A Briarcliff woman with a history of attacking people both inside and outside the Baxter County jail, and for sitting mute during court appearances continued her silent treatment during a session of Baxter County Circuit Court recently.Twenty-nine-year-old Vanessa Renee Henschel appeared on a video hookup from the McPherson Unit of the state prison system at Newport where she is serving time on an earlier conviction.
Deputy Public Defender James Wallace told Circuit Judge John Putman that the latest psychological examination ordered for Henschel was not completed.
Records show the examination was not finished because Henschel was not cooperative.
Wallace wanted the exam completed and the state offered no objection. Prosecutor David Ethredge said Henschel could be found fit to proceed and criminally responsible for her acts even if she refused to talk to the examiner.
Ethredge said he wanted to be able to dispose of the two active cases against Henschel both filed in 2020.
During the discussion of the not completed psychological exam, Henschel stared straight ahead and said nothing.
CURRENT CHARGES
Henschel’s appearance Monday dealt with charges she picked up in late January 2020 for attacking a homeowner at a residence along County Road 15 after using the man’s truck without permission to make a trip into town and back.
While in jail on charges stemming from the alleged attack, Henschel got in trouble for striking a female jailer on the left side of her face and head using her left fist and forearm.
The jailer recovered from the blow and attempted to restrain Henschel, but the inmate continued to be combative. After help arrived, Henschel was put in a restraint chair for a brief time before being returned to her housing area.
Henschel’s attack on the jailer resulted in charges of second-degree battery and impairing the operation of a vital public facility. She has also attacked a number of fellow inmates for no apparent reason, according to incident reports filed by the sheriff’s office.
CLAIMED SHE LIVED IN BURGLARIZED HOUSE
In the January case, Henschel is charged with aggravated residential burglary, theft of property, aggravated assault, and 3rd degree battery.
According to the probable cause affidavit filed in the 2020 case, the Baxter County Sheriff’s Office received a report of a burglary at a residence along County Road 15 in late January.
The homeowner said he arrived home to see his truck being driven up the driveway to his residence. He said he saw a female, later identified as Henschel, exit the truck and go inside the garage. He told investigators he followed her and made contact in the garage.
HENSCHEL ATTACKS HOMEOWNER
After some conversation, Henschel is reported to have punched the homeowner in the head and then armed herself with a pair of “hedge clippers” and attempted to attack him.
The victim went to a neighbor’s house to call 911.
The first Baxter County investigator on the scene recognized Henschel from previous encounters. The investigator asked Henschel what she was doing on the property. As opposed to her court appearances, she spoke to the investigator, telling him she lived there.
The investigator asked her where she had gone in the homeowner’s truck and she said she had been to “town and back.”
HENSCHEL MADE HERSELF AT HOME
The homeowner and the investigator walked through the residence. They saw that the window over the kitchen sink had been broken and blood was found on the sink and floor.
It appeared Henschel had helped herself to snacks and a soft drink and rested in one of the bedrooms. They also found dresser drawers pulled open and $60 in cash missing from a closet. The homeowner’s wife said items of her clothing and jewelry had also been taken.
It was determined Henschel had been wearing some of the missing clothing and jewelry at the time she was arrested.
VARIOUS METHODS OF ATTACK USED
Through the years, Henschel has used her fists, a knife, a backpack, a forearm and a hedge trimmer against her victims.
The victims have included a former friend, her father, jailers, and fellow-inmates. According to court records, the attacks were unprovoked.
Henschel had been given several psychological evaluations to determine her fitness to proceed in her cases and whether she could be held criminally responsible for her actions.
All but the last evaluation have determined she can be held responsible. There was no report done on the last evaluation because of Henschel’s lack of cooperation.
MANY VIOLATIONS ON PRISON RECORD
During her stays in prison, Henschel has accumulated almost 40 major disciplinary violations.
The violations include insolence to a staff member, threats to inflict injury, battery, failure to obey orders, refusal to submit to substance abuse testing, throwing or attempting to throw substances and interfering with operations.
The last infractions noted on her record were refusing to submit to a drug test and battery, both of which occurred on September 13 last year.
MUTE OF MALICE
Henschel’s refusal to speak would have been treated differently in the British legal system of olden times. A process seldom used today allowed a separate trial to be held to allow a jury to determine the reason behind a defendant’s refusal to speak.
The jury could find the defendant “mute of malice” or “mute due to a visitation of God.” In bygone days, if a defendant was found to be mute by choice, the person could be tortured until one of two things happened — he spoke or died.
In the United States and most other countries, a defendant enjoys a constitutionally protected right not to speak during court proceedings or police questioning.
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