when, you know, the detectives could kind of tell the story, or at the first hearing as well. But, you know, yeah, it was a very difficult time and hard to hear. I wanted your perspective on what his defense team is doing. So they've been trying to get the charges dismissed, at least the second degree charges dismissed, saying that there was no cause or manner of death listed by the medical examiner, and therefore the charges should be thrown out. They filed that motion. I don't think the judge has ruled on it yet.

What's your take on that? I'm not concerned about it. And we've been working closely with the prosecution for that same reason. This medical examiner here in Hennepin County has a history of not filling out cause of death. Remember George Floyd? Of course. Same thing. There was never a cause of death on his death certificate.

And so our prosecution has dealt with this medical exam. around a number of cases and they've always prevailed it's not been a stumbling block because the the the proof will come out in the trial or or you know they're very confident do you know why he hasn't filled it out well he filled it on he just said the cause of death unknown but it's you know it's a fixation and he just can't pinpoint it but we don't we don't know why he are you going to maybe get an independent analysis done or no well we'll wait and see if there's something that comes up with this but I don't think it's needed yeah I our team feels you know solid about where they're at with this situation right it's not going to get dismissed and

you know it's just this is not the first time that they've gone through this with this medical examiner right and they have they've been successful David I mentioned the notes that were found and, you know, one of them says that he never attacked a woman before, which is strange, considering he pled guilty to doing just that beforehand. And then there's this phone call that he allegedly has with his father, where they talk about, you know, almost downgrading the charges. That, to me, as a lawyer, seems to signify, you know, a consciousness of what he did. What is your take on that phone call?

Well, I think it's pretty telling. You know, I don't know. I haven't seen what the actual content of the call was, but I certainly feel that if he's having that discussion with his father, that there's obviously a thought process going on there that he's trying to find a way to get out of it. And it's also not true that he hadn't assaulted anybody before. He also had a restraining order put against him with a previous, you know, a previous woman that he had an issue with so it wasn't the first time yeah to give you an idea he they talked about the theory of manslaughter so that would be obviously a lesser charge than the

murder charges and that uh uh and there was a comment that said a crime of passion might get a lighter sentence so it seemed that they were talking about that yeah i do remember the crime of passion being mentioned so yeah i mean they have that on recording so i you know i think that's that's telling You unfortunately, in your family, are now the center of this horrible case. This happens across the country so many times. And, you know, what Danica went through is what a lot of, unfortunately, people go through. Now that you're in the middle of this, what do you want people to know about domestic violence? What are you hoping they learn from this as a result?

Because it's really just a tragic case. And I think there's a lot of questions that need to be answered. Yeah, I think we've had a lot of discussions. on how we can bring some visibility to it. I know we've had a lot of support at the court hearings. We've had a lot of people turn up, you know, wearing purple, representing domestic violence. You know, we're talking about, you know, with maybe trying to bring some legislation to the forefront. We've got some friends, some attorneys that are working on that, have had some discussion on that.

But we'd certainly like to make this a case in point where people can, can maybe find some solace, well, you know, where laws can get changed, you know, where something can be addressed. How do we keep people from getting out of jail and immediately going right back to what they're where they're not supposed to be? So, you know, especially on the, you know, the ability to just walk out of jail and have nobody know where you're at, no ankle bracelet, no monitoring. device is upsetting. And that needs to change in this environment. That's what should have happened.

We should have been alerted. I think De Nica was alerted that he was getting out and she was scared to death. I had been in the hospital with her the last time when he had beat her so badly. She was so badly bruised and she had bite marks all over her body. And, you know, she was terrified with the guy. So for him just to be able to come back and get in without any monitoring whatsoever is disturbing. And, you know, that's got to help. And we want to bring some visibility to that. We don't want people to have to go through a tragic event. We want people to understand that there are avenues to get help, you know, and reach out and talk to people about a situation that you maybe. And it's incredibly difficult to have to go through this and reflect about it over and over

again. So it's, you know, hopefully bring some, shed some light on a difficult situation. Maybe it will. And hopefully it does because these are questions. These are important questions to have and it shouldn't have happened. So, David, again, I know that this is just an incredibly difficult time for you and your family. I appreciate you speaking about it. I know it's never easy. But hopefully this does get more exposure, and we can amplify this story and amplify the message that you just delivered. And hopefully, you know, someone's life could ultimately be saved as a result. So David Ferguson, thank you so much and wishing you and the family best as you move forward. Well, thank you.

Thank you for having us. Really appreciate it. All right, everybody, that is all we have for you right now here on Sidebar. Thank you so much for joining us. Please subscribe on Apple Podcast, Spotify, YouTube, wherever you get your podcasts. I'm Jesse Weber. Speak to you next time. You can binge all episodes of this long crime series,

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