HUDSON, Wis. (WCCO) — For the first time, we’re seeing the moments after a River Falls, Wis. father turned himself in to police for killing his daughters.
For most of the interrogation, Aaron Schaffhausen stared blankly in front of him. You could hear him crying at the beginning of the video, as the officer read his rights, but he would not speak.
At times, when left alone in the interrogation room, you can see Schaffhausen lay his head on the desk in front of him.
It was only after the officer pressed Schaffhausen about the way he killed the girls that he finally broke his silence.
The defense is using the video to try to help prove its assertion that Aaron Schaffhausen was insane when he killed his daughters, and didn’t premeditate the murders as the prosecution claims.
The mother of three girls murdered in their River Falls, Wis. home last year could take the stand Wednesday in her ex-husband’s trial.
Aaron Schaffhausen has already admitted to the murders, and the current leg of his trial is to determine whether he was insane at the time.
On the first day, he remained emotionless in court. His ex-wife Jessica Schaffhausen was not in court on Tuesday, but her voice was heard. Her frantic 911 call placed last July lasted nearly 40 minutes as she drove from her job in North St. Paul. She eventually learned that her worst fears were true.
When she got to the River Falls Police Station, that’s when she learned her girls were gone.
Aaron Schaffhausen had showed up at his ex-wife’s house unexpectedly that day, and she agreed to let him spend time with their three children.
The 911 call was introduced by the defense who has the burden of proof to show Aaron Schaffhausen is insane.
In opening statements, the defense said that Aaron Schaffhausen was haunted by thoughts of killing his ex-wife and kids, saying he had those thoughts eight or more times a day.
Prosecutors, however, say that the evidence is overwhelming that what Aaron Schaffhausen did was intentional and premeditated. They believe he had a goal, and that was to make his ex-wife suffer.
If Aaron Schaffhausen is found guilty he will spend the rest of his life in prison. If he’s found insane, he will go to a state mental hospital and could someday be released.
