CHIPPEWA FALLS — A Tennessee man accused of kidnapping a 15-year-old girl in rural Chippewa County in October 2022 and sexually assaulting her has now been charged with physically assaulting two jailers.
Trevor D. Blackburn, 25, was charged Friday in Chippewa County Court with two counts of battery by a prisoner and four counts of battery or threat to a law enforcement officer. He is slated to appear in court Tuesday.
According to the criminal complaint, the assault in the jail occurred May 27. Blackburn was being combative and was being restrained by jailers, when he kicked one in the stomach and shoulder and another jailer was kicked in the stomach and in the head.
Blackburn was previously charged with kidnapping, seven counts of first-degree sexual assault of a person under age 16, strangulation and suffocation, and burglary. He also has been charged with three counts of battery or threat to a law enforcement officer and two counts of resisting an officer. Blackburn has been incarcerated in the Chippewa County Jail for about 2½ years on a $1 million cash bond.
The trial in the sex assault case is slated to begin Feb. 20, and Judge James Isaacson reserved up to six days for the proceedings. A pretrial hearing is set for Nov. 12.
The victim in the case has expressed frustration with the delays; the case will be more than three years old by the time the trial begins.
“I have been dismissed by many police officers prior to the kidnapping and I believe my case has just been brushed under the rug,” the teen wrote to the Leader-Telegram this spring after another court delay. “The impact this has caused has not only affected me but family, friends, and people who know me.”
The main reason for the delays is Blackburn has entered a plea of not guilty by reason of insanity. Blackburn previously told Isaacson he does not believe he is competent.
A competency hearing was held in May 2024, where two doctors found Blackburn to be competent and one did not. Chippewa County District Attorney Wade Newell asked Isaacson to find Blackburn to be competent.
Blackburn is accused of kidnapping the girl, who was discovered missing from her home on Saturday, Oct. 1, 2022. An Amber Alert was issued later that morning, which stated she was “in serious danger.” She was located Sunday evening, Oct. 2, hours before Blackburn was arrested. She was taken to an area hospital. Blackburn was arrested by the Douglas County Sheriff’s Department and the Superior Police Department.
According to the preliminary police reports, Blackburn and the girl met through social media and had never met in person. Blackburn flew from Nashville, Tenn., into the Minneapolis airport, and made his way to her home in the town of Ruby, where he kidnapped her from her home.
During the roughly 40 or so hours they were together, it appears Blackburn broke into a home to take food and water, and he accidentally left some of his property at the scene. The bond requirements state that Blackburn cannot have contact with either the girl or the homeowner.
If Blackburn posts bond he must have GPS monitoring equipment. Newell has said the high cash bond amount is warranted, noting Blackburn crossed state lines to come to Wisconsin to kidnap the girl. Harless has not requested a bond adjustment.
Newell previously described the “pre-abduction behavior,” where Blackburn “essentially blackmailed her to provide child pornography.” He noted that Blackburn has no ties to the area, having been in Maryland and moving to Tennessee shortly before this incident occurred.