A Bloomfield Township man who was reportedly living with his wife\u2019s decomposing body at their home will be evaluated for competency, a judge has ordered.<\/p>\n
At a hearing Oct. 14 in 48th District Court, Judge Diane D\u2019Agostini referred Dirk-Peter Grunewald, 53, for the psychiatric\/psychological assessment to determine if he has the mental capacity to understand the charges against him and participate in the legal proceedings.<\/p>\n
Grunewald is charged with failure to report a death\/concealing the death of an individual \u2014 Ariane Grunewald Bluem \u2014- who police found dead on the couch of their residence in the 4600 block of Hedgewood Drive on Sept. 27. Police said she had been dead for an extensive period of time and was \u201cseverely decomposed.\u201d<\/p>\n
Officers had been called to the home to conduct a welfare check when they discovered the corpse. A few weeks ago, police said an autopsy to determine the cause and manner of death was inconclusive \u2014 with further examination required. On Oct. 14, Cas Miarka, spokesperson for the Oakland County Medical Examiner\u2019s Office, told The Oakland Press that additional testing is ongoing and it will likely be several days or more before results are available.<\/p>\n
After finding the body, police located Dirk Grunewald in an upstairs bedroom of the home and said he had multiple knives laid out near him. He refused to speak directly with officers and wouldn\u2019t follow commands, so crisis negotiators and members of the Oakland County SWAT team were dispatched to the home as a safety precaution, police said.<\/p>\n
Grunewald was subsequently placed into protective custody at Trinity Health Oakland for medical and mental health treatment, and later arraigned. He\u2019s held in the Oakland County Jail with bond set at $250,000 cash or surety.<\/p>\n
Grunewald\u2019s next court date is pending.<\/p>\n