by Crystal Gottfried
Two weeks after her body was found beside the road, Comal County Sheriff’s deputies and Department of Public Safety troopers continue their investigation into the circumstances that led to the death of Shirley Lindenbaum, 83, of Canyon Lake.
CCSO detective Sgt. Tommy Ward said that Lindenbaum’s body was found by deputies and DPS troopers around 9:30 p.m. on Nov 3 after they responded to a frantic 911 call to the 500 block of White Oak Drive at Canyon Lake near Startzville.
“She sustained massive injuries to her upper body,” said Ward. “The autopsy report by the Travis County Medical Examiner’s Office cited impact trauma as the woman’s official cause of death.”
Calling Lindenbaum’s demise an “equivocal death,” detectives continue to question Janice Vickers, 45, of Canyon Lake. Vickers apparently called police Friday night after she said she thought she struck a pedestrian with her sport utility vehicle, a Chevrolet Tahoe.
According to the definition provided by the Practical Homicide Investigation: Tactics, Procedures, and Forensic Techniques, “equivocal death investigations are those inquiries that are open to interpretation. There may be two or more meanings and the facts are purposefully vague or misleading as in the case of a ‘staged crime scene.’” Or, the death is suspicious or questionable based upon what is presented to the authorities. The deaths may resemble homicides or suicides, accidents or naturals. They are open to interpretation pending further information of the facts, the victimology and the circumstances of the event.”
While no charges have been filed against Vickers as of press time on Nov. 14, detectives said that she was cooperating with the investigation.
Vickers’ Tahoe was impounded by investigators on the night of the incident and is being held as part of the ongoing investigation into the incident.
Vickers could not be reached for comment about the incident.
Services for Lindenbaum will be at 11 a.m. Friday at St. Paul’s Lutheran Church, 181 South Santa Clara, New Braunfels.
|