A Lee County judge has found probable cause to proceed with capital murder charges against the man accused of killing Dr. Julie Gard Schnuelle, a beloved Auburn University veterinarian and professor emerita.
Schnuelle, 59, was found dead on September 6 at Kiesel Park in Auburn, a place she often visited to run and walk her dogs. The suspect, 28-year-old Harold Rashad Dabney III of Auburn, faces two counts of capital murder — one for killing during a kidnapping and another for killing during a theft.
During a 45-minute preliminary hearing at the Lee County Justice Center in Opelika on Wednesday, Judge Jeffrey Gerald Tickal ruled that the evidence presented was sufficient to send the case to a grand jury. Dabney appeared in court with his appointed attorneys, Artie Vaughn and Andrew Dykes Stanley, but did not speak.
Auburn Police Detective Taylor Clark was the sole witness during the hearing. He testified that surveillance footage from Kiesel Park showed Schnuelle arriving around 9:38 a.m. in her red Ford F-150. Roughly four hours later, a witness called 911 after discovering a pool of blood and a body near a walking trail.
Clark said Schnuelle’s body was found about 25 to 30 yards off the trail, partially hidden behind a tree. Her phone, visor, and dog leash were located nearby, all covered in blood. “It appeared her body was dragged,” Clark said. A preliminary autopsy revealed Schnuelle had been stabbed seven times — wounds to her neck, chest, forearm, and hand. Investigators believe the attack occurred around 10:17 a.m, according to AL.com.
Surveillance video showed a man later identified as Dabney using a key fob to locate Schnuelle’s truck and driving away around 10:29 a.m. The next morning, police responded to a disorderly conduct call at St. Matthews Baptist Church, where they found Dabney in possession of Schnuelle’s credit card hidden in his underwear.
Clark testified that Dabney’s shoes matched those seen on the man in the park footage. Investigators also found Schnuelle’s truck abandoned in a wooded area off Wire Road, with blood on the front seat. A fingerprint matching Dabney’s was found on the driver’s side rear door.
The murder weapon has not been recovered, but investigators have submitted multiple pieces of evidence, including items from Dabney’s home and socks found at the church, for forensic testing.
Friends and former students have mourned Schnuelle’s death, remembering her as a respected educator and compassionate mentor. “She was a force in this world, such a bright, bright light,” said former student Destinee Bearden Patterson. “She was an all-around wonderful human being who is going to be missed terribly.”