Police say Grenier called police shortly before 2 a.m. Wednesday and said he wanted to talk to them. Officers arrived and talked to the man on the porch. Police say Grenier told them that he'd killed "his wife . . . with my bare hands."

After getting permission to enter the home, they found Godwin's body and took him into custody. They then applied for a search warrant, which took several hours.

According to the probable cause statement used as the basis for the murder charge, a detective says Grenier's mother, Lynda Jacobs, was at the home when police arrived. Jacobs told officers that Grenier called her about 9 p.m. Tuesday and "told her he needed to talk with her." He then picked her up at her home and took her back to his home, and told her he killed Godwin with his hands.

Jacobs said she found Godwin's body lying on a couch. Later, she said, "Grenier used a white wash cloth to clean the blood from (Godwin's) face." They then waited until 1:43 a.m. to call police.

Police say they've responded to this address in the past for reports of a domestic disturbance. Detectives aren't certain that the couple lived in the home at the time of those domestic disturbance calls. They will be looking at that during the investigation.

The next door neighbors told a reporter that they heard the couple arguing frequently. That includes a loud argument Tuesday afternoon about 4. Neighbors say they heard nothing suspicious before the 911 call. They say Grenier is an bricklayer who was not working recently.

Other neighbors say the couple have lived there at least a year and argued frequently, with the fights often spilling out onto the front porch. They say the couple were heavy drinkers. A neighbor once witnessed Grenier physically force Godwin out of the house. A police call to the house in August is listed as an assault.

The medical examiner's office removed the body from the home between 11 a.m. and noon. An autopsy on Thursday could help investigators determine the cause of death.