Foiled kidnapper gets 40 years for attempted murder
SPARTA — A 23-year-old woman was on her way home from work early Sept. 9, 2013, when a man she had never met tried to abduct her with the intent to kill.
Daniel Pickett told investigators he was going to put her in the trunk but didn’t know where he would take her since it was a “spur-of-the-moment decision.”
“It’s barbaric. It’s every person’s nightmare. A random act of violence,” Monroe County District Attorney Kevin Croninger said Thursday during sentencing. “No person should have to spend time thinking there was a random person who tried to kill them for no reason.”
Struck by the violence, randomness and impulsiveness of Pickett’s crimes, Circuit Judge David Rice sentenced him to 40 years prison and 20 years on extended supervision.
“Your conduct toward her couldn’t have been worse if she was your total enemy,” he said.
The victim told police Pickett, on Sept. 9 in a stolen Ford Taurus, followed her through Tomah and ran her Ford Explorer off Hwy. 0.
The drivers got out of their cars and talked about the crash before Pickett offered the victim a cellphone in his car.
He then grabbed and choked the woman when they walked to his car. He threatened to kill her and ordered her into a cornfield, but she was able to flag down a passing motorist as Pickett fled.
Pickett told investigators that he planned to kill the victim and admitted choking her and kicking her in the face.
He also admitted to stealing multiple cars and breaking into unlocked garages and vehicles. He had already served prison time for car theft and burglary.
A jury in May found Pickett, 21, of Arkdale, Wis., guilty of 17 charges, including attempted first-degree intentional homicide, attempted kidnapping and first-degree recklessly endangering safety. The victim did not make a statement at Thursday’s hearing.
Croninger argued Pickett should be imprisoned for 45 years, citing the seriousness of the crimes. The prosecutor couldn’t identify a redeeming characteristic in Pickett, who he said is responsible for conduct that defies reason and demands confinement to protect the public.
“This was a heinous random act,” Croninger said. “There are few people I’ve come across in my career as a prosecutor who don’t deserve to be in the public at all. Mr. Pickett is one of them. He presents a risk to anyone he comes across.”
Defense attorney Kenneth Hamm asked for a 20-year prison sentence and didn’t argue the severity of the case. He asked the judge to consider Pickett’s mental illness and rehabilitative needs when deciding the sentence.
“I honestly think prison isn’t what he needs,” said Pickett’s father, Curtis Pickett. “He needs psychiatric help.”
Daniel Pickett apologized to his victim for crimes of an “unspeakable nature” and said he’ll use his time in prison to address his addiction and anger issues. He said he turned to poetry to express his emotions.
The judge deemed Pickett a public safety threat, arguing he acted without explanation or regard for human life. While jailed, Pickett has been violent and defiant, and has resisted authority.
“We are all fortunate that (the victim) resisted you and made a run for it and was able to escape,” he said. “But for her will and ability to escape, you probably would have murdered her.”