It was just before 7 a.m. Tuesday when Thomas Lee Herman called 911 to tell Boise police he had possibly just killed somebody inside a room at the Cabana Inn.

When police arrived moments later, they found a naked woman lying on the ground, covered with bruises and "stomp pattern" injuries all over her body. Blood was on the carpet and walls, according to police.

Herman, who met officers outside the room before going in, told Boise police he did it, according to court records obtained by the Idaho Statesman.

On Wednesday, Herman was in a jail uniform and bound to a wheelchair for security when he made his initial court appearance on a first-degree murder charge for Mamokete Folkes' death.

Herman appeared lucid but said little. His court-appointed attorney did not argue when prosecutors asked that Herman remains in jail with no bond.

No one was at court for the 46-year-old Folkes, who has been described as being homeless. Ada County Coroner records say Folkes had no fixed address.

Neither police nor prosecutors have released a suspected motive in the beating death of Folkes. Prosecutors say Herman beat Folkes with his hands and feet repeatedly, causing her to suffer a fatal brain injury, several broken bones and a lacerated spleen.

Ada County Coroner's officials say the cause of death was multiple instances of blunt force trauma. The coroner reported that she died at 5 a.m.

Herman told police Folkes was intoxicated before he began hitting her. Police noticed Herman's foot and hand were swollen. Herman said he had to put a shoe on so he could continue to stomp the woman with his foot, according to testimony from Wednesday's probable cause hearing.

Herman has a lengthy criminal record from other states, Ada County Deputy Prosecutor Brian Naugle said.

Little is known about Folkes, the victim. Officials at local homeless shelters said they were not able to talk about anyone who may have used their facilities.

Folkes has a limited criminal history, including two tickets this year for having an open container of alcohol in public, a misdemeanor domestic violence and DUI convictions from 2008.

Herman was on unsupervised probation for a knife assault on another woman at a motel in December. Ada County Prosecutor Greg Bower on Wednesday defended the plea agreement.

"The judge has to rely on us to tell him what we can prove, and the fact that victims aren't happy with our decisions happens every day," Bower said.

Patrick Orr: 377-6219, Twitter: @IDS_Orr