A Wisconsin woman accused of beheading her lover in his mother’s basement and who later attacked her defense attorney in court listened Monday as testimony began at her trial.
Taylor Schabusiness, 25, stands accused of murdering and dismembering Shad Thyrion, 24, on Feb. 23, 2022 at Thyrion’s mother’s home in Green Bay.
Thyrion’s mother, Tara Pakanich, testified about finding her son’s head in a bucket at the home, local Fox affiliate WLUK reported.
Pakanich said she woke up to the sound of a storm door closing and went to the basement to look for Thyrion, who had been staying there, according to WLUK.
She then described a horrifying scene, in which she spotted a 5-gallon bucket with a towel covering it, removed the towel and saw her son’s severed head inside.
Pakanich and her boyfriend dialed 911, and multiple police officers arrived at the scene and began the murder investigation. The cops quickly caught up with Schabusiness, who said she and Thyrion had been engaging in sexual foreplay that involved erotic asphyxiation.
Schabusiness told the officers she continued choking Thyrion until he died because she was enjoying the feeling, according to a criminal complaint. Investigating officers have not yet testified at the trial, which is expected to last one week.
After Thyrion’s head was found in the bucket, the rest of his upper body was discovered in a tote bag, and his legs were found in a van, police said. Schabusiness admitted to chopping up Thyrion’s body with his mother’s kitchen knives, according to investigators.
Schabusiness underwent several mental competency evaluations leading up to the trial. At one hearing discussing her mental fitness, she attacked her defense attorney, Quinn Jolly.
The court allowed Jolly to depart the case, and Christopher Froelich represented Schabusiness at trial.