Trial for Kenneth Mullennix, Accused of Killing His Wife in 2010, Continues

A Petaluma man charged with fatally shooting his 36-year-old wife
testified in Sonoma County Superior Court today that she was angry and
irritable with him and their two daughters and it escalated when she began an
affair with another man.

Kenneth Mullennix, 52, said the marriage with Buapha Mullennix was generally happy while the couple lived in Thailand, the Cayman Islands and later in Greenbrae and Petaluma, but it deteriorated around 2007.

The woman he is accused of shooting in the head in the bedroom of their Petaluma home on Jan. 9, 2010 became obsessed with suspected drug activity by a Petaluma neighbor and set up video cameras to record their activities, Mullennix said.

His wife also asked him to buy her a gun for protection and insisted he also buy one, Mullennix said. Mullennix said he bought her a revolver and purchased a semi-automatic handgun and they practiced shooting them at a gun range, Mullennix said.

His wife also began yelling and cursing at their neighbors, neglected her children and housework and claimed his relatives hated her because she is Asian, Mullennix said.

By 2008, his wife had become estranged from her closest friend and she began taking an anti-depressant after consulting a therapist, Mullennix said. She also began hitting the family's pet dog and broke one of its toes when she kicked it in 2009, Mullennix said.

The family's finances also were strained because of the economic recession and he found less work in the construction industry, Mullennix said. Still, his wife insisted on having a new truck and she purchased a Toyota Tacoma in 2009, Mullennix said.

When his wife found work at a Petaluma restaurant in 2009, she further distanced herself from their family, Mullennix said. Mullennix said he learned from his daughter that his wife was having an affair, but she denied it when he confronted her about it.

Mullennix said when he told his wife she could not be married and have an affair, she said, "If you divorce me, I will break this house."

In September 2009 Mullennix said he began keeping a journal about her behavior and extra-marital affair. He also said he became depressed, began drinking alcohol more frequently and tried to avoid his wife as much as possible.

In late September 2009, he purchased a Global Positioning System device and installed it in her truck to document her whereabouts so he could argue for custody of their daughters during anticipated divorce proceedings, Mullennix said.

Deputy District Attorneys Craig Brooks told the jury in his opening statement earlier this month that Mullennix admitted shooting his wife when he called police after the shooting.

Brooks said the bullet came from Mullennix's Glock semi-automatic handgun that was found on a chair in the bedroom. Mullennix's testimony continues Tuesday.

-Bay City News