Lawyer Who Allegedly Stabbed Law Firm's Managing Partner Was Arrested Wearing Only A Diaper

A lawyer wearing a diaper makes this case even more sensational than it already is.

Last week, the legal world was rocked by allegations that Alecia and Andrew Schmuhl, married lawyers, went on a rampage following Alecia’s firing from Bean Kinney & Korman, a well-known Northern Virginia law firm. The Schmuhls were accused of forcing their way into the home of the firm’s managing partner, Leo Fisher, and viciously stabbing both Fisher and his wife, Susan Duncan. Both Fisher and Duncan remain hospitalized with serious injuries.

Since we last reported on the Schmuhls, additional details have come out about what happened during the alleged home invasion and what will happen to them as they’re prosecuted for this ruthless attack, but many questions still remain.

For example, why on earth was Andrew Schmuhl wearing only a diaper at the time of his arrest?

Before we get into the nitty gritty of the brutal attack, many people have noticed that the Schmuhls look much different than they did in happier times, and they’re wondering why. There seems to be an explanation, at least in Alecia’s case: her lawyer claims she was suffering from depression and anxiety.

Perhaps those ailments caused Alecia’s work to suffer, because Bean Kinney now reports that her employment was terminated on October 28, 2014, two weeks before the attack, due to poor performance. Before Alecia was fired, Bean Kinney claims the firm “bent over backwards” to assist Alecia, but it didn’t work out. Days prior to the attack, on November 4, Alecia met with an attorney to discuss possible legal action concerning her firing, as she believed she may have been entitled to severance pay.

At a Friday hearing, a prosecutor offered allegations of what occurred when the Schmuhls arrived at Leo Fisher and Susan Duncan’s home, and it was not pretty. From the Washington Post:

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The home invasion began, a Fairfax County prosecutor said Friday, with a man posing as a police officer knocking on the front door of a tony McLean home belonging to the managing partner of a prominent law firm.

When 61-year-old Leo Fisher answered Sunday evening, the man with a badge and gun Tasered him. Fisher crumpled into the fetal position, and the man slapped a pair of flexible handcuffs around his victim’s wrists.

Then Fisher’s wife, Susan Duncan, came to the door, alarmed by the commotion. She was handcuffed, too, and shoved in a bathroom.

Raymond F. Morrogh, the Fairfax County prosecutor on the case, described the night’s events as a “torture session.” According to Morrogh, Fisher was Tased repeatedly and then “brutally stabbed” in the face, head, and upper torso; Duncan was also Tased and stabbed repeatedly; and Andrew Schmuhl fired one bullet at Duncan, but missed. According to a note written by Fisher while at the hospital — which is now his only mode of communication thanks to the extent of his injuries — before leaving the scene of the crime, Andrew allegedly made this ominous promise: “I’m going to come back and finish this job.”

Alecia Schmuhl, who claims she was scared of her husband, says that she was in the car throughout the duration of the attack (about three hours), and that she had no idea what her husband planned to do. Here are some more details from WUSA9:

According to [Alecia’s defense] attorney, Andrew, an ex-military intelligence officer, was manipulative and controlling. He was wounded in service, and has not been able to work for two and a half years.

The defense attorney also said that Alecia was their only source of income until she was terminated from the law firm.

Video footage, however, shows Alecia entering a gun store and purchasing a Taser on the weekend of the attack. Alecia served as the getaway driver in the attack’s aftermath, but contends that she was forced to do so, despite the fact that when she and her husband were arrested after a four-mile chase, she was found with a list of items needed to carry out the merciless crime, including “eye masks for blindfolds, Tasers, and a diaper.” Also found in the Schmuhls’ car were bloody clothes, a bloody knife, and a gun.

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In fairness to Alecia, her husband could very well have been “manipulative and controlling.” According to Louise Wagner, Andrew’s ex-mother-in-law from a short previous marriage, Schumhl “started lying,” and reportedly cheated on her daughter and got the couple into debt. Here, Bean Kinney, Alecia’s former place of work, allegedly accused Andrew of committing fraud on a refinancing application. Perhaps Andrew Schmuhl really was the driving force behind these vengeful stabbings.

As for Alecia, Morrogh noted during the hearing on Friday that she “presents a real and imminent danger to the law firm,” and that other members of the firm — many of whom packed the courtroom benches that day — were “in fear from this woman and her husband.” This is a statement Bean Kinney released on Friday:

As reported through multiple media sources, Leo Fisher, Bean Kinney & Korman’s managing shareholder, and his wife were savagely assaulted and repeatedly stabbed in their home by intruders, identified as Andrew Schmuhl and Alecia Schmuhl, husband and wife. Alecia Schmuhl was an associate attorney with the firm from February 13, 2013, through October 28, 2014. As the matter is a subject of an active police investigation, the firm is unable to comment further on the circumstances of her employment and separation from the firm.

We are shocked and horrified by the facts of the matter as presented at this morning’s bond hearing for Ms. Schmuhl, and entirely support the decision to deny her bond. Our hearts go out to a wonderful colleague and his beloved wife. We are doing everything possible to support them through this ordeal and pray for their recovery. We are confident in the ability of the judicial process to achieve a just outcome and will fully cooperate with the Fairfax County investigative authorities to assure that those who have committed these unspeakable offenses against good people are fittingly punished for their actions.

So what’s with the diaper? When he was arrested, Andrew Schmuhl was naked, covered in blood, and wearing only a bloody diaper, according to a report from WUSA9. Some sources believe that Andrew was so intent upon causing Fisher pain that he wore a diaper so he wouldn’t have to take a break at any time during the attack and risk Fisher’s escape. Other sources say that Andrew may have thought he and his wife would be involved in a long police chase after the attack, and wore the diaper as a precautionary measure. Either way, a lawyer wearing a diaper makes this case even more sensational than it already is.

Alecia Schmuhl’s bond prospects were denied on Friday as she was considered an “extreme danger,” and Andrew Schmuhl’s hearing is tomorrow. As noted by Judge David Schell, who presided over Alecia’s hearing, “[t]here’s a whole lot more about this case to come out in the weeks ahead,” and we suspect we may get another earful on these horrific crimes by tomorrow afternoon.

In the meantime, put on your diapers and stay tuned, because we’re in for the long haul on this one.

Prosecutor: Victims in McLean stabbing were held in a ‘torture session’ [Washington Post]
Woman in Lawyers’ Attack on Ex-Boss Claims She Was Forced [ABC Digital]
Lawyer Wearing Only Diaper When Arrested in Home Invasion, Stabbing [NBC Washington]
CA: Man was wearing diaper after torturing wife’s ex-boss [WUSA9]
Arlington Law Firm Issues Statement About Partner’s Stabbing [ARLnow.com]

Earlier: Husband And Wife Attorney Duo Accused Of Stabbing Law Firm’s Managing Partner