Alabama authorities will seek the death penalty for a man accused of killing a retired veterinary professor at a park over the weekend, an official said Tuesday.
According to Lee County District Attorney Jessica Ventiere, prosecutors will seek punishment for Harold Rashad Dabney III, 28, in the killing of Julie Gard Schnuelle, 59, on September 6.
A jail official confirmed that Dabney is being held without bond at the Lee County Jail. His attorneys did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
Schnuelle, an emerita professor at Auburn University’s College of Veterinary Medicine, was walking her dog on Saturday morning when she was fatally stabbed, according to local news outlets.
According to a criminal complaint, the attack took place shortly after 10 a.m. in a park southeast of downtown Auburn. Schnuelle was killed while committing a felony robbery.
Police in Auburn accused Dabney of stealing Schnuelle’s red Ford F-150 pickup truck, which was later recovered. Dabney was arrested Sunday morning after police responded to a report of a suspicious person about 5 miles from where Schnuelle was killed.
Schnuelle was an Auburn faculty member from 2003 until her retirement in 2021, according to the university. She rose to the rank of professor of theriogenology, or the study of animal reproduction, and most recently served as the United States Agriculture Department’s area veterinarian in charge of Alabama and Mississippi.
“She was a cherished educator, mentor and colleague whose dedication to students and passion for theriogenology and veterinary medicine left a lasting impact on Auburn,” according to the school.
