Aaron Schaffhausen’s lead attorney apparently intended for his client to plead guilty to all charges in the first phase of the triple-homicide case Wednesday, March 27, but then changed his mind.
A motion filed by defense attorney John Kucinksi before the start of a motion hearing Wednesday begins, “The Defense, having entered pleas of guilty to all four counts” and then goes on to ask for a broad amount of evidence to be excluded from the second phase of the trial — the phase that would address whether Schaffhausen’s mental state made him not responsible in the deaths of his three daughters in River Falls.
But the plea did not come during Wednesday’s hearing, which saw an appearance by the girls’ mother, Jessica Schaffhausen. The hearing started nearly three hours late as St. Croix County Circuit Judge Howard Cameron and the two sides discussed the issue outside the courtroom in Hudson.
After the hearing, which largely addressed issues of evidence, Kucinski said he didn’t know if the plea would come and likened the situation to a bouncing ball.
“We have to look up a bunch of law and how (Cameron) is ruling,” Kucinski said as he left the courthouse without saying much more to reporters.
Assistant Wisconsin Attorney General Gary Freyberg, the lead prosecutor in the case, said that both sides were discussing the issue Wednesday morning but that he did not want to go into details about what was said in off-the-record conversations.
Schaffhausen entered a plea in January of not guilty by reason of mental disease or defect — what is commonly called an insanity plea — to the charges against him. The issue of a possible plea change is expected to be address in a hearing Thursday.
On Tuesday, Freyberg filed a letter with the court stating prosecutors had been notified that Schaffhausen would plead guilty to the four charges — three counts of first-degree intentional homicide and one count of attempted arson. Freyberg said, however, that there is no plea agreement in place, adding that “whatever has induced the defendant to change his plea, it is not due to concessions by the state.”
Freyberg said Wednesday that he did not want to speculate whether the guilty plea would come.
How exactly a guilty plea would alter the trial, which is scheduled to begin with jury selection April 1, remains unclear.
The case at that point would center on whether Schaffhausen’s mental state at the time of the killings means he is not responsible for the crimes. But testimony and evidence that would have been used in the first phase could possibly be used in the second phase.
Kucinski, however, wants to keep a significant amount of that evidence from being used in a second phase. In his motion Wednesday he sought to exclude all testimony relating to Schaffhausen’s alleged threats to harm his daughters or their mother and all crime scene, autopsy and medical examiner data.
Kucinski argued the evidence should be excluded from a second phase because “the sole issues are, at the time of the crimes, was Aaron suffering from a mental illness and because of that mental illness he lacked substantial capacity to conform his conduct to the requirements of the law.”
Three mental health professionals who have examined Schaffhausen — one appointed by the court and one each for the defense and prosecution — are expected to testify in the second phase of the trial.
The burden of proof shifts to the defense in that phase, and a 10-person majority of the 12-member jury would be needed to decide whether Schaffhausen is responsible for the crimes — essentially deciding if Schaffhausen goes to prison or a mental health facility, potentially for the rest of his life.
Schaffhausen, 35, is accused of killing his three daughters — Amara, 11; Sophie, 8; and Cecilia, 5 — during a visit to their River Falls home July 10. Schaffhausen was living in North Dakota at the time, and he and Jessica Schaffhausen had divorced about six months earlier.
Before turning himself in to police, Aaron Schaffhausen called his ex-wife and said he killed the girls, according to the criminal complaint. Prosecutors say he committed the acts to hurt her — a motive Kucinski has rejected.
Andy Rathbun can be reached at 651-228-2121. Follow him at arathbun@pioneerpress.com.
