A Spokane man accused of trying to kill his wife in front of their two children was ordered today to stay in jail on $500,000 bond.

Spokane County Deputy Prosecutor Gayle Ervin acknowledged the bond set for Corey A. Holten, 42, was unusually high because he has no criminal history, but she emphasized that he repeatedly harassed his ex-wife before accosting her at gunpoint Saturday.

Holten told the woman he would kill her that night and commit suicide, or he would leave the home in handcuffs and kill her when he got out of jail, Ervin said.

A victim's advocate said Holten's ex-wife fears for her life. Holten's children, ages 9 and 11, "are very traumatized," the advocate told Superior Court Judge Annette Plese.

"They keep crying, waking up stating 'Dad tried to kill Mom,'" she said.

Police say 10 hours after he was served with a no-contact order Saturday, Holten showed up at his wife's home with a gun. He pulled up in a car with its headlights off as she walked home with their daughter and son and ordered her in the home at gunpoint, Ervin told Plese.

Officer Rob Boothe, a weapons expert, heard a round being chambered when he arrived at the home in the 800 block of West York Avenue after a 911 call about 10:10 p.m.. Holten and the woman have been divorced for a couple of years, and she recently started a new relationship, Ervin said.

Holten's public defender said the allegations didn't support an attempted murder charge, only second-degree assault and harassment, but Plese disagreed.

The judge called Holten "a severe danger to the community" as well as his wife and children and imposed the prosecution's bond request of $500,000.

---

---