Insulin overdose leads to assault charge for man

By NewsPress Now

A St. Joseph man faces a charge of first-degree domestic assault after a woman allegedly was injected with insulin and had to be hospitalized.

Kyle Guenthner, 44, is being held without bond in the case. According to a probable cause statement, he was employed as an LPN for a contract agency responsible for nursing at the Buchanan County Jail.

At about 11 a.m. on Jan. 1, according to court documents, Guenthner and the victim, who were in a relationship, got into an argument. Afterward, he hit a wall in the house and allegedly said he wanted the victim dead and was going to kill that person.

At about 9 p.m. that evening, the victim was taken to Mosaic Life Care unresponsive and with severe hypoglycemia, the probable cause statement said. At the hospital, it was determined the woman had been injected with insulin and her levels were above a lethal dose along with her blood sugar levels dropping to a life-threatening level. The court document said medical personnel determined the insulin had to have been injected into the victim and not taken orally nor was it a natural occurrence in the body.

The victim alleged Guenthner had stolen insulin from the jail a few weeks prior and that she had found the drug in his pocket, the probable cause statement said. Medications taken from the jail and prescribed to inmates were found in Guenthner’s home during a search.

Guenthner is set to appear via video from the Platte County Jail at 2 p.m. on Wednesday, Feb. 7, for a preliminary hearing in front of Associate Circuit Judge Chad Gaddie.