Torture defendant charged after jail finds letter attempting to bribe witness
A Port Huron man facing charges in a torture case is facing a new charge after officials said he attempted to contact his codefendant in an attempt to alter her testimony.
Aaron Schoenrock, 42, reportedly attempted to send a letter to his codefendant and ex-girlfriend, Jolynn Hirsch, telling her what she should say at his trial.
"I'll give you money," Schoenrock allegedly wrote, according to court records. "I'll give you whatever you want. All you need to do is testify at my trial that the prosecutor and detective made you make (expletive) up on me in order for you to get released from jail."
Schoenrock and Hirsch were arrested in June after they reportedly kidnapped a woman and tortured her over an eight hour period, raped her, force-fed her drugs and forced her to write a suicide note at gunpoint.
Hirsch accepted a plea agreement in October that required her to testify against Schoenrock if his case goes to trial.
A probable cause affidavit states deputies discovered the letter on Jan. 4, and that the return address used the name of Schoenrock's cellmate at the St. Clair County jail. The letter was included in mail addressed to Schoenrock's mother.
Hirsch has told police she witnessed Schoenrock torture the victim after they became concerned she was cooperating with police in a drug investigation against Schoenrock. She said she watched Schoenrock beat the victim and retrieved a gun and chainsaw that Schoenrock reportedly used to threaten the victim.
Both the letter to Hirsch and a letter to Schoenrock's mother were written with the expectation Hirsch would be released from the county jail on Jan. 8, according to a court transcript. Hirsch remains incarcerated in the jail as of Wednesday.
In the letter to his mother, Schoenrock says he will likely spend the rest of his life in prison if Hirsch testifies, and told his mother to contact Hirsch and to pass on his offer of money, according to a summary of the letter included in Schoenrock's case file.
"Maybe you could get her to come over to your house, and I could call you, and you could put me on speaker phone," the letter to Schoenrock's mother reportedly said.
In addition to allegedly offering Hirsch money, the letter also offers his car and to return any belongings of hers in his possession.
Schoenrock and Hirsch have been forbidden from contacting each other during court proceedings.
Schoenrock is now charged with bribing or intimidating a witness, punishable with up to 10 years in prison if convicted.
During a preliminary hearing on Jan. 23, Senior Assistant Public Defender Meggan Delisi said there was no physical evidence connecting Schoenrock to the letters, according to a transcript of the hearing. She pointed out it was another inmate who tried to send the letters, and that there was no video recording from the jail of Schoenrock passing any letters to the other inmate.
St. Clair County Assistant Prosecutor Paul Soderberg argued, however, that the letters included details about Schoenrock's case that would not have been known by another inmate. The case was bound over to circuit court.
Delisi also motioned for Schoenrock to undergo a competency evaluation, saying he had told her he was hearing voices in his head. District Judge John Monaghan denied the request, expressing concern Schoenrock was trying to delay court proceedings, as he had never reported hearing voices before. Monaghan said the issue could be revisited if Schoenrock receives an official diagnosis.
On Jan. 26, David Steingold, Schoenrock's attorney in his torture case, filed a motion to withdraw. Steingold did not mention the new charge in the motion, writing that there is evidence to justify the motion, but that he would not put it in writing. A hearing on the motion is scheduled for Feb. 5.
Schoenrock has been charged with 10 felonies including torture, first-degree criminal sexual conduct, assault with intent to murder, first-degree home invasion, unlawful imprisonment, unlawful possession of a firearm by a felon, unlawful possession of ammunition by a felon, and three counts of possession of felony firearm possession.
Schoenrock's jury trial is scheduled to begin 10:30 a.m. on March 12.
Contact Johnathan Hogan at jhogan@gannett.com.
This article originally appeared on Port Huron Times Herald: Torture defendant charged after jail finds bribe letter to witness
