Oklahoma City police have thrown the book at an apparently disturbed ex-con with a deadly history who allegedly broke into a family’s home and got into bed with their 11-year-old son.
Josh Hodnik told police his son came into his bedroom Saturday morning around 8 a.m. with some shocking news.
“My son woke me up, and he said, ‘Hey, there’s a man in my bed,’” Hodnik told Fox25.
Police soon arrived at the home in the southwest Oklahoma City neighborhood where police arrested 46-year-old Charles Bradford on a first-degree burglary charge and a host of misdemeanors as well, including trespassing, breaking and entering, and two assault and battery counts.
Bradford reportedly has a long criminal history, including a conviction for manslaughter in 2002.
Hodnik said at first he thought his son had to be mistaken.
“It just kind of shocked me, shook me,” he told the outlet. “I was like, ‘What, what do you, what do you mean?’ I thought he was sleepwalking and he mistook, he was imagining things or whatever.”
He decided to allay his concerns and check out the story. Moments later he was looking down at Bradford.
“There was a grown man laying in the bed, Hodnick said. “He brought his own blanket, had one sock on, no shoes on.”
On Friday night, his two kids had been playing outside and failed to lock the front door when they returned.
“I didn’t go check the front door after they played outside on Friday night,” he said. “And that was my fault. I wish I would have, but I shouldn’t have to. Okay? We shouldn’t live in a society where somebody else walks into your front door.”
Bradford has been arrested before, according to police, including for larceny and assault.
In 2002, Bradford was charged with manslaughter in the choking death of his cellmate at the Oklahoma State Penitentiary in McAlester where he was serving five years for assault and damaging a public building.
He was convicted and served another 10 years for the death.
“The guy should not have been on the street, period,” the father said. “He killed his cellmate. Guy has like 12 violent crimes, assault on an officer, assault on a medical staff, over and over and over and over. And they just let this guy walk out free.”
The outlet asked the district attorney’s office why Bradford was out of jail on a recent conviction in Oklahoma County.
Bradford had pleaded into a Mental Health Court where offenders receive treatment in lieu of incarceration.
Ed Blau, a former chief prosecutor of Oklahoma County’s Drug Court and Mental Health Court, explained Bradford’s situation to KOCO5, the local ABC affiliate.
“Mr. Bradford has a long history of mental illness, and most of his violent episodes involve emergency workers — he gets off medication, and they come out and try to take him to the hospital or take him wherever, and he fights them,” Blau said.
He continued, “Rather than locking this guy up in jail, or prison for a year or two, let’s get him some treatment, meds, and see if we can solve the underlying issues there, and keep his stability maintained.”
Treatment can be revoked and individuals sentenced to incarceration if they violate the rules of the program, which includes committing more crimes.
Based on the most recent incident, the district attorney’s office told Fox25 said they will evaluate his future as a participant.
Bradford is being held at the Cleveland County Detention Center. His bond is set at $75,000.
Contributor Lowell Cauffiel is the best-selling author of the Los Angeles crime novel Below the Line and nine other crime novels and nonfiction titles. See lowellcauffiel.com for more.