Arlington man spent days in home with his wife’s body after killing her, warrant says
An Arlington man strangled his wife with a cord and then spent almost two weeks with her body inside their home before he fled the house, according to a warrant.
After killing her last month, Joseph Sudduth wrapped his wife’s body in a trash bag from head to toe, the arrest warrant stated.
The killing may have occurred on April 11 just hours after Arlington patrol officer went to their home on a domestic violence investigation, according to the warrant obtained by the Fort Worth Star-Telegram.
The body of Sue Sudduth, 65, was discovered on April 23 after a relative called Arlington police and notified them a body might be in the home.
The family member who called in the tip also said Joseph Sudduth was in a hospital in Temple after he reportedly tried to overdose on medications in an attempt to kill himself, Arlington police said
Joseph Sudduth, 62, was arrested on April 24 in Temple, and later returned to Tarrant County.
Joseph Sudduth remained in the Tarrant County Jail on Tuesday without bond.
He was charged with murder last week.
In September 2019, Arlington officers were called out to the Sudduths’ home after the couple got into an argument. The dispute was over Joseph Sudduth’s hobby of buying broken electronics to fix.
At one point during their argument, Sue Sudduth ripped her husband’s shirt. He tried to call 911, but she reached for the telephone and hung it up, according to Arlington police reports.
After speaking with Arlington officers, the couple agreed to separate for the evening and no charges were filed.
The warrant written by Arlington Detective Spencer Simmons noted that Arlington patrol officers responded to the couple’s home again on April 11.
The couple had been arguing over the September 2019 incident. An Arlington detective had been assigned to follow up on the September incident and that had upset Sue Sudduth.
There was no evidence of a physical altercation, and no charges were filed then.
Sue Sudduth was wearing a black shirt and blue pants at the time officers arrived.
Just after Arlington officers left there was an altercation between Joseph and Sue Sudduth, the warrant says. Joseph Sudduth would later tell his brother that Sue Sudduth pushed him and the two fell. Sue Sudduth landed on top of her husband and a lamp fell, hitting her on her head.
Joseph Sudduth told his brother he “snapped” and used a cord to strangle and kill his wife, according to the warrant.
He then wrapped his wife’s body in a trash bag and piled multiple sheets on top of her.
Joseph Sudduth then lived in the house with the body of his wife inside for almost two weeks, never contacting anyone about what happened, the warrant says.
He finally left his Arlington home on April 22 and drove to Temple, where his mother lived, according to the warrant. That’s when he told his brother that he had attempted suicide after having an altercation with his wife.
Arlington police officers were dispatched around 7:40 p.m. on April 23 to conduct a welfare check at the residence in the 6200 block of August Run Lane.
That’s when Sue Sudduth’s body was found, wearing blue pants and a black shirt, the same outfit she had on April 11.
This story was originally published May 5, 2020 at 1:25 PM.
