The estranged wife of Minnesota’s prison commissioner is accused of attempting to murder their wheelchair-bound son by dumping crushed anti-anxiety pills into a feeding bag at his group home in December, several months before texting a purported confession to the victim and allegedly making remarkable admissions about her intent to law enforcement.
On December 3, 2023, Julie Louise Myhre-Schnell, a 64-year-old from St. Paul who is reportedly in divorce proceedings with Minnesota Department of Corrections Commissioner Paul Schnell, is accused of visiting her 33-year-old son, for whom the Schnells reportedly served as foster parents beginning when he was three months old.
Law&Crime got a complaint that did not name the victim, but characterized him as “vulnerable.” According to the Star Tribune, he is wheelchair-bound due to spina bifida, on a ventilator, and requires 24-hour medical care.
He was getting that care at a group home in Vadnais Heights, Ramsey County, when Myhre-Schnell reportedly attempted to murder him last year by overdosing on Lorazepam, “hoping he would go to sleep forever,” according to the complaint. According to documents, the victim told detectives that “he liked his residence and had everything he needed” and “talked about his friends and what he enjoys doing in his spare time, including weekly volunteering at the zoo.”
According to the Ramsey County Sheriff’s Office, Myhre-Schnell not only “admitted to multiple people,” including the victim, that she smashed up her Lorazepam tablets and attempted to murder her kid, but she also acknowledged more to detectives when questioned in June.
“On June 15, 2024, Investigator Hughes spoke with Defendant about her confessions.” The defendant acknowledged in her Mirandized confession that she attempted to murder Victim in December 2023. The defendant indicated in the complaint that she refilled her Lorazepam prescription at the beginning of the month and got 31 tablets. “Investigator Hughes was able to confirm that Defendant had visited Victim at his group home on December 3, 2023.”
The defendant confessed that she smashed up the remaining Lorazepam tablets and placed them in a container with a slurry of water to transport to the institution. The defendant brought the slurry in its container and carried it in her pocket until she dumped it into Victim’s feeding bag that night before departing,” the lawsuit stated.
According to investigators, Myhre-Schnell stated that “the whole time, I knew I was going try this” and that “all night, I was thinking, am I doing this? Am I doing this? Am I doing this? I cannot believe I’m doing this.”
The defendant reportedly admitted to thinking “I’m going to jail,” being concerned about a toxicology result identifying her after the victim survived respiratory failure, and said she “completely regretted he survived.”
“I was concerned about them finding out via toxicology, and I was probably trying to figure out what I was going to do. “I’m just going to jail,” Myhre-Schnell reportedly told investigators.
By July, investigators claimed, evidence revealed that the defendant had refilled her Lorazepam prescription two days before the alleged attempted murder. But what authorities claim occurred in early August, only weeks before Myhre-Schnell’s arrest, is even more stunning.
“On August 6, 2024, Defendant texted Victim, confessing to him that she put her medicine in his feeding bag hoping he would ‘go to sleep forever,'” according to the lawsuit! “Investigator Hughes obtained copies of these messages. The victim texted the Defendant, saying he was ‘on the fence’ about deleting her number. In answer to Investigator Hughes’ query regarding Victim’s feelings after discovering what transpired, he said, ‘I made it, I’m still here.’ The victim described his reaction to the defendant’s confession as “heavy” and “a lot to process.”
It’s unknown if Myhre-Schnell has a counsel, but she was booked into Ramsey County Jail on Wednesday for attempted first-degree murder and remains there as of Friday.
Her estranged husband, the prison commissioner appointed by Gov. Tim Walz (D) in 2019, allegedly declined to speak with local NBC affiliate KARE on Myhre-Schnell’s arrest, stating it would be “inappropriate” at this time.
According to local Fox station KMSP, Myhre-Schnell had mental health concerns in the months leading up to the alleged incident.