By Jim Hannah
The Cincinnati Enquirer

LAKESIDE PARK - Prosecutors are trying to prevent murder suspect Dennis R. Greene Sr. from speaking to his 7-year-old son in somewhat unusual legal proceedings taking place simultaneously in two counties.

A Kenton Circuit Court judge granted a temporary motion Thursday keeping father and son apart, while Greene seeks visitation rights to his son in a Boone Family Court. The outcome of the legal battle is far from clear.

Dennis Greene, who worked for a home for troubled children in Covington, is charged with the murder of his wife, Tara Barrett Greene. Police found the junior high school math teacher's body on May 5 in the couple's Derby Ridge apartment in Lakeside Park.

Court records indicate Dennis Greene told police he slashed his wife's throat because she had let their child play unsupervised outside home.

The couple's son was home at the time of the killing and has been described in court as a witness, but it's unclear what the boy actually saw. His mother's body was found in a pool of blood on the kitchen floor.

He is currently living with his maternal grandparents.

Assistant Commonwealth's Attorney Christy Muncy applauded Kenton Circuit Judge Gregory Bartlett for granting the temporary motion under the state's victim protection statutes. She said allowing Greene to speak with his son could amount to intimidation of a witness. She supported her motion with a letter from an expert witness who said the child could become emotionally scarred further if he was contacted by his father.

Mary Rafizadeh, Greene's public defender, said she was concerned by Bartlett's ruling and looks forward to giving Greene's side of the case during the full hearing on the motion. She said that the prosecutor cited the wrong statute in her motions and that the judge based his decision, in part, on hearsay.

Bartlett is expected on Monday to set a date to hold a full hearing. During that hearing the expert witness is expected to testify. The child will not be called to the stand.

While the victim protection issue is being decided in Kenton County, a family court judge in Boone County has been asked to resolve the parental rights issue that has arisen.

Muncy said Greene has sued for visitation rights in Boone Family Court. Rafizadeh said it was her belief that the family court had denied a similar motion in order to prevent Dennis Greene from speaking with his son. Boone Circuit Court clerks confirmed there was a custody case in family court, but they said the documents were sealed because it involved a minor.

Family Court Judge Linda Bramlage didn't return a message left with her secretary Friday.

Greene remains behind bars at the Kenton County jail. His case is scheduled to go before the grand jury on Friday.

Tara Greene is part of an upcoming Glamour story on wives allegedly killed by their husbands or boyfriends. She is pictured with 39 other slain women in the August issue story on what the magazine calls an "epidemic" of women dying at the hands of their significant others.

E-mail jhannah@enquirer.com