Chippewa Falls woman will not be charged in fatal stabbing
Aug. 12—CHIPPEWA FALLS — A 23-year-old Chippewa Falls woman who stabbed a man to death in mid-May will not be charged, the Chippewa County District Attorney's Office announced Thursday.
District Attorney Wade Newell issued a news release stating that there is not enough evidence to show that Leah Mickelson did not act in self-defense when she stabbed Stephan D. Lee, 29, on May 14 at a 317 1/2 W. Willow St. in Chippewa Falls.
"Consequently, further action by the district attorney's office is not warranted," Newell wrote and signed his signature.
Evidence provided to Newell's office indicated that Mickelson had been hit by an angered, intoxicated Lee and was trying to get away from him when she stabbed him.
Both Mickelson and Lee had been drinking alcohol outside the residence on the evening of May 13, according to her statement to Chippewa Falls police. They got into an argument, but then she went inside the home to tend to one of her children. Lee then left, but later returned and knocked on the front door. Mickelson told Lee to leave due to his intoxication, which he then did.
Still worried for her safety, Lee went with her children later that night to a neighbor's house to ask for help. Newell's report noted that the neighbor's doorbell camera had video footage verifying this.
In the early morning hours of May 14, Lee returned to Mickelson's residence and she let him inside, but could tell he was still drunk. Lee then called Mickelson names and punched her in the face multiple times. Photos taken by police officers of the woman's face show multiple injuries consistent with being punched.
After being hit, Mickelson grabbed a knife and fled out of the residence to get away from Lee.
The district attorney's report stated Mickelson never provided a clear account of how Lee was stabbed, but blood was found at the scene at the bottom of interior stairs that lead to an exit door.
Once outside the home, Lee got the knife away from Mickelson, who ran to a neighbor's house for help.
The neighbor's doorbell camera captured video footage of Mickelson running from Lee, yelling at him to quit chasing her. Shortly thereafter, Lee collapses in front of the neighbor's house.
Lee died of blood loss from the stab wound to his chest, which pierced his left lung and heart, the autopsy showed. A sample of his blood taken during the autopsy showed Lee had a blood-alcohol level of 0.289 — more than three times the legal limit to drive.
This was not the first domestic incident between Lee and Mickelson.
Police responded to the same house in February 2021 and observed a visible bruise on Mickelson's face. She told police that Lee had punched her in the face while he was drunk and angry. When police gave Lee a breathalyzer test, the result was a 0.23 blood-alcohol level.
Lee was convicted of disorderly conduct-domestic abuse in that incident, according to online court records. He was sentenced to five days in jail and $543 in fines and court costs. The court allowed him to return to the home under the condition he no longer be abusive.
