Staskal to be released to group home in Eau Claire
Photo
Mark Staskal who killed his sister but was found not guilty by reason of mental illness sits in on his final hearing on his placement in a group home.
JANESVILLE — Mark Staskal might be en route today from Mendota Mental Health Institute in Madison to a group home in Eau Claire.
If not today, Staskal will live there soon. His conditional release from the mental hospital was approved Wednesday.
Staskal, 44, stabbed his sister, Marcy, to death in 1984 in Milton but was found not guilty because of mental illness. Marcy was 16.
Staskal has been living at Mendota since his trial.
Rock County Judge Michael Byron on Wednesday completed the legal process that started in January when he ruled that Staskal was fit for conditional release.
A court-ordered treatment plan developed by Lutheran Social Services under contract with the state Department of Health and Family Services includes around-the-clock supervision of Staskal. His whereabouts will be monitored electronically through an ankle bracelet.
Four other men now live at the group home—The Bernice & Genevieve Foundation, 3806 Woodcrest Court.
Sixteen other facilities rejected Staskal’s placement, according to court testimony Wednesday.
Group home co-owner Amy Golla testified Wednesday that Staskal could move in today, and Staskal’s attorney, Phillip Brehm of Janesville, said he would try to have Byron sign the release form as soon as possible.
Staskal was in court, wearing a blue jacket, black pants and leg shackles over brown loafers. He took notes, occasionally showing a message to Brehm.
The only emotion Staskal showed was a smile when the judge reminded those in court that Staskal was not a convicted killer because he was judged not guilty by reason of mental disease.
In phone calls Monday and Tuesday, Staskal declined to talk to a reporter.
Staskal’s conditional release comes over the objections of his parents—Redgie and Melly Staskal of Milton—and Bradley Venaas, deputy police chief in Eau Claire.
Redgie and Melly fear their son will kill again.
“As a father, I struggled with the guilt for years. I struggled with the guilt of a father taking responsibility for the safety of his children, all his children” Redgie said after the hearing.
“I struggled with that for years. I still do,” he said. “The next time, the blood will be on the judge’s hands, nobody else’s.”
Redgie and Melly hope their son will not again erupt in lethal violence.
But Melly added: “I understand it’s a beautiful home with really nice people, but I don’t think they know what they’re getting into with Mark.”
Golla testified that she worked in group homes for mentally ill adults for 3 1/2 years before opening The Bernice & Genevieve Foundation with Amy Tomsyck in March.
Both Golla and Tomsyck have college training in vocational rehabilitation but only Tomsyck has a degree, Golla testified.
The two women staff the group home in shifts from 7 a.m. to 11 p.m. Monday through Friday. Two other staffers supervise the home overnight and on weekends.
The other staffers have high-school educations and in-house or on-the-job training dealing with mentally ill residents, Golla testified.
At least one staffer always is at the group home, she said.
None has experience dealing with a person committed under the state’s criminal mental health statute, Golla testified.
“They’re really good girls with high expectations, but I don’t think that they’re capable of dealing with the complexity of Mark’s mental illness,” Melly said. “The staff at Mendota told us how hard he is to read.”
In a letter to Ray Jablonski, the Rock County assistant district attorney handling the case, Venaas also raised concerns about the group home’s staffing level and training.
Staffing appears to consist of only one person on duty at a time, Venaas wrote, and “the staff is not required to have any formal level of training or education prior to being hired. The staff is trained through an in-house process.”
In court, Venaas testified: “I felt the staff is not adequately trained to deal with a person like Mr. Staskal.”
He also testified that the group home did not notify or involve the Eau Claire community in its decision to accept Staskal.
Explaining his decision, Byron said: “The reality is when you formulate these plans, nobody wants a person like Mr. Staskal.”
That’s why state law doesn’t allow local zoning to preclude community-based residential facilities, Byron said.
“I remind you again that the hallmark of mental health commitment is the least restrictive setting. The law is the law. You may not like it, but the law is the law,” Byron said.
Staskal always has cooperated with his treatment and medication at Mendota and has never been violent or abusive there, the judge said.
Byron acknowledged that moving Staskal from Mendota to a community group home presents a risk. But the judge also said the security at the group home is comparable to the security at Mendota’s “super-minimum security” facility, where Staskal has been living.
TREATMENT PLAN
The basic provisions of Mark Staskal’s conditional release and treatment plan are:
- Live in a community-based residential facility as long as deemed appropriate by his state-assigned probation agent and Lutheran Social Services case manager. The facility will monitor his medication, transport him to all appointments and supervise him 24/7.
- Must take all prescribed medication and cooperate with all recommended psychiatric treatment and other programs.
- Barred from drinking, using drugs or owning guns.
- Cooperate with electronic monitoring. He is barred from traveling outside Wisconsin and must receive permission to travel out of Eau Claire County.
Nov 2, 2007 at 9:16 a.m.
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Judge Byron has not idea what he has done by allowing Mark back out into the community. Melly and Reggie as the parents right in fearing that if Mark is released that he may kill again. Did Judge Byron not read the original information on this case, had Melly and Reggie came home earlier Mark would have killed them also. The death of a child at anytime is hard for a parent but please Judge Byron put yourself into Melly and Reggie place. If you did not feel that your child was well enough to go back into society would you not fight tooth and nail to keep him where he is safe from himself and the outside world?
I remember the day of the murder like it was yesterday still, my mother called to tell me that Marcy was dead and Mark was being held for the murder. This was a tragic day for our family (Melly is my cousin) and for Melly and Reggie who lost both of the children that day one to murder and the other to mental illness.
Mental illness can be treated only if the patient stays on their medication. Unfortunately the problem is they do not stay on their medications, they believe they are cured and stop taking the medications and the demons pop back into their heads. I believe that Mark may think he is better but he is not and never will be able to lead a normal life. Who’s to say what will trigger another event like the one that cause the murder of his sister from happening again. Will it take only missing one or two doses of medication? How many of us currently taking medication forget because we are in a hurry in the morning? With Mark that could be deadly for someone, and I don’t want to see this happen to another family or parent.
Nov 1, 2007 at 9:49 p.m.
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I honestly thought I was reliving a nightmare when I heard this on the news. As a pre-teen when Marcy was murdered by her brother, so many of us were just baffled...scared...and confused. Does the picture with this article not say it all?????? It's said that a picture is worth a thousand words and this picture, in my opinion, does NOT show a man who is anywhere near sane...or sane enough to not be in an institution. Mr. and Mrs. Staskal, please know that you have done everything you can to plead with the judicial system. It is extremely evident that you care about society and what happens to others. But, the system does not. Let's all hope and pray that these caring ladies in Eau Claire, realize they have bitten off more than they can chew, before anything tragic happens....again.
Nov 1, 2007 at 4:30 p.m.
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okay im not really sure of the case, however I will say this, i have worked in cbrf's, and I know that the training that these people receive is not the best training especially for dealing with somebody like this. What the judge did not realize in this case is that people with mental illness, as well as people with other disabilities have a lot of strength. I was once punched in the stomach while I was pregnant by a 85 year old woman who weighed like 90 pounds and it literally dropped me, the point is that even if he is taking the meds he is suppose to be taking their is very real and almost direct threat that he will repeat again given the chance, and god help these people that have to try to defend themselves, because I can almost gaurentee that they will not have had the training to deal with such a person!!! My prayers are with the family and Marcy, and hopefully he will not hurt anyone ever again!
Nov 1, 2007 at 2:49 p.m.
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Marcy was a GREAT KID and I don't think her brother Mark should ever be let out...
I was probably one of the last people to see Marcy alive with her babysitting my 3 young daughters at that time and I had asked her if she wanted a ride home and she said no that she would cut across the field and go home. To this day I always wondered if I had given her a ride home if things would have been different.
Like I said before Marcy was a GREAT KID and she didn't have a chance to live a life with having a family to enjoy what life has to offer.
The BIGGEST TRAGEDY in this whole ordeal is that their Mother and Father lost both their kids the day Mark MURDERED Marcy.
Jerry L. White
Nov 1, 2007 at 12:43 p.m.
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You're telling me that the 'group home' they subcontracted to 'supervise' him is able to do so? Most of the group homes that are run don't pay their employees more than $8-9 an hour. Less for 'sleep' time.
So, if something happens again, who's to be held responsible? The judge? The psychiatrists who said he was 'cured'? Who?
Nov 1, 2007 at 12:17 p.m.
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Judge Byron has really lost his mind. I hope nothing ever happens in Eau Claire to prove Byron wrong, but there is no reason Mark needs to be released. Regardless of his mental state while killing his sister, he's a killer. He's a sociopath. He doesn't understand right from wrong, and he doesn't have normal human feelings in regards to remorse and sympathy. He doesn't understand sarcasm and humor. In his mind, killing Marcy was the proper solution. I think he would do it again given the opportunity. The only people who wanted to release Mark were himself and Judge Byron. There is something wrong with that picture. Mark Staskal is a real world Michael Meyers.
If anything bad happens, Judge Byron will have to live with that. I hope he's prepared.
Nov 1, 2007 at 12:02 p.m.
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OH MY GOD!!! I don't know this family and I didn't know about this situation until just now when i read it inline. I am totally disgusted with this. I fear for the community and people of Eua Claire!! I also fear for the staff of the Group Home. They stated it's all girls that work there? What happens when Mark gets mad at one of them? Will he kill again? What is going on in this country that we let a man or woman go back into our communities after such an brutal and sinister crime is commited? I totally disagree with the Judge's decision to release Mark from Mendota. He might not have been "convicted" of murder, however, HE KILLED HIS OWN SISTER!!!!!! What's to say he won't kill again? This is an outrage! His own parent's begged for his release to be denied!!! The community and residents of Eau Claire along with the family and parents of Marcy are in my thoughts and my prayers......
Nov 1, 2007 at noon
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Why after 28 years are they thinking he is ready to be released? Obviously for 28 years there was a reason he was at Mendota. I have worked with mental illness patients that have been housed in Mendota before, death of their own children and were released into Nursing homes. If i were the residential home taking this man in I would also consider spending the money for a top notch security system, no one goes out or comes in with buzzers going off. Even on medication mental illness patients tend to relapse, who pays the price if something happens to one of the other residents? The caregivers? The people I have taken care of were sketchy, you never knew when they would fly off the handle. That was people on major Psyc. drugs so don't tell me that this man is OK to be released after 28 years or confinement, lock down-Mendota is a serious place, hope the community knows what they are doing, hope that no one gets hurt. Granted he was not convicted of murder due to mental illness-hey guess what if you are mentally sane and murder what is the sentence? Life in prison? Death penalty-if he is sane now why not retry the case? Why not give him the same as a common criminal? Life in Mendota...He did murder someone, we all know it and the proof was there, so what the hell makes him any better than any other murderer? Oh i get it he was sick at the time-big deal if that is the case i bet there are some real winners out there right now knowing all they have to do is prove beyond a reasonable doubt that they are insane and they will only do 28 years in a physc place, get drugs, and then live on the outside world in a group home for the rest of their days VS prison. hummmmmmmmm what do the rest of you think about that? Look at his face and the reaction "a smile" when they say he wasn't convicted of murder.....HE KNOWS!!!!!!
I feel bad for the parents-God rest their daughter's soul-not anymore....
Nov 1, 2007 at 11:52 a.m.
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Why after 28 years are they thinking he is ready to be released? Obviously for 28 years there was a reason he was at Mendota. I have worked with mental illness patients that have been housed in Mendota before, death of their own children and were released into Nursing homes. If i were the residential home taking this man in I would also consider spending the money for a top notch security system, no one goes out or comes in with buzzers going off. Even on medication mental illness patients tend to relapse, who pays the price if something happens to one of the other residents? The caregivers? The people I have taken care of were sketchy, you never knew when they would fly off the handle. That was people on major Psyc. drugs so don't tell me that this man is OK to be released after 28 years or confinement, lock down-Mendota is a serious place, hope the community knows what they are doing, hope that no one gets hurt. Granted he was not convicted of murder due to mental illness-hey guess what if you are mentally sane and murder what is the sentence? Life in prison? Death penalty-if he is sane now why not retry the case? Why not give him the same as a common criminal? Life in Mendota...He did murder someone, we all know it and the proof was there, so what the hell makes him any better than any other murderer? Oh i get it he was sick at the time-big deal if that is the case i bet there are some real winners out there right now knowing all they have to do is prove beyond a reasonable doubt that they are insane and they will only do 28 years in a physc place, get drugs, and then live on the outside world in a group home for the rest of their days VS prison. hummmmmmmmm what do the rest of you think about that? Look at his face and the reaction "a smile" when they say he was convicted of murder.....HE KNOWS!!!!!!
I feel bad for the parents-God rest their daughter's soul-not anymore....
Nov 1, 2007 at 7:46 a.m.
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Ok, this is just a out rage. I remember Marcy, and the day this happen. Don't anyone bother on listening to a mother and father when they pleaded to keep their own son locked up at Mendota. What the **** was the judge thinking, did he even look at the case file?? Who cares about Marcy is basically what this judge is saying...That Mark is ok. Come on, who is the next that is going to be release? I remember that day when Mark did all of this. How can one person sit and say "Oh, Mark is on medication and will be watched 24 hrs at a group home. I fear for the people at that home and the commuinty. At least when he was in Mendota he was under lock and key could not go anywhere but in a locked place, where they do have the means to watch 24 hours.
Group homes are not really up to what a mental faciliy can do.
I just wish someone can live with what they have done, in my opinion, Mark should not have been up for any release from Mendota.
Again, my heart is for the parent, Redige, and Melly. Please oh God please remember you both are great...and what happened back then was not your fault. You both where great parents to Marcy. When I would come over you both in my eye were the nices people and loving to all of her friends....Your in my heart and mind...
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