COLUMBUS, Ind. — The family of a woman killed in a murder-suicide in Columbus right before Christmas says that she was denied a protective order against her abusive husband just days before she was killed.
Julie Schmidtke was pregnant with her and her husband’s third child when police say she was killed by her husband, Charles Schmidtke, back on Dec. 19. Investigators say after Charles Schmidtke shot his Julie he then shot and killed himself.
Julie’s sister, Lori Griffin, said that Julie was scared in the days leading up to her death. She had filed for divorce five days before her death. 10 days before her death a judge denied her a protective order against her husband, despite bringing lots of evidence to the hearing that he was abusive.
The judge, Jon Rohde, a former Columbus Police Chief, said there was not enough evidence to grant a restraining order.
Schmidtke’s family believes that the restraining order she was denied could have saved her life. They also believe that it would have enacted the state’s red flag law so that her husband’s guns could have been taken away.
Police are still investigating what happened leading up to the shooting.
