Shannon Wrench

Shannon Wrench, a woman who Suwannee County residents knew as “Jane Doe” for sometime is now back home in Rantoul, Ill. and her mother, Kathleen Bateman reports she is doing well.

On July 16, Wrench was found unresponsive and badly beaten in some weeds off of 153rd Road by a motorist passing by at an intersection on US 90. She was discovered wearing cut off blue jean shorts and a Grateful Dead t-shirt with no shoes.

For three weeks and a day, Wrench was in a medically induced coma in a Gainesville hospital before she started showing vast signs of improvement. She awoke from the coma on Tuesday, Aug. 7.

“We knew she was in Florida, so to our knowledge she wasn’t missing or in danger,” said Wrench’s mother. Bateman was not notified of the incident until Aug. 8 when she received a call from her local police department. 
“They called about a quarter after nine and asked if I was Shannon Wrench’s mom. I told them I was and they asked me to call the Suwannee County Sheriff’s Office, so I did,” she said. “That’s when Sgt. Chris Fry told me my daughter was in a hospital in Gainesville and she had been in a coma since the 16th day of July and they didn’t know who she was.”

Wrench was admitted at Shands in Gainesville the day she was found, suffering from multiple skull fractures, and major cuts and bruises. She remained there until Aug. 27 and then was transferred to Signature Health Care in Gainesville for physical, occupational and speech therapy. She was discharged on Sept. 15 to go home.

Since returning home to Illinois, Wrench’s health status continues to improve. 
“We had an uneventful trip back to Illinois,” Bateman stated. “Shannon is doing well and working hard on her recovery, and considering the injuries she had, she’s doing good. We know that it will be a long process but the kind words and thoughts from everyone in the area have helped us through this difficult time.”  

“Thank you to everyone for your thoughts and prayers,” Wrench said. 
Her mother added, “You can’t tell me there wasn’t divine intervention. She was not supposed to be found. But something made her raise her leg up and she was able to be found. I tell her all the time she had guardian angels watching over her. We have just been overwhelmed with support by the people of the county and have felt each and every prayer.

Wrench went on to say, “A special thanks to the ladies that made me the blanket. I didn’t know that so many people could care about a stranger. God bless.”

Wrench’s boyfriend at the time, Shawn Patrick O’Bryan, 38, 646 St. Andrews Circle, Rantoul, Ill., was arrested by the Champaign County Illinois Sheriff’s Office for attempted first degree murder in the case. O’Bryan was transferred and booked into the Suwannee County Jail on Aug. 20 and awaits a trial that is set to be held Jan. 28 – Feb. 1, 2013.