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Schubert, Julianna, 1989, Washington
Topic Started: Jun 3 2006, 08:09 PM (640 Views)
Ell
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http://www.charleyproject.org/cases/s/schubert_juliana.html
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Wednesday, June 08, 1994


Investigation, Man's Life In Limbo -- Arlington Woman Vanished; Husband Accused

Karen Alexander

ARLINGTON - Authorities say the last time anyone saw Juliana Schubert alive she was driving down Highway 9 toward home - nearly five years ago.

Since shortly after that, Snohomish County sheriff's detectives and a prosecutor have maintained that Juliana was murdered by her husband, David Schubert.

The lack of a body, however, has hindered the investigation. And even when murder charges were filed against Schubert earlier this year, they ultimately were dropped when the lead detective became gravely ill.

But Schubert believes his wife simply left behind their troubled marriage, their two children and started a new life. The ensuing five-year investigation has made life difficult for Schubert.

His home and property have been searched three times by police, his insurance business has suffered, his finances are in disarray, and his children were temporarily taken by the state when he was jailed in January.

Despite law enforcement's investigation, no trace of Juliana has ever been found. Nearly five years after her disappearance - authorities say she was last seen on June 30, 1989 - the murder case remains in limbo and so does Schubert's life.

Schubert lives with his two children in rural Snohomish County near Arlington, on a 20-acre estate that includes trails, fish-stocked ponds and a covered swimming pool - all behind a wrought-iron gate with a security camera.

Schubert said the estate was built through hard work,

dedication and a moderate level of monetary success. Its upkeep is handled by the family.

Even if Juliana did decide to leave her family, authorities say she never contacted friends, who filed a missing-person report. They felt it was out of character for her not to contact someone and that she would never leave her children for so long.

Schubert maintains his wife called him on July 3 from Denver, to tell him she was leaving him and the children. He never heard from her again and never filed a missing-person report. The couple had been married nine years and had a troubled relationship.

Schubert filed for a divorce shortly after Juliana disappeared but has not pursued the issue because of the complications caused by the murder investigation.

Although Schubert, 54, has been a suspect almost from the start, it wasn't until January that he was arrested and charged with second-degree murder.

Bail was set at $500,000 and his trial was scheduled for March 4. Schubert, whose financial resources had been exhausted during the prolonged investigation and who now is represented by a public defender, remained in jail unable to make bail.

Evidence is circumstantial

The county based its murder charge against Schubert on a compilation of circumstantial evidence. In the affidavit filed on Jan. 5, detectives noted that Juliana has made no financial transactions, has contacted no one and has essentially vanished since June 30, 1989. This from a "doting mother" who would never abandon her children, according to police reports.

That affidavit and other reports indicate the murder theory is supported by witness comments claiming Schubert threatened Juliana and gave conflicting stories to a police investigator.

Rick Jordan, a friend of the Schuberts, told police that he saw Juliana shortly before she disappeared and she told him she was frightened because Schubert had threatened to kill her. Another friend, Lester Wright, told police that about five days before she disappeared Juliana told him her husband had threatened her with a gun. Theresa Wright said Schubert told her one month before Juliana's disappearance that he might have to kill his wife.

Juliana's mother, Karil Herendeen, told police that Schubert first told her Juliana was on vacation and only informed her that her daughter was missing a month after the disappearance.

Rick Blake, the sheriff's detective who led the investigations, said Schubert told him several conflicting stories. Blake also said that Schubert said Juliana left without taking any money, clothing or even a car. That contrasts with what Herendeen said Schubert told her, which was that Juliana probably had $500 with her.

Schubert said he did not give conflicting stories to the detective and that Juliana probably had $500 when she left. He concedes that their marriage was troubled, but says his wife's disappearance has caused more problems for him than any divorce could have caused. Community-property laws have his property tied up and the divorce proceedings have been dropped because of the uncertainty over Juliana's whereabouts.

Schubert also sticks to his claim that Juliana called him after she disappeared saying she would not be back. He also said there are witnesses that the state is aware of who spotted Juliana since her disappearance.

Angela Rifner, Schubert's business partner and close friend, also maintains that Juliana called after her disappearance. Rifner, who knew Juliana, disputed claims that she was a devoted mother.

The state has no evidence indicating Juliana called and no witnesses have come forward with information indicating Juliana is alive, said prosecutor Ken Cowsert. If Schubert has evidence that Juliana was seen alive after her disappearance, he need only present it. "I have an open-door policy," Cowsert said.

Detective ill, couldn't testify

But the charge against Schubert was abruptly dropped a few weeks after it was filed because Blake was diagnosed with leukemia and could not testify.

The detective, not written reports, is needed to reconstruct the investigation and for cross-examination by Schubert's attorney, according to Cowsert, the prosecutor handling the case. "You can't cross-examine a report," he said.

Cowsert said he plans to refile the charges when the detective recovers and is able to testify, which could happen any time. If Blake does not recover sufficiently, the entire case will be re-evaluated but could still be refiled, Cowsert said.

Schubert, a former reserve police officer for the city of Arlington, said inaccurate reports that he was a full-time police officer put him in jeopardy while he was in jail from Jan. 7 until March 5, when he was freed on a reduced bail of $75,000.

Schubert also said that his children suffered because they were placed in foster care. Schubert said the children could have remained at home during his incarceration, if the state had agreed to allow relatives to care for them.

Joan Hunter, Schubert's sister, spent about two months in the Seattle area trying to gain approval from the state to care for Schubert's two sons, who are 13 and 11. Hunter, who lives in Fairfax, Va., said she came to the area prepared to stay six months to care for the kids. Schubert's father, 86-year-old Charles Schubert of Tacoma, also told the state he would take care of his grandchildren.

Citing confidentiality, state officials will say little about why the Schubert children were sent to foster homes and kept there well after Schubert was released from jail. Both decisions were made after a review by the courts, said Bob McClintock, area manager for Children and Family Services for Everett and Smokey Point offices.

In addition to these problems, Schubert said other allegations made against him further impugn his reputation.

After Schubert's January arrest, it was reported that he had a previous conviction for telephone harassment, which is untrue, Schubert said. Those charges were never filed, he said, because police discovered he had an alibi.

Friends back Dave Schubert

Schubert's friends believe the county has the wrong man and is so convinced he is guilty no one will look for other possibilities.

Shawn O'Grady, Schubert's former wife, said detective Blake focused on the fact that Juliana loved her kids and would not leave them. "It's a stereotyped idea that a woman wouldn't do that," O'Grady said.

"(Blake) basically told me that the man I knew for 21 years was a totally insane, violent person and I hadn't noticed," O'Grady said.

Copyright © 1994 Seattle Times Company, All Rights Reserved.
Ell

Only after the last tree has been
cut down;
Only after the last fish has been
caught;
Only after the last river has been
poisoned;
Only then will you realize
that money cannot be eaten.
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Ell
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September 10, 2002

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Schubert's fate in jury's hands

By Janet Burkitt

Times Snohomish County bureau

EVERETT — Did David Schubert's wife purposely disappear to escape a deteriorating marriage? Or has Schubert gotten away with murder for the past 13 years, and, if so, can he get away with it for good?

"He thinks he can," Snohomish County deputy prosecutor Ed Stemler told Superior Court jurors yesterday at Schubert's retrial. "And except for (your verdict), he does."

Yesterday, the case went to the jury, which must now decide whether Schubert, 62, killed his wife, or if Juliana Schubert disappeared for some other reason, leaving behind her belongings, an untouched checking account and two young sons.

She was last seen June 30, 1989, and no trace of her has ever been found.

Juliana Schubert may well be dead, defense lawyer Caroline Mann told jurors in her closing argument. But she said prosecutors haven't proved it.

Schubert, a former Arlington reserve police officer, claims his wife called him several days after leaving their home and said she was in Denver and needed to think things over. Their marriage was deteriorating, and Juliana Schubert, then 30, was at an unsettled point in her life, Mann said.

She said that when authorities started searching for Juliana Schubert, they did so assuming she was dead — looking for her body on the Schuberts' rural 17-acre estate but not calling motels in Denver and not checking to see whether she had taken a cab or train out of the area.

Prosecutors say Juliana Schubert never would have abandoned her young sons and that she was preparing to start a new life with them in the area. She had started a job in Everett shortly before her disappearance and, they say, was looking for an apartment in Arlington. They say Schubert killed her because he didn't want to lose money in a costly divorce.

One witness testified during the trial that Schubert said he wanted peace in his life, and if he had to kill his wife to get it, he would. Juliana Schubert told another friend that he had threatened her and their children with a gun, according to testimony.

But while prosecutors described Schubert as a control freak, they never showed any evidence of it, Mann said. Far from being under her husband's thumb, Mann argued, Juliana Schubert had an independent life and secrets she kept from even her closest friends and loved ones.

She pointed to William Whitbeck, a defense witness who testified earlier yesterday that he had had an intimate relationship with Juliana Schubert for three years. He said he was never contacted by authorities or her family and friends after her disappearance.

Last year, in the first trial, jurors split 9-3 against convicting Schubert of first-degree murder and 9-3 in favor of convicting him of second-degree murder.

Whitbeck says Juliana Schubert called him in an anxious state shortly before her disappearance and said her husband had threatened to kill her if she left home. But the judge would not allow jurors to hear about her alleged statements, ruling they were hearsay.

Prosecutors insist Schubert's behavior after his wife's disappearance points to his guilt. He didn't file a missing-person report right away and told people conflicting stories about her whereabouts, according to testimony. He started drinking in the morning after she vanished, prosecutors say, and put up an elaborate security system on his estate.

The jury was scheduled to resume deliberations this morning.

Janet Burkitt: 425-745-7810 or jburkitt@seattletimes.com.


Ell

Only after the last tree has been
cut down;
Only after the last fish has been
caught;
Only after the last river has been
poisoned;
Only then will you realize
that money cannot be eaten.
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Juliana Mae Schubert


Above Images: Juliana, circa 1989


Vital Statistics at Time of Disappearance

Missing Since: June 30, 1989 from Arlington, Washington
Classification: Endangered Missing
Date Of Birth: April 13, 1959
Age: 30 years old
Height and Weight: 5'3, 120 pounds
Distinguishing Characteristics: Caucasian female. Brown hair, green eyes. Juliana's maiden name is Vanderlaan.


Details of Disappearance

Juliana was last seen at her residence in Arlington, Washington on June 30, 1989. She left all of her personal belongings behind at her family's rural estate, including her vehicle, when she disappeared. Juliana has never been seen or heard from again.
Juliana was married to David Charles Schubert in 1989, but divorce proceedings were nearly complete at the time of her disappearance. David has been the prime suspect in Juliana's disappearance since 1989. His photo is posted below this case summary. Juliana's relatives won $1.7 million a cash settlement against David for their two children in 1998, when a civil trial jury found that David was responsible for his wife's wrongful death. The Schuberts' sons publicly supported their father. They told investigators that Juliana departed from their residence with an unidentified blonde woman driving a red vehicle.

David was charged with second-degree murder in Juliana's disappearance in 1994, but the charge was dismissed and he was freed when a key prosecution witness became ill and was unable to testify. The witness later died. David was charged with first-degree murder in Juliana's case in October 2001. Authorities said that he spoke to at least one witness while divorce proceedings were underway and mentioned that he wanted to kill Juliana to find "peace" for himself. Investigators have always believed that David hid his wife's remains at an undetermined location.

David stated that Juliana called him from Colorado several days after her 1989 disappearance. He claims she wanted time to herself and simply never returned to Washington. David also said that Juliana traveled to the Pacific coast and visited the eastern United States after 1989. Her family said that she would never have abandoned her children by her own decision. David's initial trial ended when the jury deadlocked on a verdict in December 2001. He faced a new trial in September 2002. Prosecutors told the jury that Juliana wanted to retain full custody of their children. They stated that the couple's assets were valued at more than $700,000 in 1989. Prosecutors contend that a judge may have awarded Juliana custody of the children and the majority of their financial holdings. A local attorney testified that she asked him for information regarding divorce proceedings and said that Juliana was concerned about retaining custody of their sons.

Nickolas, one of the couple's children, died inside his California dormitory room in December 2001. The cause of his death has not been determined. Authorities announced that they believed David coerced his sons into testifying about Juliana's supposed departure from their home in 1989. David claimed that Nickolas's death was related to stress stemming from the ongoing legal proceedings. Nickolas did not leave a suicide note and there was no indication of foul play at the scene.

David was convicted of second-degree murder in his wife's case in mid-September 2002. He appealed his conviction, but the appeal was denied. Juliana's remains have never been located.



Above: David Schubert, circa 2001


Investigating Agency
If you have any information concerning this case, please contact:
Snohomish County Sheriff's Office
425-388-3839



Source Information
Snohomish County Sheriff's Office
The Daily Herald
The Seattle Times
The Seattle Post-Intelligencer



Updated 2 times since October 12, 2004.

Last updated March 25, 2006; details of disappearance updated.

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