Middletown Spouse Charged with Wife’s Murder

The widower of a Middletown woman found dead in her kitchen in November 2011 now stands charged with killing her.

Patrick Allen, 45, was indicted today on a charge of first-degree murder, third-degree counts of possession of a weapon for unlawful purpose and hindering apprehension of another and a fourth-degree charge of tampering with physical evidence.

Forty-four-year-old Kimberly Allen's lifeless body was found around 11:45 AM on November 18, 2011 by Middletown police who responded to a call summoning them to the couple's house. Authorities say Patrick Allen stayed at the scene.

Allen was arrested on a murder charge the same day, with bail set at $1,000,000. He was placed in the Monmouth County Correctional Facility in Freehold, where he's been since that point, in lieu of bail.

Investigators determined that Kimberly Allen died after being hit with a frying pan during a struggle. Her autopsy determined the cause to be homicidal violence, including asphyxia and blunt-force injuries to the head.

If convicted, Allen risks a lifetime prison sentence, and under New Jersey's No Early Release Act, be required to serve at least 85 percent of whatever term is given before being eligible for parole. The weapons and hindering counts carry maximum terms of up to five years, and the tampering charge has a possible sentence of up to 18 months.