DENVER -- A Colorado-based federal relief worker who documented recovery efforts at the World Trade Center after Sept. 11 has been ordered to stand trial in the death of his wife.

Nancy Sonnenfeld, 36, died of a gunshot wound to the head on New Year's Day, when her husband, Kurt, was supposed to move out if he couldn't get his drug problem under control, Det. Ken Gurule testified at a preliminary hearing Thursday.

Kurt Sonnenfeld, 39 (pictured, left), was bound over for trial on a first-degree murder charge, with bond set at $600,000.

Sonnenfeld contends his wife committed suicide.

Public defender Carrie Thompson argued that Nancy Sonnenfeld had been distraught in the preceding months and had tried to kill herself by overdosing on some pills after a Thanksgiving trip to Thailand.

Gurule said Kurt Sonnenfeld had used heroin on the trip, and afterward, Nancy Sonnenfeld filed for a legal separation from her husband.

No gunshot residue was found on Kurt Sonnenfeld's hands, although there was some on his clothing. Some residue was found on Nancy Sonnenfeld's right hand, and her fingerprint was on the gun.

But Gurule said police discounted the suicide story based on the location of the gun about 6 feet in front of Nancy's body, the position of the gunshot wound behind her right ear, bruises on her body and evidence of a struggle.

Kurt Sonnenfeld was a contract photographer for the Federal Emergency Management Agency and shot footage at the World Trade Center after Sept. 11.

Nancy Sonnenfeld worked for an advertising agency and volunteered at the Maxfund Animal Shelter.