OTTAWA — A 65-year-old Napoleon woman facing felonious assault and attempted murder charges pleaded not guilty by reason of insanity Wednesday.
Frances A. Wilhelm, of 402 W. Main St. in Napoleon, was arraigned in Putnam County Common Pleas Court. She is being charged in the attack on the Rev. Herman F. Scherger, 84, of Cloverdale, who was assaulted at his home.
Wilhelm’s attorney, William Kluge, asked the court to schedule an evaluation to determine her competency to stand trial. Judge Randall Basinger ordered the evaluation, along with a collection of her past psychiatric records. The records will likely include a psychiatric observation she underwent recently at Defiance Regional Hospital.
Wilhelm will return to court upon completion of the evaluation. She remains in Putnam County Jail in lieu of a $250,000 bond.
According to reports from the Putnam County Sheriff’s Office, Scherger arrived at his residence to find an unfamiliar vehicle on Sept. 5. When he exited his vehicle, Wilhelm struck Scherger repeatedly in the head with a hammer before he was able to wrestle the weapon away from her and strike back in self-defense. Scherger then escaped in his car, drove to a neighbor’s home and called the police. Wilhelm also called 911, advising that she had been assaulted.
Scherger was admitted to St. Rita’s Ambulatory Care Center in Glandorf, where he was observed for multiple lacerations to his head and significant blood loss before being released.
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