Taylor Denise Schabusiness and her then-attorney, Curtis Paul Julka, on April 4, 2025 (Law&Crime Network).
In 2023, Taylor Denis Schabusiness, a convicted murderer aged 27, made headlines again when she lunged at her defense lawyer during a court hearing related to an alleged attack on a prison employee. A deputy from the Fond du Lac County Sheriff’s Office reacted quickly, forcefully knocking her to the ground as four other law enforcement officers joined in to restrain her. This incident was just another example of Schabusiness’s history of disruptive behavior both in and out of the courtroom.
Schabusiness is currently serving a life sentence without the possibility of parole in Wisconsin for the brutal murder and dismemberment of her lover, Shad Thyrion, aged 25, which occurred in February 2022.
The severity of Schabusiness’s crime was highlighted during her 2023 sentencing hearing. Brown County Circuit Judge Thomas Walsh strongly condemned her actions, stating, “This crime offends human decency; it offends human dignity; and it offends the human community. When life is taken from a person in the fashion that it was in this case — where the victim’s remains are cut up and packaged in containers — it’s difficult to identify a human nature in those activities. It really is. It’s very troubling.”
At the time, she showed up to court with a wrapping around her mouth. This was months after she lashed out at her then-attorney Quinn Jolly during a hearing. They struggled. Again, law enforcement took her to the ground.
That brings us to 2024, when she was charged in an ongoing case for battery by a prisoner. She and current lawyer Curtis Paul Julka showed up to court on Friday for a preliminary hearing. As seen on footage, she suddenly yelled out and lashed at her attorney.
Julka was pretty deadpan about it all, shrugging as the guards swarmed his client.
Online court records show that later, the defense formally made a not guilty plea after the state called a detective to the stand, and Julka did the cross-examination.
After the hearing was over, Schabusiness’ lawyer took an unsurprising path.
“Attorney Julka withdrawn from case,” records state.
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