Vigil to remember Cindy Schulz-Juedes, inmate who died at Taycheedah Correctional Institution
FOND DU LAC - EXPO (EX-incarcerated People Organizing) of Wisconsin and FREE will hold a candlelight vigil and balloon release from 7 to 8 p.m. July 26 after the death of an inmate at Taycheedah Correctional Institution July 19.
Cindy Schulz-Juedes, 68, was found unresponsive in her cell July 19, according to the Wisconsin Department of Corrections. The Fond du Lac Police Department and Fire and Rescue responded to the prison, but efforts to revive her were unsuccessful. She had been sentenced to life in prison for the 2006 death of her husband in Marathon County.
Fond du Lac Police Chief Aaron Goldstein told a USA TODAY-Wisconsin reporter last week that his department was in "the infancy stages of a homicide investigation" regarding her death.
The public is invited to participate in the vigil and balloon release, set to gather at Highway 151 and County K in Fond du Lac County. Attendees will then walk together to the correctional institution at dusk.
During the vigil, organizers ask that “attendees maintain a respectful and peaceful atmosphere as we honor Cindy’s memory and stand united in our pursuit of justice and understanding.”
The organizations said in a news release: “This vigil extends beyond individual remembrance; it stands as a call for justice and empathy within our society. Cindy’s story has become emblematic of the need for greater awareness and understanding of the challenges faced by those within the criminal legal system.”
It added, “By coming together, we hope to foster a more compassionate and empathetic society, seeking to address the underlying factors that contribute to such tragedies.”
Taycheedah Correctional Institution is a prison in Fond du Lac near the town of Taycheedah. It houses maximum-security and medium-security adult females, with an average population of 936 as of May 2019.
Schulz-Juedes continued to say she was not guilty of first-degree intentional homicide in the Aug. 29, 2006, death of her husband, Kenneth Juedes, after a jury found her guilty on Oct. 26, 2021. Marathon County Circuit Judge Michael Moran sentenced Schulz-Juedes on June 8, 2022, to life in prison without the possibility of release.
Schulz-Juedes was in the process of appealing her conviction. On June 16, her attorneys filed a motion to extend the time limits for the appeal and, four days later, the Court of Appeals granted the motion, according to online records.
Juedes was shot twice on Aug. 29, 2006. According to court documents, Schulz-Juedes went to a neighbor’s house the next morning and said Juedes had blood all over his chest.
Schulz-Juedes told police she slept in a camper outside the couple’s home the night before to avoid noise from the house, according to the complaint. Detectives learned Juedes had given Schulz-Juedes a shotgun similar to the one used to shoot Juedes. They also learned that Juedes’ estate, including various life insurance policies, was worth more than $950,000.
Prosecutors filed charges against Schulz-Juedes on Dec. 13, 2019, more than 13 years after the homicide.
In November, NBC’s “Dateline” aired an episode that focused on the murder of Juedes and the conviction years later of Schulz-Juedes.
Contact Karen Madden at 715-345-2245 or kmadden@gannett.com. Follow her on Twitter @KMadden715, Instagram @kmadden715 or Facebook at www.facebook.com/karen.madden.33.
Contact Brandon Reid at 920-686-2984 or breid@gannett.com. Follow him on Twitter at @breidHTRNews.
This article originally appeared on Manitowoc Herald Times Reporter: Taycheedah Correctional Institution death: Vigil set for Schulz-Juedes
