There’s been a significant development in a case that has gripped Wisconsin for three years, where 18-year-old Dylan Lenz of Fall River entered a no-contest plea in June 2025 to charges stemming from a brutal 2022 attack on a teenage girl he met on Snapchat in a Walmart parking lot.
A no-contest plea means Lenz does not admit guilt but agrees the prosecution has enough evidence to convict, and accepts conviction and sentencing as if he had pleaded guilty. Lenz initially pleaded not guilty, but later changed his plea to not guilty because of mental disease or defect.
“I wasn’t thinking. My body just took over”
On October 15, 2022, Beaver Dam police responded to a harrowing scene at the Walmart Supercenter on Frances Lane. A 17-year-old girl was found with severe injuries, including abrasions and bleeding from her mouth and nose. Lenz stabbed her with a box cutter, and at first, agreed to let go, but backed over the girl once she was outside the vehicle.
Witnesses reported seeing a small SUV flee the scene after running over the victim. Security footage and vehicle registration led authorities to Lenz, whose vehicle bore damage consistent with the incident.
Lenz later told the cops, according to Wisconsin news outlet WMTV, “While in the store, I was like this is the last day she was going to be alive. This is the last night of her life. I was out of control. I wasn’t thinking. My body just took over.”
He also told the police he’d had “bad thoughts” before the attack, and after killing the girl, he texted a friend, “Oh no Im (sic) in big trouble I really messed up this time and I did something really bad and Im (sic) going away for a long time for this.”
Lenz was charged with attempted first-degree intentional homicide, aggravated battery, first-degree reckless injury, and hit-and-run involving great bodily harm. Lenz’s no-contest plea resulted from plea negotiations and could lead to a more lenient sentence. Lenz’s sentencing is expected on September 12.
Published: Jun 4, 2025 12:07 pm