What began as a plan to cook chicken in an air fryer has turned into a first-degree intentional homicide case in Lac La Belle, according to prosecutors. A 27-year-old woman, Mikayla Kloth, was charged Monday after officers were called to her Wisconsin Avenue apartment and found a man with a stab wound to his chest. The man later died at a hospital. Prosecutors say the confrontation broke out Friday after the man arrived with chicken he intended to cook, and court records show a judge set Kloth’s cash bond at $2,000,000 with a preliminary hearing scheduled for May 29.
Prosecutors' complaint
According to WISN, the criminal complaint describes an argument that escalated inside Kloth’s unit. Prosecutors say the victim grabbed a knife and asked, "Do you want me to cut myself?" Kloth told officers she pushed the knife into his chest while trying to take the blade away. The complaint states that Kloth admitted the stabbing and made what prosecutors called "excited utterances" while she was being transported to the police station.
Legal stakes
Under Wisconsin law, first-degree intentional homicide is classified as a Class A felony, according to Wisconsin Statutes §940.01, the state’s most serious homicide charge. The statute lays out only limited mitigating circumstances that can reduce the offense to second-degree intentional homicide. If the current charge moves forward, the case will proceed in Waukesha County Circuit Court, where the judge and attorneys are expected to address probable cause and other pretrial issues at the May 29 preliminary hearing.
Neighbors and prior incidents
The complaint also details earlier incidents that prosecutors say left the victim uneasy. About a week before the fatal dispute, the filing states the victim told others that Kloth had bitten his thumb, and a witness told police he "genuinely seemed afraid" of Kloth, according to WISN. The document quotes Kloth as saying she took responsibility and that "if they had to lock her up, that was cool."
What’s next
Kloth made an initial court appearance on Monday and remains in custody on the $2 million cash bond. With the preliminary hearing set for May 29, prosecutors will have to show probable cause to move the case toward trial, and defense attorneys are likely to use that stage to probe the state’s evidence. The Village of Lac La Belle, a small lakeside community in Waukesha County, will be watching as the case moves through the local court calendar.
