In this memorandum (Document #192), Luke Wenke’s defence attorneys challenge the findings of forensic psychologist Dr. Corey Leidenfrost, who performed two court-ordered mental evaluations on Wenke over a roughly year-long period. The defence argues that Leidenfrost erred in diagnosing Wenke with schizoaffective disorder and labelling the defendant as delusional. According to Wenke’s attorneys, Leidenfrost did not spend enough time analysing Luke Wenke to be able to accurately determine whether he’s truly delusional, which requires a more prolonged assessment of an individual.
The “KV Section”
On pages 7 and 8, Luke Wenke’s attorneys address Dr. Leidenfrost’s belief that Wenke’s delusions revolve largely around his fixation with me. While acknowledging that I’m “undoubtedly a victim,” which I deeply and genuinely appreciate, the defence points out that Wenke COULD argue that my website has a provoking effect on his behaviour.
There are three Katie-related alleged delusions listed in the document, including Wenke’s beliefs that I stole his car, that I wrote a negative Yelp review about his mother’s former restaurant, and that I had a “screaming match” with his public defenders. Underneath the listed delusion about Wenke believing I stole his car, the defence wrote that an employee from the federal public defender’s office dropped Luke Wenke’s car keys off at my house shortly after Wenke’s arrest and before our friendship ended.
The defence goes on to imply that Luke Wenke’s belief that I wrote a negative Yelp review about his mother’s restaurant was influenced by his mother sharing this particular suspicion with her son. Wenke’s lawyers also point out that I “became upset and abruptly hung up the phone” when they called me on February 12th, 2024.
Things I Agree With in This Document
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The experts who evaluated Luke Wenke at MCC Chicago offered valuable insight which, in my opinion, deserved more serious consideration than it seems to have received from parties other than the defence.
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It is impossible to gain an in-depth or fully accurate understanding of Luke Wenke by spending just a few hours with him. (Unlike the document, I’m not saying this from a professional or medical context, but as a former friend who knows Wenke very well and is aware of his complex personality.)
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Luke Wenke’s spiritual/supernatural beliefs are not delusional. (I think they’re unusual and perhaps misguided, but not necessarily delusional.)
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Inpatient mental health treatment and medication would be futile.
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Based on the defence’s claims, it seems as though the experts who evaluated Luke Wenke in Chicago were far more thorough in certain aspects of their analysis than Dr. Leidenfrost, including with their review of collateral material and the people they chose to interview.
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Luke Wenke’s belief that he is a public figure isn’t delusional. (BUT — big “but” here — in my opinion, it’s extremely inaccurate. Luke Wenke is NOT a celebrity, hasn’t held a political post or received positive news coverage in years, and was all but forgotten by the time he left prison in 2023. It’s time for him to hang his hat up on his dream of being well-known for any positive reasons, and he has himself to thank for that.)
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I am a victim in this case. After fighting my ass off to be recognised as a valid victim of Luke Wenke, I never imagined that the defence would acknowledge the legitimacy of my victim status while certain other parties have relegated me to “hypothetical victim” (presumably for becoming vocal online when I felt perpetually ignored and brushed off by the authorities). To have someone involved in this case recognise me as a victim, especially at this stage, actually means a lot to me.
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Sure, Luke Wenke could argue that my website “overwhelms” him into behaving in an unpalatable fashion. BUT in my opinion (and based on a very rational understanding of how time works), Luke Wenke CANNOT blame my less than six-month-old website for the past three-plus years of harassment and obsession that he has inflicted upon me.
I’ll even argue that I still don’t deserve it despite this website’s existence, and that if anyone was “provoked,” it was me. I stayed silent for years while Luke Wenke disparaged my character, talked about my private parts, spread complete lies about my private life, falsely accused me of extremely serious crimes, targeted my family (who’ve never met him and want zero involvement in this situation), tried getting me wrongfully arrested, repeatedly threatened to doxx me, and refused to stop contacting me despite being well aware that I want zero interaction with him ever again.
What did everyone in this case expect me to do? Cower in the corner for another three years while living like a recluse, suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder (due specifically to this situation), and having my name smeared all over social media and Pacer? That’s expecting too much, and I deserve an opportunity to finally share my side of things after bending over and fucking taking it for so long, and with no benefit whatsoever to myself. Luke Wenke has proven that he’s going to harass, stalk, and slander me even if I’m silent, so I might as well finally get a word in edgewise.
Things I Disagree With in This Document
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The Foot Soldier is a reliable source of information about Luke Wenke.
Reality: She believes Wenke can do no wrong and harbours harshly judgmental beliefs toward mental illness and mental health treatment. I would know, because she’s made some extremely immature and baseless remarks toward me about my supposedly ailing mental state. She also allegedly encouraged Luke Wenke to “play their game,” i.e. get through the mental health requirements for the sake of getting it over with, according to one of Wenke’s letters to the court. I don’t see mental health treatment as a game, and I wouldn’t trust the opinion of anyone who does, no matter how well they know the individual being analysed
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Dr. Leidenfrost’s analysis is “unreliable and unsupported by evidence.”
My Opinion: Dr. Leidenfrost and the Chicago experts all shared valid points. I think the prosecution and judge seemed like they did not lend a fair amount of consideration to the Chicago experts, and they sang the praises about Dr. Leidenfrost to the point where it seemed like they had tunnel vision. But I also think it’s a stretch to argue that Dr. Leidenfrost’s findings should be tossed to the wayside.
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Luke Wenke doesn’t suffer from any delusions whatsoever.
I know I’m no expert, but I definitely think he does, especially when it comes to Leidenfrost’s opinion that Wenke experiences erotomanic delusions. But I think the prosecution wholesale blamed Wenke’s behaviour on delusions, and that it would be ridiculous to argue that he’s as disconnected from reality as the government seems to think. The prosecution seems eager to throw accountability out the window, to the point where the defence seems to make a much fairer argument. Because at least they’re willing to acknowledge that Luke Wenke is capable of thinking for himself, and that he’s not some drooling space case who’s completely incapable of differentiating between reality and fantasy.
A Few Things I’d Like to Clarify
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I did not steal Luke Wenke’s car, and he has no logical basis to believe I did. It’s common knowledge among most American adults who’ve owned a vehicle that if you fail to keep up with your car note, the vehicle is subject to repossession. Luke Wenke has owned many vehicles, owing to the many cars he’s totalled. He should therefore be well aware that it’s completely legal for someone to surrender a car that’s in their possession if there’s a lien on it, even if they are not the owner. Because guess what? The owner is also no longer the owner.
For the defence to suggest that Wenke’s belief that I stole his car is even remotely rational seems to ignore the glaringly obvious fact that the car has been out of my possession for three years, and I haven’t been charged with stealing it. I gave Luke Wenke’s family time to arrange for the car’s retrieval. When I could no longer mentally deal with him calling me up from jail and barking orders at me while advertising me as a drug-addled prostitute to fellow inmates against my clearly stated wishes for privacy, I got rid of the car in a lawful fashion. I had no use for a car with a lien on it, I had 24/7 access to another vehicle, and my driveway isn’t a fucking storage lot.
I have text message conversations with the Foot Soldier proving I didn’t steal the car. Haven’t shared them, but I guess I may have to in order to finally put this matter to bed. At this point, I’m half-tempted to call up the owner of the impound lot I took the car to and ask him to go live and share his two cents on the matter.
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I did not leave a negative Yelp review about Luke Wenke’s mother’s former restaurant. For one, I don’t even use Yelp. I haven’t written a review on there in years. My profile is public and viewable, and if you read my past reviews, you’ll notice that I’ve always made it a point to include positive feedback in my reviews when possible. I’ve only written slam pieces after extremely bad experiences at businesses, which leads to my next point.
I never ate at Luke Wenke’s mother’s restaurant; I therefore would not have been qualified to review it, good or bad. I can’t say someone’s food sucks if I haven’t tried it, and leaving bullshit one-star reviews is Luke Wenke’s M.O., not mine. His lawyers should probably peruse the original criminal complaint against him, along with his many social media posts threatening to “tank” peoples’ businesses because he felt “owed.”
The Foot Soldier is grossly overestimating the amount of space she takes up in my head if she thinks I’d stoop that low. I should probably also mention that I didn’t call Child Protective Services on her, since I’ve heard that steaming pile of horseshit about myself in recent months as well. Sure, I’ve become more vocal regarding my feelings about her lately, but I’ve never had it out for the lady. I never even had it out for Wenke. All I’ve wanted, for years now, is to be left the fuck alone. I’m too old to play these infantile drama games, and I truly just want my life back.
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Luke Wenke must be under the false impression that I had a screaming match with his lawyers based on things they told him, because I don’t know how else he would’ve learned about that conversation. Moreover, I wasn’t upset, as the lawyers claim in the memorandum. I was extremely fucking irritated because they woke me up and because their attempt to engage in dialogue with me felt like an insult to my intelligence. I was curious to know what they wanted, so I stayed on the line long enough to feel like I was being led into a trap, then I said some words and hung up. I was also bothered because I see it as Wenke’s public defenders’ duty to keep their client in check, especially when the bullshit he spews stems largely from misunderstandings that I believe they could set straight, and he was behaving like a rabid animal from behind bars.
USA v. Luke Wenke: Doc. #192
April 18th, 2025