Valpo grad convicted in violent attack of Virginia couple faces life sentence

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A jury has recommended the man convicted of violently attacking a lawyer and his wife inside their McLean, Virginia, home be sentenced to life in prison.

A jury convicted Andrew Schmuhl on Tuesday of all seven charges, including aggravated malicious wounding, in the attack on Leo Fisher and Sue Duncan.

Schmuhl is accused of torturing the couple in their home in November 2014, after Schmuhl's wife, Alecia, was fired from Fisher's firm.

Authorities say Schmuhl stunned Fisher with a stun gun, bound him and then slit his throat. Prosecutors say Schmuhl then stabbed Duncan and shot at her, but missed.

Schmuhl's attorney Brad Haywood argued Monday that his client was so intoxicated by opiate prescription drugs at the time of the offense that he didn't know what he was doing.

The jury recommended two life terms plus 98 years behind bars for Schmuhl on Thursday, according to The Washington Post. A final sentencing hearing is set for Aug. 26 where the judge can accept or decrease the recommended sentence.

Schmuhl, a former Army judge advocate, and his wife are 2009 graduates of Valparaiso University School of Law. He also earned a masters in international commerce and policy from Valparaiso University in 2006. Alecia Schmuhl's trial for her alleged role in the attack is scheduled for September.

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