By Shereen Siewert
A Wausau father accused of supplying a fatal dose of drugs to his son and girlfriend who died within hours of one another was convicted Monday on a reckless homicide charge and will be sentenced early next year.
Roderick H. Schultz, of Wausau, was formally charged July 6, 2021 in Marathon County Circuit Court with two counts of first-degree reckless homicide by delivery of drugs after an investigation into both deaths.
Police say the first overdose victim, Schultz’s girlfriend, was found dead shortly after 7 a.m. on March 13, 2021 at a home on Lazy Branch Drive. A heroin overdose was immediately suspected. Marathon County Assistant District Attorney Jonathan Barnett on March 15, 2021 told a judge the woman was hospitalized just two weeks earlier for a near-fatal overdose in Superior and had previously undergone addiction treatment.
Hours later police were called again to a Wausau apartment for a second death, again a suspected fatal heroin overdose. This time, they found Schultz’s own son dead at a home in the 200 block of Lavinia Drive with a needle and cooker near his body.
Schultz allegedly admitted his son had overdosed about five times previously but initially denied being at either victim’s house and said he had not recently used drugs himself. But court documents show his story changed several times throughout the investigation. And police, citing cell phone records obtained through a warrant, confirmed that Schultz on the night before his son’s death drove to Milwaukee to buy $400 worth of heroin and delivered the drugs that killed the young man.
Court records show Schultz was ordered by a judge to be held on a $100,000 bond with only the first $20,000 to be paid in cash, which he then posted.
While out on bond in September, Schultz was arrested again after being found unresponsive in his home.
According to the police report, Schultz’s mother said her son may have overdosed and his lips were turning blue. Lifesaving efforts were successful after paramedics administered Narcan, but no drugs were found next to Schultz during the initial investigation. His mother then told police she wondered if he was diabetic, court records state, and claimed her son had a history of seizures.
Schultz allegedly claimed the puncture wound found on his arm was from “working on a truck,” court records state. His mother allegedly refused to allow police to search Schultz’s bedroom on the grounds that it was her home. She has so far not faced any charges connection to the incident
Police obtained a warrant to draw Schultz’s blood at the hospital for a chemical test. He was eventually taken to the Marathon County Jail on bail jumping charges, which were filed Sept. 6. He was released after posting a $3,000 cash bond, court records show.
Past history
Court records show Schultz was one of three people arrested in March 2017 after a 36-year-old man overdosed and nearly died. The overdose was one of three in Wausau in a span of just a few days. Treg Leder, then 27, was also arrested in connection with the 2017 case. Leder was convicted of manufacturing or delivering heroin and in December 2017 was sentenced to three years in prison followed by four years of extended supervision.
A third suspect died in 2018.
Schultz, now 55, was ultimately convicted of maintaining a drug trafficking place and in 2018 was given a withheld sentence and ordered to spend three years on probation, which ended on Feb. 4, 2021 – just six weeks before his girlfriend and son died.
Sentencing set
During Monday’s plea hearing, Schultz, now 55, was convicted of a single count of first-degree reckless homicide by delivery of drugs. A second count, along with a charge of possessing drug paraphernalia, were dismissed as part of a plea agreement. A bail jumping charge was also dismissed.
Circuit Judge Suzanne O’Neill will sentence Schultz on March 3, during a two-hour hearing. A presentencing investigation has been ordered.
Schultz remains free on bond, despite a victim request to revoke his status. He faces up to 40 years in prison on the homicide charge, plus additional penalties for his repeat-offender status.
