Redondo Beach Man Surrenders in Ex-Wife’s Slaying

A Redondo Beach engineer has been arrested on suspicion of murdering his former wife nine days ago, motivated, police say, by an acrimonious divorce settlement.

William Bradford, 55, came to the Torrance police headquarters Friday afternoon at the request of police and submitted to arrest, said Sgt. Ron Brumbelow. He is being held at the city jail without bail.

Homicide detective Sgt. Jack McDonald said police will ask the district attorney’s office Monday to file murder charges against Bradford in the shooting of his former wife, Barbara Joan Bradford, 52.

But Bradford’s lawyer, John Meyers, said Friday that his client is not guilty. “I have no idea what the evidence is,” Meyers said. “He surrendered to be arrested. Whether the district attorney charges him is a whole other thing.”

Barbara Bradford’s body was discovered Sept. 16, by her 21-year-old daughter and 16-year-old son, behind a piano in the home they shared in Torrance. She had been shot in the head and body.

Alibi Offered

Her former husband, a TRW electrical engineer, was questioned by police two days later and offered an alibi, police said, but both his attorney and detectives have refused to say what it was.

The couple had sold the home for about $380,000 as part of their divorce settlement and each was expecting to receive half the proceeds, Meyers said. But Bradford received papers Sept. 15 informing him that his share of the sale would be deducted by $40,000 to pay alimony and child support, Meyers said.

Police said they received information that Bradford was “very, very upset” over the loss of the $40,000.

One day later, Barbara Bradford was dead.

Police refused to say why, besides the possible motive, they connected Bradford to the murder.

Meyers denied that the loss of the money would have driven Bradford to kill his former wife. “I don’t imagine he was thrilled with it, but it still gave him $150,000 in cash” from the sale of the home, Meyers said. “I don’t think that’s a motive for murder.”

Even if police could prove that Bradford was upset, Meyers said, “you need a hell of a lot more than a motive to prove a murder case.”