Kathy Schultz, 58, became a homicide victim on paper on Wednesday, May 17, 2017, when the state's medical examiner ruled that the blunt force injuries she had suffered months earlier near the 3800 block of Eastern Avenue in Baltimore had caused her death. The Baltimore Police Department investigated, and the Baltimore Sun's homicide database lists her death as a homicide.
The injury itself happened on the night of January 12, 2017. Police said officers were called at about 9 p.m.
to the intersection of Eastern Avenue and Eaton Street for a report of a common assault. According to police accounts reported by WBAL-TV, Fox45 and the Baltimore Sun, Schultz had gotten into an argument with a man there. Witnesses told police that she "took a swing at the man, who then pushed her to the ground," and that she struck her head on the pavement. Police described her as "highly intoxicated" when officers arrived.
At first she showed no signs of injury. She was taken to Johns Hopkins Bayview Medical Center as a precaution, but her condition declined there. Police said she lost consciousness and needed a ventilator to help her breathe, and doctors found that she had a cracked skull from the fall. She died in March. The Office of the Chief Medical Examiner later determined that she "died as a direct result of the head injury sustained in January," and ruled her death a homicide.
When police announced the ruling, they said the case was not a mystery to them. WBAL-TV reported that "the suspect in Schultz's death has been identified and is in jail on an unrelated charge," and that homicide detectives were "in the process of obtaining an arrest warrant." The Sun and the Associated Press reported the same thing: a suspect had been identified and a warrant was pending. Fox45 reported that police had not announced any suspects or arrests. No later report in the saved research says whether that warrant was ever obtained or served, or whether prosecutors ever filed a charge. Beyond these accounts of the incident, little about Schultz's life has been made public. No obituary or memorial page tied to her could be found for this story.
The corner of Eastern Avenue and Eaton Street lies in Brewers Hill, a southeast Baltimore neighborhood just east of Canton. The area is known for the former National Brewing Company buildings, including the tower topped by the Natty Boh sign, which have been converted into offices and apartments.
After the unrest of 2015, Baltimore recorded more than 300 homicides a year for eight straight years, and the share of killings that ended in an arrest fell sharply.
No arrest, criminal charge or court case connected to the death of Kathy Schultz could be found in news archives or public records. More than nine years later, there is no public sign that anyone has been held responsible. Police said in May 2017 that they knew who pushed her, which suggests the case may have stalled at the charging stage rather than for lack of a suspect. Anyone who was near Eastern Avenue and Eaton Street on the night of January 12, 2017, or who knows what became of the warrant detectives were seeking, may be able to help. Even a small detail, such as a name overheard, a vehicle seen nearby or a conversation remembered, can help detectives move a case forward. Anyone with information can call Baltimore Police homicide detectives at 410-396-2100, or leave an anonymous tip with Metro Crime Stoppers of Maryland at 1-866-7LOCKUP (1-866-756-2587).
