Stillwater man accused of attacking therapist

    Joseph Lawrence Gulick, who reportedly fled the area after the alleged incident, was arrested the next day at 2:40 am in a wooded area near 1300 S. Hester Street where he was sleeping in a tent, according to an affidavit by Stillwater Police Officer Matthew White.

    A therapist had told another police officer on Jan. 15 at about 9 am “she was having a therapy session with Gulick when the assault occurred. (At 7:30 this morning he had assaulted other staff members. A male co-worker tried to stop the assault, and Gulick placed him in a modified guillotine chokehold. The co-worker was driven to the hospital to be treated for neck and shoulder pain. The police were not called at this time.),” an affidavit alleged.

    The mental health therapist “was attempting to explain to Gulick why he could not leave the facility. He told her he was going to leave. He picked up the edge of her heavy desk and drove it towards her before flipping it over. The desk landed on her left large toe. Her toe was discolored and purple.

    “He stood over her pushing and holding the desk on her foot. He stared at her blankly without saying a word. He eventually left the office and barged his way out of the facility. (Another woman) said he had also raised a closed fist at her, but just walked past her without hitting her,” the affidavit alleged.

    If convicted of assault and/or battery on the therapist who performs assessments of potential clients and de-escalation services for Grand Mental Health, Gulick could be given a two-year prison term and a $1,000 fine, according to the charge filed last week.