A 51-year-old St. Joseph man is being held without bail after allegedly threatening his mother with a shotgun.

Scott Dittemore is due back in court later this month after his initial court appearance Friday on one class-b felony count of domestic assault in the first degree. In court documents, investigators say they responded to a domestic disturbance call near Faucett on the morning of July 1.

“During the disturbance, Mr. Dittemore knowingly placed his mother in fear for her life, by placing a loaded shotgun underneath her chin and threatening to kill her,” said Buchanan County Deputy Sheriff Grant Thrasher in a court affidavit. Thrasher said Dittemore was intoxicated at the time.

Bond was denied in the case, after a judge ruled that Dittemore poses a danger to the victim. Thrasher said in the probable cause statement that the defendant has two prior alcohol-related convictions, and one prior conviction for domestic assault.

During an initial court appearance on Friday, Associate Circuit Judge Rebecca Spencer scheduled the case for a preliminary hearing docket July 27.