GREELEY — Scott Huggins, 30, of Milliken claims his wife was hitting him right before she lost control of the SUV she was driving and crashed.
Huggins’ wife, 28-year-old Danielle Huggins, died in the Jan. 28 crash.
Police arrested Scott Huggins and accused him of assaulting his wife and causing the accident.
He has since been charged with manslaughter.
Tuesday, Huggins appeared in court for his preliminary hearing.
At the hearing, prosecutors told District Court Judge Marcelo Kopcow the oldest of the four children in the car saw Scott Huggins hit his wife’s arms several times before the crash.
Huggins’ defense lawyer, Todd Taylor, said what the child saw was a man trying to defend himself against a woman prone to violent outbursts.
Taylor added Danielle Huggins’ autopsy showed that she had an excessive amount of a particularly potent painkiller in her blood.
Huggins has two prior drunken driving convictions, but no history of domestic violence.
After hearing the evidence, Kopcow decided to send the case to a jury.
He also lowered Huggins’ bond to $75,000.
