broburns

So a few months back my alternator died on me and the SC ended up sitting in the garage for about a month as the alternator plug disintegrated on me when i went to replace it. Long story short, as soon as the alternator was replaced the car began having a myriad of other electrical issues, among them my AC system quit working. For the first 2-3 days after replacing the alternator the AC worked fine but i would hear what sounded like gas moving through the AC lines, then the AC light on the climate control would start blinking shortly after turning it on, the day after that Compressor clutch would start grinding as soon as the AC turned on, and finally about a month later it does not turn on at all when i press the AC button. It has refrigerant in it and the relay itself is fine, but i'm almost certain there is a wiring issue somewhere down the line as when i jump the relay terminals the clutch kicks in(and starts grinding). I'm also no longer getting any warning lights and the AC button is no longer blinking. So my question is, does anyone know of any way to test the climate control unit to make sure that the AC button actually works? My CC headunit is in perfect shape with no bleeding at all, and i'd really hate to waste $2-300 on another one from ebay if it isn't actually bad. Anyone got any suggestions?