Murder-suicide victim feared for her life in 2007

A woman who investigators believe was killed by her husband in a South Lake Tahoe hotel room the last week in June expressed fears he would kill her as far back as 2007, according to El Dorado County Superior Court records.

In a request for a restraining order filed in July 2007, Lyra Fisher-Bomediano said she feared she would end up dead at the hands of her husband, Aaron Fisher.

“On July 8, 2007, Aaron came to my work again and continuously harasses me and his threatening to physically hurt me and that he will break my neck,” according to the request for a restraining order. “He also constantly calling me at work and was threatening to kill me. I was afraid of my safety because his threat and anger is escalating to the point that he will seriously hurt me and end up taking my life.”

The couple, who had a son together in March 2010, had been married for about a year-and-a-half at the time of the request.

Police believe Fisher asphyxiated Fisher-Bomediano early last week before taking his own life June 22. The official determination of Fisher-Bomediano’s cause of death is pending pathology results.

In a separate entry in the request, Fisher-Bomediano said she almost died on several occasions after Fisher had squeezed both hands around her neck.

“On July 7, 2007, I was working at Cinnabon at Harvey’s Aaron, came by and started calling me names like ‘dumb bitch’ ‘Monkey’ and ‘Stupid’. He was very mad, yelling and screaming at me. Someone called the security and he walked away. I was afraid of him because I know he continues to threaten, harasses me and belittle me. I believe he will extremely physically hurt me because he has done numerous times in the past as he strangled me by putting his both hands on my neck really tight, I can’t breathe and almost died. I want him to stop terrorizing me that’s why I’m seeking a protection order.”

According to a 2010 article, “Perspectives on Civil Protective Orders in Domestic Violence Cases: The Rural and Urban Divide,” published in the National Institute of Justice Journal, a 2009 study looking at the impact of civil protective orders suggests the orders make a difference in the safety and fear levels of women in violent relationships.

“Half of the women who received protective orders did not experience a violation within the following six months,” according to the article. “For the half who did experience violations, the levels of violence and abuse declined significantly compared with the six months before the protective order was issued.”

The study stops short of drawing a direct link between the orders and a decline in fear levels. Another factor or combination of factors could have caused the decline in fear levels among the women studied, according to the article.

Fisher-Bomediano did not complete the 2007 restraining order process.

On July 10, 2007, her request for a temporary restraining order was granted, according to court documents. The order was dismissed two weeks later because Fisher-Bomediano did not attend the hearing to determine whether a more permanent order should be issued, according to the documents.

Investigators are looking into the possibility of a restraining order being issued in 2010, said El Dorado County deputy district attorney Hans Uthe. No record of the order could be located this week.

It’s unknown why Fisher-Bomediano did not attend the 2007 hearing, but the violence in her life apparently continued following the restraining order request.

In September 2008, Fisher-Bomediano reported to police that Fisher hit her in the mouth at a residence on Echo Road. When police arrived at the residence, Fisher was gone and Fisher-Bomediano declined medical attention, said detective Jeff Roberson.

Fisher-Bomediano told police she would call 911 if her husband returned. When a police officer followed up on the incident, no one answered the door and the case was closed as an informational report, Roberson said. The 2008 incident is the only report of domestic violence police have between the pair, Roberson said.

Police are also reviewing 75 pages of documents from authorities in Hawaii regarding reports involving the pair. Fisher-Bomediano lived in South Lake Tahoe, but joined Fisher with their son in Hawaii for several months on at least one occasion, according to court documents.

Friends said Fisher-Bomediano allowed Fisher to stay in her life despite apparent abuse in the relationship.

The 43-year-old was “extremely trusting and believed everyone could change,” said former co-worker Ana Heredia.

She said that, despite Fisher-Bomediano’s fears, Fisher would always find a way to get back into her life.

Kristi Partridge, who hired Fisher-Bomediano at Cinnabon, described her as a forgiving person who “didn’t see the bad in people.”

She couldn’t break away from the relationship with Fisher, Partridge added.

“I couldn’t understand that myself,” Partridge said.

Court documents show Fisher-Bomediano filed for separation from Fisher in 2011. The court record does not contain a document showing the separation was legally served.

People who knew Fisher-Bomediano said she was again trying to end the relationship when Fisher returned to South Lake Tahoe and allegedly killed her.

Co-worker Lisa Rowe said Fisher-Bomediano expressed fear of Fisher several times and said she was trying to separate from her husband. Co-workers were shocked when they learned Fisher had returned from Hawaii in the days before Fisher-Bomediano’s death, Rowe said.

“She was breaking free from him,” Rowe said.

Fisher-Bomediano wanted to leave, but couldn’t find a way out, Heredia added.

“We’d all talk to her to tell her she needed to get away,” Heredia said.

About 40 people attended a memorial service for Fisher-Bomediano at McFarlane Mortuary. Her family plans to cremate her body.