McHenry woman charged in husband’s ’03 killing is out of jail on bond, files to have case dismissed

Attorneys for a McHenry woman have filed a motion aiming to dismiss the charge that she murdered her husband more than 20 years ago in Wisconsin.

Roxanna Collins, 70, was then Roxanna Vanderzee when authorities allege she and John Viskocil, 70, her suspected boyfriend at the time, killed her new husband David Vanderzee.

Collins, who bonded out of jail June 4, the day after her first court appearance, by posting $500,000, was back in a Kenosha County courtroom Friday, where her attorney filed a motion to dismiss the case. Collins will appear Aug. 13 for a preliminary hearing and to argue the motion. Both are charged with first-degree intentional homicide.

Viskocil, of Genoa City, Wisconsin, remains in custody on a $500,000 bond, records show. He also is due in court Aug. 13. Collins and Viskocil were arrested and charged in May after the case was reopened by the Kenosha County district attorney.

Investigators have said that after her husband was killed, Collins spent that night at Viskocil’s home, where he lived with his girlfriend. Soon, the girlfriend moved out, and Collins moved in, detectives said in a report.

Although an investigation was conducted at the time, charges were not filed until this year.

Authorities say Collins told investigators that she called 911 after coming home from shopping and finding her husband in a pool of blood. Prosecutors also allege that Viskocil arrived at the house that night and blurted out that Vanderzee had been shot, though that hadn’t yet been made public.

Collins and Viskocil were interviewed at the time, and both were offered the opportunity to take a certified voice stress analyzer examination, which they were told could eliminate them as suspects, but both refused, according to court records. The investigation also revealed that the two made several phone calls to each other that day, the court document states.

Kenosha County said the arrests were the result of continued diligent police work and a fresh review of the case. Collins was taken into custody by the McHenry County Sheriff’s Office on May 28 then transferred to Kenosha County.

Collins has been married for 16 years and had worked in health care before retiring, authorities said. She has grown children and grandchildren and cares for her husband, her attorney, Jennifer Recktenwald, said at an initial court appearance June 3.