On December 25, 2025, at approximately 5:24 P.M., an officer with the Wyoming Police Department was dispatched to M Health Fairview Lakes Hospital, located in the City of Wyoming, County of Chisago, Minnesota on a report of an adult male leaving the Emergency Department contrary to a medical hold. The male, later identified by police as Jonathan Chet Winch [DOB REDACTED], herein Defendant, had pushed his way past the large magnetic doors and left the Emergency Department. Upon arrival to the parking lot of the hospital, the Officer observed a hospital security vehicle with lights activated.
The Officer observed a hospital security guard lying unconscious on the ground next to the security vehicle. The Officer observed the Defendant, a large adult male without a shirt and wearing dark colored sweatpants, attempting to get into the security vehicle. As the Officer stopped his squad car near the security vehicle, the Defendant jumped on the windshield of the Officer's squad car. The Officer repositioned his squad car to remove the Defendant from the hood of the squad. The Officer quickly exited his squad car and commanded the Defendant to get on the ground.
The Officer deployed his Taser in an attempt to gain control of the Defendant. The Defendant refused commands and continued to advance on the Officer. As the Defendant pushed towards the Officer, he made multiple statements "I didn't mean to hurt her." The Officer actively fought with the Defendant for approximately five minutes attempting to detain him until backup Officers arrived. With the assistance of additional Officers, the Defendant was placed under arrest. Once additional officers and first responders arrived on scene, they began rendering emergency aid to the unconscious security guard.
Officers identified the security guard as Andrea Jean Merrell, age 43. Merrell had severe head trauma, agonal breathing, and a very weak pulse. A ground ambulance transported Merrell to Regions Hospital for treatment for life threatening injuries. M Health Fairview has an exterior security camera that captured the assault from a distance. The security footage depicts two individuals near the hospital security vehicle in the parking lot, one smaller and the other larger. The larger person in the video is wearing dark pants and no shirt.
It appears the two individuals engage in a physical struggle. The smaller-framed person is ultimately seen lying on the pavement and the larger-framed individual is on top of the smaller-framed person, appearing to swing and strike at the smaller-framed individual. Merrell received emergency medical treatment at Regions Hospital. On December 27, 2025, Merrell succumbed to her injuries and passed away. The Ramsey County Medical Examiner completed an autopsy for Merrell. The Medical Examiner determined the manner of death to be a homicide, with the cause of death identified as traumatic head injuries due to physical assault.
