Wisconsin Rapids Man Sentenced for Ordering a Hit on Marshfield Man Sentenced to Prison

Wednesday, March 4th, 2026 -- 12:02 PM

(Mike Leischner, WSAU) The man who put up a $5,000 reward for the death of Christian Schauer will serve prison time.

According to Mike Leischner with WSAU, Steven Crandall entered a no contest plea to one count of conspiracy to commit homicide on Tuesday and was found guilty by a judge.

He was then sentenced to 22 years in the state prison system, including seven years in prison and 15 years on extended supervision. He was given credit for nearly two years already served in jail while awaiting trial.

Additional terms of his sentence include no unapproved contact with Schauer’s family. Crandall believed that Schauer, who was 20 at the time of his death, had stolen pills from one of his dealers.

The 28-year-old is the fourth person sentenced in connection with Schauer’s death. Jared Carl is serving a life sentence for homicide but is eligible to apply for parole in 2057.

Carl’s father, Shawn, pleaded no contest to falsifying information to harbor or aid a felon and resisting or obstructing an officer. He was given a withheld sentence and served time in the Marathon County Jail.

Audrey Benson is serving prison time for hiding a corpse. Officials had initially charged Shawn with killing Schauer, but testimony from Benson pointed to Jared pulling the trigger instead.

Investigators later discovered that Shawn knew about the crime and helped his son hide evidence, including Schauer’s vehicle.

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