65-year-old mother, who said she “completely regretted” her 34-year-old disabled son survived after she crushed 31 of her prescribed pills into his feeding tube, pleaded guilty
Minnesota – In a shocking case out of Minnesota, a 65-year-old woman, identified as J. Schnell, admitted in court that she tried to take the life of her disabled son. She also said that she “completely regretted” that her disabled son survived after she secretly crushed 31 of her prescribed pills and emptied them into his feeding tube.
Schnell pleaded guilty last week to attempted first-degree murder in the December 2023 incident. Under the plea deal, prosecutors dropped an aggravating factor that her son was “particularly vulnerable,” a charge that could have increased her sentence to 20 years. The case was prosecuted by the county attorney’s office to avoid a conflict of interest, as Schnell was previously married to the Minnesota Department of Corrections Commissioner.
Although she admitted her crime, no agreement was reached on sentencing. She now faces a maximum of 18 years in prison, with sentencing set for November 7. The crime took place on December 3, 2023, at a group home, where her 34-year-old son — who suffers from spina bifida, uses a ventilator, and requires round-the-clock care — was living. According to a probable cause affidavit, Schnell confessed to investigators that she had refilled her Lorazepam prescription earlier that month, crushed 31 pills into a slurry, and emptied the mixture into her son’s feeding tube, telling herself she was “hoping he would go to sleep forever.”
She later admitted that throughout the night she kept asking herself if she was really going to go through with it: “All night, I was like, am I really doing this? Am I doing this? Am I doing this? I can’t believe I’m doing this.” Her son later suffered respiratory failure, but survived. Schnell reportedly expressed resentment over his survival, telling investigators she “completely regretted he survived.” She worried a toxicology report would reveal her actions and confided that she knew she was “going to go to jail.”
Authorities say the disturbing case came fully to light in June 2024, when Schnell admitted to an investigator that she had indeed attempted to kill her son six months earlier. By August, the evidence became undeniable. On August 6, 2024, she even sent her son a text message confessing that she had spiked his feeding tube with her medication, reiterating her hope that he would “go to sleep forever.” The victim responded that he was still “processing” the revelation, telling investigators the confession was “heavy” and “a lot to process.” Despite everything, he emphasized, “I made it, I’m still here.” According to court documents, the young man told investigators he liked his residence, had everything he needed, and enjoyed spending his time volunteering weekly at the zoo.
Schnell was said to be experiencing mental health struggles in the months before the attempted murder. At the time of her arrest in August 2024, her divorce from Commissioner Schnell was finalized, and he later filed for an order of protection for himself and his son. The crime left both investigators and community members disturbed, given the vulnerability of the victim. Officials emphasized that without immediate medical intervention, the overdose could have been fatal.
Schnell remains free on $50,000 bail until her sentencing hearing in November. State guidelines suggest a sentence between 12¾ and 18 years, with the first two-thirds to be served in prison and the remainder under supervised release. For now, her son is under continued care, his strength in surviving the ordeal standing in stark contrast to his mother’s shocking betrayal.
