Grave Diggers

[MrsBeckyLP]

This happened in in southern Wisconsin:

The three men arrested for allegedly digging up the grave of a woman who died last week in Grant County are also charged with attempted sexual assault.

The three men appeared in Grant County Circuit Court on Tuesday. According to a criminal complaint, the three men were charged with digging up the grave at the St. Charles Catholic Cemetery in Cassville with the intent to have sex with the victim's body, WISC-TV reported.

Alexander Grunke, his twin brother Nicholas Grunke and their friend Dustin Radke -- all 20 years old -- have been in a Grant County jail since Saturday.

The grave that the men are accused of trying to dig up belonged to Laura Tennessen, 20, of Cassville, who was buried last week after being killed in a motorcycle crash on Aug. 28.

The men were formally charged with attempted theft and attempted third degree sexual assault.

Radke allegedly confessed and said that the incident was an elaborate plan to have sex with the corpse. He told authorities that Nicholas Grunke asked him to help dig up Tennessen's grave and take the corpse back to a pre-selected location behind his house with the intent to have sex with her, WISC-TV reported.

Authorities said that Radke said that the three stopped at the Wal-Mart in Dodgeville on their way to the cemetery and bought condoms.

If the three men are convicted, they could face more than five years behind bars for both the misdemeanor theft and the attempted sexual assault, WISC-TV reported.

[MLA]

If it had just been one weirdo, that would have been creepy, but THREE guys getting together and plotting to do this?!? Wow. It's hard to believe that there would be THREE of these weirdos all at the same place, at the same time. That's just so, so disturbing.

[pocket]

Ew!

[Scooter]

That is horrible. :( And how awful for her family, that they have to be retraumatized during their grief.
If it had just been one weirdo, that would have been creepy, but THREE guys getting together and plotting to do this?!? Wow. It's hard to believe that there would be THREE of these weirdos all at the same place, at the same time. That's just so, so disturbing.
Actually, having this be about three people makes more sense to me. Its the power of social psychology and "groupthink."

[miaclear]

They got condoms....nice.

What a bunch of sick perverts.

[jnettie]

Ew!

What she said! Ew is right!

[MrsBeckyLP]

Now their bail was set - $1,500 for one and $1,000 for the others.

They're being charged with attempted theft? Wouldn't you think there was something else they could be charged with since they did try to dig up this girl's grave?

I also feel so horrible for her family. First their 20-year-old daughter is killed in a motorcycle accident (I remember hearing about that last week), then some sickos try to dig up her body and have sex with it. Disgusting.

[lml41981]

Ugh...that is nauseous. :(

[jenahdawn]

They're being charged with attempted theft? Wouldn't you think there was something else they could be charged with since they did try to dig up this girl's grave?


According to the news last night, 2 were being charges with attempted 3rd degree sexual assault, one wasn't, but all three were being charged with...can't remember.

And the news (television) was less informative than that article posted above.

What I think is sad as well is that the...intended victim?...her sister was in court, and after they showed her, they showed the grave again and mentioned that they had a brother who was also killed in a MV accident 10 years ago.

People are sick...

[MrsBeckyLP]

The latest story I read online says all three are being charged with attempted theft and third-degree sexual assault. I looked them up on CCAP -(Wisconsin's circuit court access Web site - a great tool for reporters like myself) and it says all three have been charged with both offenses. The two Grunke kids only have two other minor offenses (underage drinking and speeding tickets), but the Radke kid has a record a mile long - yet nothing too serious (battery, theft, numerous speeding tickets/operating after suspension).

I just can't get over how gross this is. Yuck Yuck Yuck.

[gumball]

:eek: What a bunch of sick freaks!

[JamBray]

That is disgusting!

[paulinaaa]

At the bottom of the page is a picture of the girl:

http://www.mwnews.net/html/obituaries.html

And here are our winning cadaver studs:

http://www.kstp.com/article/stories/S18611.html?cat=1

I can see now why they waited until she was dead ... she was WAY out of their league, and they would never have had a chance with her while she was living ....

[shopaholic]

absolutely disgusting. Ever since I read this thread I can't stop thinking about this situation. It horrifies me that someone is that sick to actually consider doing something like that.

I know bodies are embalmed but wouldn't her body still be somewhat decayed? Ugh, makes my stomache turn.

[jnettie]

They pump bodies so full of chemicals during the embalming process, I wouldn't be suprised if she hadn't begun to decay.

Necrophelia is weird enough, but to dig someone up...ick, ew, why?!

[MrsBeckyLP]

I thought I'd give a little update on this:

Three men accused of trying to dig up a young woman's body to have sex with it had charges of attempted sexual assault dismissed Friday by a judge who noted Wisconsin has no law against necrophilia.

Grant County Circuit Judge George Curry dismissed those charges against twins Nicholas and Alexander Grunke of Ridgeway and Dustin Radke of Mineral Point, but they still face lesser charges.

The three 20-year-olds were arrested after an alleged attempt to dig up Laura Tennessen, 20, of Cassville, who was killed Aug. 27 in a motorcycle crash and buried at the St. Charles Catholic Cemetery in Cassville.

Grant County Sheriff Keith Govier said the three were not acquainted with Tennessen but had seen an obituary with her photo.

Someone called authorities to report suspicious activity in the cemetery Sept. 2, and deputies found someone had dug down to her vault.

Police said that Radke told detectives that Nicholas Grunke (pictured left) had fantasized about having sex with a corpse. Radke (pictured right) allegedly said that Nicholas Grunke asked him to help dig up Tennessen's grave and take the corpse back to a preselected location behind his house with the intent to have sex with her, WISC-TV reported.

The judge said there's no Wisconsin law that addressed necrophilia, but that there is enough evidence to continue the case because of criminal damage to property and attempting to break into a burial vault, whose contents belongs to the Tennessen family.

The remaining charges could carry prison terms of up to five years. The defendants are all free on bail pending trial, WISC-TV reported.

The judge scheduled arraignment for the three Oct. 9.

As for members of Laura Tennessen's family, they said that they don't think time behind bars is the answer.

The prosecutor said that he'll appeal the judge's decision to drop the sexual assault charges to the state's appellate court.

Grant County Sheriff Keith Govier said that he will now push to get necrophilia on the books, WISC-TV reported.

"The community is in shock," Govier said.

Earlier this month, Wisconsin Senate Majority Leader Dale Schultz, R-Richland Center, said that he was contacted by Govier after the men's arrest. Schultz said that he was surprised to learn only 16 states have necrophilia laws, and Wisconsin isn't one of them.

"(The family's) closure comes from knowing that their daughter will be able to rest in peace and knowing that they have made a contribution in her name so this never happens again," Schultz said.

In related news, the man who was driving the motorcycle when Tennessen was killed has now been charged with homicide by intoxicated use of a motor vehicle.

Police said that Thomas Sweet was driving his motorcycle on Highway 133 in Cassville when Tennessen was thrown from it, WISC-TV reported.

[jenahdawn]

Just a matter of time before WI becomes the 17th state with nec...I don't even want to type it...laws...

[wendalah]

Oh geez and of course the guy who cooked up the idea in the first place is stereotypical zitty goth kid with a bad dyed-black bowl cut. :rolleyes: It would be almost humorous if it weren't so gross.