Jonathan Chet Winch, 35, of St. Croix Falls, Wis., has been charged with one count of second-degree murder in the death of M Health security guard Andrea Merrell on Christmas Day.
Merrell was killed while on duty at Fairview Lakes Hospital in Wyoming, Minn., by Winch when he left the hospital emergency department after being placed on a hold, allege charges filed in Chisago County District Court on Monday.
The charging document states that police were called to the hospital just before 5:30 p.m. on Thursday on a report of an adult male leaving the emergency department contrary to a medical hold.
The male, later identified by police as Winch, had pushed his way past the large magnetic doors and left the emergency department. Upon arriving in the parking lot of the hospital, an officer observed a hospital security vehicle with lights activated. The officer also saw a hospital security guard lying unconscious on the ground next to the security vehicle, while a large adult male without a shirt was attempting to get into the security vehicle.
As the officer stopped his squad car near the security vehicle, the male jumped on the windshield of the officer’s squad car. The officer repositioned his squad car to remove the male from the hood of the squad, then quickly exited his squad car and commanded the male to get on the ground.
The officer deployed his Taser in an attempt to gain control of the male, who refused commands and continued to advance on the officer. As the male pushed toward the officer, he made multiple statements like, “I didn’t mean to hurt her.” The officer actively fought with the male for approximately five minutes while attempting to detain him until backup officers arrived. With the assistance of additional officers, the male was placed under arrest.
Emergency aid was rendered to the unconscious Merrell, 43, once additional officers and first responders arrived on scene. Merrell had severe head trauma, agonal breathing, and a very weak pulse. A ground ambulance transported Merrell to Regions Hospital for treatment for life-threatening injuries, where she later succumbed to her injuries on Saturday.
The medical examiner determined the manner of death to be a homicide, with the cause of death identified as traumatic head injuries due to physical assault, charges say.
The charges detail that an M Health Fairview exterior security camera captured the assault from a distance. The security footage depicted two individuals near the hospital security vehicle in the parking lot, one smaller and the other larger. The larger person in the video was wearing dark pants and no shirt. It appeared that the two individuals were engaged in a physical struggle. The smaller-framed person was ultimately seen lying on the pavement and the larger-framed individual was on top of the smaller-framed person, appearing to swing and strike at the smaller-framed individual.
Jail records describe Winch as 6 foot 2 inches and weighing 363 lbs.
Winch remains in custody on $2 million bail and had a remote hearing on Monday, where a competency evaluation was ordered by Judge Bridgid E. Dowdal. A review hearing is scheduled for Jan. 27, 2026. The Chisago County Jail was withholding Winch’s booking photo at the time of this report.
A search of Minnesota and Wisconsin criminal records for Winch did not net any results.
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Minnesota Crime Watch & Information publishes news, info and commentary about crime, public safety and livability issues in Minneapolis, the Twin Cities and Greater Minnesota.
Crime Watch MN
Minnesota Crime Watch & Information publishes news, info and commentary about crime, public safety and livability issues in Minneapolis, the Twin Cities and Greater Minnesota.
