Monday, December 5th 2011, 10:46 am
A woman accused of pushing her husband out of a 25th story window was back in court Monday.
Amber Hilberling was arrested again last week after she failed to keep her ankle monitor charged at least 10 times. She is charged with second degree murder.
Hilberling's attorneys argued that the monitoring problems were caused by equipment malfunction and that Hilberling always called in if she knows she's going to be late. The judge said that he's never seen this type of repeated problems come up before, and the court uses the monitoring service on a regular basis.
The judge also said that people keep their phone charged so, they should be able to keep their ankle monitor charged.
He told the attorneys if they could file a motion for a bond reduction by the end of the day, he would hold a hearing on the matter Friday at 1:30 p.m.
He couldn't do it sooner because he'll be involved in jury trial.
Curfew violations:
Charging issues:
Rhonda Whitlock, Hilberling's mother, told News On 6 that her daughter was hospitalized for depression and was told by a nurse that she could not charge the monitor in the hospital.
She said Amber is anxious to be back home with her 4-month-old baby.
Both Hilberling and her mother left the courtroom in tears Monday afternoon.
12/1/2011 Related Story: Tulsa Woman Accused Of Pushing Husband Out Window Back Behind Bars
Hilberling was seven months pregnant when her husband, Josh, went out a 25 story window to his death. She was charged with his murder and has since given birth to his son.
"A 5'5", seven month pregnant woman and a 6'6", military trained man. The facts just don't add up," Rhonda Whitlock said.
Prosecutors called a string of witnesses who say Amber said that day; she killed him and was sorry. Rhonda says her daughter feels guilty, but not because she murdered Josh, but because he died during an argument, and she never dreamed he could go through a high-rise window.
"We know 100 percent the windows are illegal in that building. They are not up to code. We checked out that from day one," Rhonda said.
She says she's sick of the people posting hateful lies on the internet, and says it's frustrating not being able to tell Amber's side because of the pending court case.
"What about the truth? What about the truth in all this?" She said.
Police reports from Alaska where Josh was stationed earlier this year, depict a troubled relationship.
On January 2, 2011, Amber tells officers during a fight, Josh knocked her drink and plate out of her hand. She then slapped him in the face and he squeezed her breast so hard, it broke blood vessels.
On January 31, 2011, Josh told police he threw a candle holder at the wall, Amber hit him and his head hit a wall and began bleeding.
On March 14, 2011, Amber calls a friend to show her a red mark on her leg. Josh told police; Amber kicked the remote so he smacked her leg.
And on March 23, 2011, she says during an argument, he threw her phone at a wall and broke it. She told them, "too much stress is causing Joshua and I to lose control too often. I personally think it is in both of our best interests (including the unborn child) for us to separate and work on things from a distance."
Within three months, he was out of the military, they were back in Tulsa and he was dead. Amber's mother says his death is terrible and also terrible is that everyone assumes her daughter is guilty, without knowing all the facts.
"We seriously do not want to live in the US anymore because if this can happen to our child, they can make up lies and fabricate things," Rhonda said. "People can call in and they base that off not evidence, not reality, what they assume or want. None of us are safe."
Prosecutors say their case is based on facts and evidence and they will try this case in front of a jury, not in the media.
December 5th, 2011
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