UPDATE: Jury finds Schoenrock guilty

UPDATE: A jury found Aaron Schoenrock guilty of all charges Thursday evening. His sentencing is scheduled for 9 a.m. June 27. 

Attorneys gave their closing arguments in the trial of Aaron Schoenrock Thursday as his two-week long trial neared its end.

Both sides have worked to convince the jurors to see their version of Schoenrock, who is accused of torturing and raping a woman and attempting to stab a man to death.

St. Clair County Senior Assistant Prosecutor Joshua Sparling has presented Schoenrock as a sociopath who caused those around him to live in fear through his abuse and violence. Defense attorneys Meggan Delisi and Jennifer Rutkowski, in contrast, have argued their client was a man who may be rough around the edges, but has fallen victim to self-preserving lies and exaggerations from his equally flawed former lovers.

Schoenrock began his closing statement by presenting the jury with a list of witnesses who would have to be lying for the charges against him to be false.

Included were the female victim who said she was raped, beaten and tortured by Schoenrock on May 21, 2023 at his Marysville home after he became afraid her boyfriend was working with police to investigate him for drugs.

The list also included the stabbing victim Terry Cook, his family and their neighbors, who testified that on June 4 Schoenrock entered Cook's home looking for the torture victim's boyfriend. An altercation ensued that ended with Schoenrock stabbing Cook in the neck, requiring emergency medical treatment.

Among other witnesses on the list was Jolynn Hirsch, who was originally charged as Schoenrock's co-defendant before she agreed to testify against him as part of a plea deal, admitting she had witnessed him torture the victim and helped prepare a chainsaw he reportedly used to threaten her.

Sparling contrasted these witnesses with Schoenrock, who argued with the prosecutor during his testimony Thursday and claimed the victim and Hirsch were both lying.

Schoenrock admitted to several crimes he wasn't charged with during his testimony, including that he was a drug dealer, that he told Hirsch to scrub his house down when he was first arrested, and that he had physically abused Hirsch in the past. When Sparling asked about jail phone recordings in which he appeared to admit to the charges, Schoenrock claimed he was attempting to mislead the officers listening in.

"He's trying to lead you through the maze and get you to eat that cheese," Sparling said. He asked the jury to compare Schoenrock's behavior on the stand to the victim, who was in tears and visibly uncomfortable to determine who was more credible.

Sparling also cited the DNA evidence which found Schoenrock's DNA on guns he was not legally allowed to own due to prior convictions, and the victim's DNA on the barrel.

In her own closing statements, Rutkowski asked the jury, particularly the female jurors, to look over the sexual text messages the victim had sent Schoenrock after May 21 and ask themselves if that's how they would talk to a man who raped them.

"I'm a woman and I can't fathom sending those messages to a rapist," Rutkowski said.

The victim reportedly continued to spend time with Schoenrock and Hirsch after the reported torture, going to a concert with them, shopping together and setting playdates for their children. The defense said those interactions make the victim's allegations suspect, and Rutkowski said she only accused Schoenrock when questioned by police about the stabbing.

"You're not bringing a kid to somebody's house who lit you on fire," Rutkowski said.

During his rebuttal, Sparling pointed out the text messages sent by the victim after May 21 were unlike any sent before that date. He argued the victim was in fear of retaliation from Schoenrock and did not feel safe accusing him.

"Unless you've been through that kind of thing, I'd not think anyone can judge how they would act," Sparling said.

Rutkowski also suggested the psychedelic mushrooms the victim ingested may have effected her memory of events. She said the victim claimed Schoenrock had stomped on her head while wearing boots, but security footage from that day showed he was wearing red shoes. Rutkowski also pointed out a doctor found no evidence of traumatic injury to the victim's head.

Rutkowski argued Hirsch's testimony was also driven by fear of prosecution, as she was facing prison time before her plea deal. For four months after their arrest, Rutkowski said, she had supported Schoenrock.

Addressing the stabbing, Rutkowski argued Schoenrock was acting in self defense, saying he likely could have killed Cook with the knife if he had actually intended to kill him. The defense has suggested Schoenrock was leaving the property when Cook and his relatives restarted the confrontation.

Schoenrock has been charged with assault with intent to murder, torture, first-degree criminal sexual conduct, first-degree home invasion, unlawful imprisonment, possession of a firearm by a felon, possession of ammunition by a felon and three counts of felony firearm use. If found guilty, he faces up to life in prison.

The jury began deliberations Thursday afternoon.

Contact Johnathan Hogan at jhogan@gannett.com.

This article originally appeared on Port Huron Times Herald: Jury begins deliberation in torture, attempted murder case