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Former girlfriend claims she was strangled by Dale Bruner

Kathryn Corazzelli
Summit Daily News
Dale Bruner
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Allegations that accused killer Dale Bruner physically assaulted an ex-girlfriend and discovered his wife was possibly having an affair before her murder will be admissible at his jury trial in July, according to a Summit County District Court order issued Friday.

The former girlfriend, who lived with Bruner, claims the defendant physically assaulted her on numerous occasions, and recounted specific instances where she was hit with a plaque, kicked in the stomach, pulled out of a car by her hair and strangled by Bruner until she passed out, according to the court document. The woman never reported the events to police because she loved Bruner, she was young and blamed herself, the document said.

The order also reveals the woman later provided child care for victim Stephanie Roller Bruner, and the two women discussed Bruner’s violence toward them.



Roller Bruner, who sought a protection order and filed for divorce from her husband shortly before her death, contacted the Advocates of Victims of Assault and reported Bruner’s bad temper, physical abuse and wanting to leave her husband, according to the order. It also stated that before her death, she told a friend, “if anything happens to me, know that Dale did it.”

The next hearing in the case is set for May 17.



Bruner reported his wife, a dance instructor and former county employee, missing Nov. 23, 2010, saying she went out for a walk the night before and never came home.

Summit County Rescue Group and search volunteers combed the area around the Bruners’ home for three days before eventually finding Stephanie Roller Bruner’s body in the Blue River.

Cause of death was later determined to be a combination of blunt force trauma, strangulation, hypothermia and drowning.

Bruner was a prime suspect for several months before he was finally indicted by a grand jury in August 2011.


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