Marion father killed 5-year-old son because child’s safety was ‘overwhelming’ to him

CEDAR RAPIDS — A Marion father told police he fatally strangled his 5-year-old son because he thought the preschooler would be “better off not being here” and not having to deal with his food allergies, which the father called “overwhelming” for him to handle.

Matthew Gerald Schleier, 46, said in the video-recorded police interview that it was hard for him to relax because he had to keep his son, Jack, and his 7-year-old daughter, who also had food allergies, “safe all the time.” It could be “life or death” if Jack ate something he was allergic to.

Schleier, who is on trial this week for first-degree murder, said he decided to strangle his 5-year-old on Oct. 29, 2024, but also thought about using a knife — going so far as to retrieve two of them from the kitchen in the middle of the night. He didn’t know how he was going to “help Jack pass away safely,” Schleier said.

He told police he didn’t know what made him strangle Jack, but his “anxiety” told him to kill the preschooler. Schleier said he didn’t know how long it took to strangle the boy — “long enough to expire,” he told an investigator, lacking any visible emotion.

Schleier’s voice cracked a few times, but he never cried or teared up as he was telling two Marion investigators what happened about two hours after the incident. He remained calm and matter-of-fact.

After Schleier initially told Sgt. Investigator Tom Peterson what he had been thinking that night, Peterson had to excuse himself for a few minutes. Peterson seemed to react to his frank comments.

When Peterson came back, he continued the interview.

Trial testimony started Tuesday. There was no jury selection because Schleier opted for a bench — or non-jury — trial. Sixth Judicial District Judge David Cox will decide the verdict. Testimony is expected to wrap up Friday, and the judge will provide a written verdict, which could take three or four months.

Brief openings

In short openings, Assistant Linn County Attorney Jordan Schier said this case was about Jack’s life being “tragically” taken from him by his father. Jack is the victim, Schier said, not his father, who is claiming insanity.

Schier said testimony and evidence during the trial will show Matthew Schleier chose to knowingly strangle his son Oct. 29, 2024, in their home in the 4100 block of Willowbrook Drive in Marion.

Schier said Schleier chose to do it in the middle of the night so nobody could stop him.

In fact, Schleier had been thinking about killing his child for 21 days before doing it, Schier said.

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Leon Spies, Schleier’s lawyer, during his opening statement said not only was Jack a victim but so was his father, the entire Schleier family and their friends. He said three expert witnesses will testify that Schleier was insane when he killed his son.

During the trial, there also will be testimony about his client’s history of mental illness, which goes back to his college days, he said.

Spies said Schleier obsessed about his children’s serious food allergies and thought they might die. He also obsessed about ticks and Lyme disease, asbestos and his fear of developing ALS, as one of his parents did.

The expert witnesses will testify that Matthew has “major depressive” and anxiety disorder and had delusional beliefs about the safety of his son. He believed the only way to save Jack was to kill him.

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Schleier panicked after strangling son

Schleier, in his video interview, said Jack was lying on his side sleeping when he strangled him. After he did it, Schleier went into a “panic” because he couldn’t believe he did it. He paced around the house, got some water, and then went back into Jack’s room. This happened after 5 a.m., he said.

He told the investigators he thought about driving to the police department but didn’t. He also didn’t wake up his wife, but she saw him at some point in the hallway.

Schleier said he told her he did “something bad.”

He also thought about killing his daughter after he killed Jack, but didn’t go through with it.

“She is my baby girl, and I couldn’t do it,” he said.

Jack’s mother testifies

Schleier’s wife, Victoria Schleier, said she woke up early that morning when she saw a light in the hallway turn on and off twice and then saw her husband standing in the hallway.

Victoria said she asked her husband if he was OK because he wasn’t usually up that early. It was before 5:55 a.m.

“Matt said, ‘I did a bad thing. I hurt Jack,’” Victoria testified.

She immediately went to check on her son. She found him face down on the edge of his bed. She said she picked up Jack but he wasn’t responsive or breathing. His eyes didn’t open.

Victoria testified she was “screaming my baby. My boy.” She was in shock and screaming. She scooped up Jack and took him to her bedroom. She didn’t want their daughter to see her little brother.

Victoria, who is a kindergarten teacher at St. Joseph Catholic School in Marion, testified that after she took Jack to her room, she didn’t know where her husband went. Matthew Schleier’s sister, Emily Schleier, who had come to stay with them and help with her brother, came upstairs after Victoria found Jack and called 911.

Jack never opened his eyes or started breathing after she found him. She said she hoped he wasn’t dead. She took her son downstairs so the paramedics could quickly get to him. She saw marks around Jack’s neck.

After first responders came, she checked on their daughter, who wasn’t harmed, and then knelt on the kitchen floor and prayed.

Police had taken Matthew outside and he was handcuffed, she said. Victoria told him she didn’t know what he did but said, “I love you.”

When she helped police look for Matthew’s phone, she saw something “shocking” in the guest bedroom, where Matthew was sleeping. There was a “big kitchen knife and hunting knife” on the bed. They weren’t there the night before.

Victoria testified her husband “apologized for hurting Jack.”

Victoria said her husband loved their children, and he was “best buddies” with Jack.

She said Matthew had always worried about safety issues regarding the children, but his mental health had been declining before Oct. 5, 2024, when she took him to get help at the hospital. She said they sent them home with more medication.

He also had stayed at GuideLink in Iowa City for help with mental issues and had other brief “check-ins” with the facility during October.

Her husband had been taking different medications for anxiety and depression, and had low energy and was less involved in family and daily activities, Victoria testified. He said he was “in pain” and couldn’t “think straight.”

Victoria said it became so bad that he couldn’t function at his job, which Schleier also admitted during his testimony. He was an assistant vice president at United Fire Group and had to step down from his duties because of his mental issues, she said.

Victoria said her husband always shared everything with her and talked about having suicidal thoughts or struggling in other ways, but he never told her he thought about harming or killing Jack. Her husband never kept secrets from her, she said.

Trish Mehaffey covers state and federal courts for The Gazette.

Comments: (319) 398-8318; trish.mehaffey@thegazette.com