Trial for Canton man who reportedly shot wife in face in October 2023 set for October 2025

CANTON, Mo. — The trial for a Canton man charged with first-degree murder after he reportedly shot his wife as they fought in their home in October 2023 has been set for October 2025 in Adair County.

Adam Wolf, 48, appeared with defense attorney Jeff Becker on Dec. 5 before Circuit Judge Frederick Paul Tucker in Lewis County Circuit Court. Appearing for the state were Lewis County Prosecuting Attorney Chelsea Fellinger and Michael Schafer with the Missouri Attorney General’s office.

Circuit Judge Rick Roberts ordered in May 2024 for the venue to be changed to Adair County. He also set the trial for the week of June 9-13, 2025. However, a motion for a change of judge was filed by defense attorney Scott Rosenblum on Nov. 27 and granted on Dec. 2.

Tucker then rescheduled the trial for the Division 3 courtroom in Kirksville for Oct. 13-17, 2025. A pretrial hearing is set for 1 p.m. Sept. 26, 2025.

Information filed on Case.net also indicated Tucker denied a request on bond, in part, because of Wolf’s apparent failure to abide by previous bond conditions. No details about Wolf’s previous bond conditions or how he failed to abide by them were available online.

Wolf has pled not guilty to the charges of:

• Murder in the first degree, a Class A felony punishable by imprisonment in the Missouri Department of Corrections for life;
• Armed criminal action, an unclassified felony punishable for between five and 15 years in the Missouri Department of Corrections; and 
• Unlawful use of a weapon while intoxicated (weapon loaded), a Class E felony punishable for between one and four years in the Missouri Department of Corrections or up to one year in the county jail.

Wolf originally was charged with murder in the second degree. However, Fellinger re-filed the charges on May 10.

Deputies with the Lewis County Sheriff’s Department were called to a disturbance at 405 Grant in Canton at 8:03 p.m. Oct. 22, 2023. Upon arrival, deputies and emergency medical services employees found April Wolf, the wife of Adam Wolf, with a severe gunshot wound. She was taken by ambulance to Blessing Hospital in Quincy, Ill., and pronounced dead at 12:44 a.m. Oct. 23.

Adam Wolf called NECOMM, the 911 communications center, to report he had shot his wife, according to a probable cause statement filed by Lewis County Sheriff David Parrish.

“I accidentally shot (her),” he said.

When asked where she was shot, Adam Wolf replied, “In the mouth.” He later said, “She was coming at me. We were fightin.’”

Adam Wolf then identified the weapon as a .22-caliber pistol. He said he had placed the gun on the freezer in the kitchen. Deputy Toby Moss later recovered a Browning Buck Mark .22-caliber semi-automatic handgun from the top of the freezer. The firearm was empty, and the magazine was not present.

Deputies at the scene believed Adam Wolf was under the influence of alcohol.

Wolf’s case is the first first-degree murder case in Lewis County since August 2018, when Marcus Mays was charged with the death of 2-year-old Taylen Allen. The case was eventually moved to Scotland County, where a jury found Mays guilty. Mays was sentenced to life in prison in October 2022.