A Duanesburg mother of five spent a week in Albany Medical Center Hospital, where she was originally listed in critical condition, after her husband apparently attacked her with a baseball bat shortly before taking his own life.
The Princetown State Police were called to the Raymond Lees home at 1164 Creek Road just over the Schoharie County line in the Town of Duanesburg at 4:59pm last Tuesday for an attempted suicide.
When Troopers arrived, they said they found Mr. Lees, 50, unresponsive in his vehicle which was parked behind the home.
Mr. Lees apparently took his own life suffering from carbon monoxide poisoning after attaching a hose to the car’s tailpipe, police said.
He was taken by Esperance ambulance to Bassett Hospital in Cooperstown where he was pronounced dead.
After finding Mr. Lees, police said they entered the home and found Debra Lees, 49, lying on the floor just inside the front door of the home.
Ms. Lees, police said, had been struck several times about the head with a baseball bat. She was transported to Albany Medical Center by Central Bridge ambulance where she was at first listed in critical condition suffering from a skull fracture and brain trauma.
Her condition has been upgraded and she was released to Sunnyview Rehabilitation Hospital Tuesday.
There are signs that the attack was planned, police said.
There was a note on the front door of the home saying not to come into the house but to call police instead, police said.
Also, police said Mr. Lees had caused some suspicion among his friends when he asked a couple of people to pick up all of the couple’s five children but not to bring them home.
The couple had five children attending Duanesburg schools, police said.
Mr. and Mrs. Lees moved from New Jersey about eight years ago and have had “standard” marriage difficulties, police said, and an initial investigation by the State Police revealed that they recently have had marital problems.
Mr. Lees was employed as a respiratory therapist at Ellis Hospital and Ms. Lees is a nurse at St. Mary’s Hospital in Amsterdam.
The State Police Troop G forensic unit assisted in the investigation.
Police said they will continue to interview family members and friends of the couple.