Lawrenceburg, In. — Dearborn-Ohio County prosecutor Lynn Deddens says two Lawrenceburg men are facing charges after interfering with the investigation into the death Clarissa Schultz. Police say Schultz committed suicide outside the Levee Breaker Bar in Lawrenceburg in May.
William Ford Skipton, 44, is charged with assisting suicide, carrying a handgun without a license and operating a vehicle while being suspended for life. Steven Melrose, Jr., 46, has been charged with false informing and selling an alcoholic beverage to an intoxicated person.
Schultz was found dead outside the bar with an apparent self-inflicted gunshot wound to the head. Police were unable to close the investigation because Skipton hid the gun in the ceiling tiles of the bar and removed a shell casing. Melrose, the bartender at the Levee Breaker Bar told emergency dispatchers he did not know where the gun was, but later admitted he saw Skipton hide it.
Skipton, a friend of the deceased, allegedly owned the gun Schultz used in the incident. Police say he removed the gun and a shell casing from the scene because, as a prior felon he was afraid he would face charges. Melrose misled dispatchers in an effort to protect Skipton.
No court date has been set.
Prosecutor Deddens said, “We take death investigations very seriously. These men are innocent until proven guilty in a court of law, but their actions caused a significant delay while police made sure of their findings. I want to thank the Lawrenceburg Police Department and Indiana State Police for their help in the matter.”
