Man accused of fatally stabbing estranged wife due in court

Michael Rodney Kane, an elementary school teacher arrested in the fatal stabbing of his estranged wife in West Hills, was expected to make his first court appearance Wednesday.

Kane, 46, who has been held on $1.01-million bail after police found him in a Yucca Valley motel early Monday morning, was scheduled for arraignment in Van Nuys Municipal Court, according to the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department.

Michelle Ann Kane, who had obtained a temporary restraining order against her husband, took refuge with her two small children in the home of friends Friday night, officials said. But on Saturday morning, Michael Kane allegedly tracked her down and forced his way into the home.

Michelle Kane bolted from the home and ran down the quiet, suburban street but Michael Kane caught up with her and stabbed her multiple times, police said. She died at the scene and her husband drove off, they said, touching off a weekend-long manhunt.

The incident shocked neighbors in the suburban San Fernando Valley neighborhood, some of whom said they tried in vain to help the woman as she lay dying on the street.

The couple had been going through a contentious divorce and Michelle Kane, in court documents seeking the restraining order, reported several instances of death threats and hostile behavior on her husband’s part.

The couple had a daughter, 6, and a son, 2.

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