Teen Charged In Elderly Ind. Teacher's Death
MERRILLVILLE, Ind. (STMW) -- A 16-year-old Merrillville, Ind. boy charged with murder in the death of 80-year-old Gary school teacher Anna Schulz was spotted by police the same day of the homicide as he jumped from an upstairs window and ran north into Schulz's neighborhood.
Royal Dushan Marshall, of the 6400 block of Taft Street, is being held in the Lake County (Ind.) Jail without bond. At his initial hearing before Lake Superior Court Magistrate Natalie Bokota, Marshall indicated that he would be represented by a private attorney.
Merrillville police Sgt. Tim Finnerty recognized Marshall, through his work with Merrillville High School, as the person inside a home in the 6400 block of Taft Street. The screen door to the garage had been kicked in, court records state. When Finnerty announced his presence, he saw Marshall jump from the upstairs window, the probable cause affidavit states. Marshall was wearing black shorts and a white T-shirt.
A neighbor of Schulz's told police between 11 a.m. and 1 p.m. Wednesday, he saw a young, thin black male wearing dark-colored shorts and no shirt running toward the Schulz residence on West 58th Place.
Marshall's girlfriend told police they'd taken Marshall to his aunt's house in the 800 block of 35th Avenue in Gary. The girlfriend said they had retrieved guns that Marshall had earlier stolen from his father.
Investigators found Schulz's missing 2003 Cadillac parked in an alley behind the aunt's home. Inside the car, police found a pair of women's shoes, which appeared to have blood on them.
Another aunt told police Marshall arrived at her home in the early afternoon wearing black shorts and a black T-shirt but no shoes.
"He was sweating profusely and appeared to be extremely nervous and kept looking out of the window in a nervous fashion," the probable cause affidavit states.
The relative told police she let Marshall spend the night at her house and took him to buy new shoes in the morning. Police arrested Marshall at about 11 p.m. Thursday in the 4000 block of Pennsylvania Street in Gary.
Schulz's son, Paul, who lived with his mother, had last seen her alive on July 5 when he borrowed her car. He returned with the car early the next morning, leaving it parked in the driveway, and later went to work. He came home around 6 p.m. Wednesday and found his mother lying in a pool of blood in the kitchen.
Court records indicate Schulz, a special education teacher at Gary Lew Wallace, had her throat cut so severely that the spinal area could be seen through the wound. The woman's bedroom appeared to have been ransacked.
Marshall's formal appearance is July 18. He also is charged with auto theft.
If convicted, Marshall faces 45 to 64 years in prison for murder, and six months to three years on the auto theft charge.
(Source: Sun-Times Media Wire © Chicago Sun-Times 2010. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.)
