Friday, February 11, 2011

Rachelle Santiago, therapist accused of stalking soldier, committed and ordered to undergo mental exam

Posted by Justin Kendall on Fri, Feb 11, 2011 at 8:00 AM

click to enlarge A federal judge had a therapist committed to see if she was competent to stand trial.
  • A federal judge had a therapist committed to see if she was competent to stand trial.

Therapist Rachelle

Santiago is accused of sending a text message to a Fort Riley

soldier saying: "You want a crazy bitch, I will be your crazy bitch."

A federal judge has ordered Santiago, who is accused of stalking a solider she was treating for post-traumatic stress, to be committed for up to 30 days while she undergoes a psychiatric examination to determine whether she's competent to stand trial, the Associated Press reported. U.S. Magistrate Judge K. Gary Sebelius reportedly said Santiago may be

suffering from a mental disease that could prevent her from

understanding the court proceedings or helping in her defense.



Santiago, 43, is accused of stalking the unnamed soldier

and his family. The sergeant reportedly didn't return Santiago's extreme affection.

The sergeant began seeing Santiago in December for counseling.

Everything was fine until January 22, when Santiago is accused of

groping the sergeant and telling him that she wanted to have sex with

him. The sergeant wasn't down because he was trying to fix his

marriage.

The next day, Santiago allegedly called and texted him

15 times, including sending a photo of pink lingerie. The sergeant

texted her to stop calling and messaging him. But she allegedly didn't

stop.

It gets creepier from there, with Santiago allegedly

showing up at the sergeant's house and sitting in her car nearby. This

spooked the sergeant, who told investigators that he felt "like he did

during his deployment, edgy with a need for a

heightened sense of security to protect his home and his family."



The sergeant ended up meeting Santiago at a Burger King to tell

her to stop harassing him. At BK, she handed him an envelope with the

words "My Master" written on the front. The sergeant didn't open the

envelope. Santiago was apparently undeterred, removing her wedding ring

and telling the sergeant that he was "her man."

It gets even

worse. From the AP: 

On Jan. 24, the sergeant confided

in a fellow soldier and was advised to report the matter. On the way

home, the sergeant and his wife saw the therapist sitting in the car

outside their home. The sergeant told investigators he was scared for

his family because the therapist had threatened to go to the Child

Development Center attended by his children or to his wife's workplace

and hurt them if he did not come see her.

The text messages became increasingly threatening: "I don't want to hurt

you, you are hurting me," "I will eat your lunch. The only way you can

protect your boys," "You come talk to me or I will jack your world 6

ways to Sunday and don't doubt my ability to do this ... "

On

January 25, Santiago was barred from entering the Fort Riley base, but

she tried to get in anyway. She was reportedly cited for criminal

trespass.

The situation reached a tipping point on January 26 with Santiago allegedly speeding into base and leading military police on a nearly hour-long pursuit, maxing out at 110 mph. From the AP:

She was transported to the Geary Community Hospital and placed under

police guard. She allegedly tore things off the wall in the examination

room and had to be restrained. Emergency room staff reported she was

"completely out of control, manic, profane, and delusional and was

screaming, yelling and flailing around on the cart," the affidavit said.

Four hours later, she was transported to Osawatomie State Mental

Hospital for treatment. A physician there stated Santiago had a

"psychotic break" due to heavy doses of a steroidal medicine she was

taking for a breathing and bronchial disorder.


Even with Santiago hospitalized, the sergeant wasn't

safe from creepiness. The day of the high-speed chase, the sergeant

found an envelope with the word "Master" printed on the front beneath a

car seat. Inside was "a card with Santiago's handwritten declaration of

her love for him. Santiago also left the sergeant a pair of perfumed

panties."

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