The son of a former mayor of Aspen has been charged with two misdemeanors after allegedly beating his pregnant girlfriend and forcing vodka into her throat. The woman said her fetus died afterward.
Soren Klanderud, 41, had a blood-alcohol level of 0.396, nearly five times the limit for driving impaired, when police arrested him in his Basalt apartment on May 28. He was nude and unconscious when they arrived, police said.
Basalt police Officer Stu Curry said Klanderud’s live-in girlfriend, who is not being identified, telephoned 911 early that afternoon, saying she had been held captive for more than 10 hours. Curry said the woman had severe bruises on her chest and on her arms, which she said came from Klanderud holding her against her will.
“He beat the (expletive) out of me and held me down and suffocated me with a pillow,” she told Basalt police.
She also told police that Klanderud poured vodka down her throat while pinching her nose shut. Curry said she had a blood-alcohol level of 0.406 when examined at the hospital.
The woman told police she believed she was three months pregnant. Curry said her stomach looked as if she was pregnant.
Klanderud, the son of former Aspen Mayor Helen Klanderud who was term-limited out of office in May 2007, suffered a seizure while being arrested. He was taken to Aspen Valley Hospital for treatment.
Pitkin County prosecutors have charged Klanderud with third-degree assault, a misdemeanor; false imprisonment, a misdemeanor; and domestic violence, which is used as a sentence enhancement.
Pitkin County Judge Erin Fernandez-Ely set bail at $750 personal recognizance and released Klanderud to an alcohol-rehab program.
Mike McPhee: 303-954-1409 or mmcphee@denverpost.com
