SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. — A fatal shooting Saturday morning in this Phoenix suburb is connected to the murder of a forensic psychiatrist and two paralegals earlier this week, police said.
The Scottsdale Police Department is investigating this fourth homicide at an office building, Sgt. Ben Hoster said. Police did not identify the victim. Karen Kolbe, a licensed professional counselor, told The Arizona Republic the victim was Marshall Levine, a psychologist to whom she had rented office space for the last two years.
Kolbe said police arrived at her house in the early hours of Saturday morning with the news that Levine had been killed.
Scottsdale, a city of about 250,000 residents east of Phoenix, is known for its resorts, spas and golf courses. It had five homicides in all of 2017 and averaged four per year in the five years previous to that, according to the Uniform Crime Report it transmits to the FBI.
At about 2:15 p.m. Friday, Veleria Sharp, 48, of Chandler, and Laura Anderson, 49, of Mesa, were shot and killed at the law office of Burt, Feldman and Grenier in Scottsdale where both worked as paralegals.
The law firm of Burt, Feldman and Grenier issued a statement of condolences Saturday:
Laura has worked with us as family for more than 10 years. Her intellect, passion and friendship has meant more to us than we can even begin to convey. She was more than a co-worker; she was a friend, a mother, grandmother, daughter and wife and gave all of herself to her family, her friends and her work.
Veleria was a treasured member of our work family. She brought joy, calmness, warmth and compassion to all that she did. She was a dedicated mother, wife and daughter. She and her family shared a deep passion for music and their faith.
On Thursday, forensic psychiatrist Steven Pitt was gunned down outside of his Scottsdale office, police said. Pitt had been a consultant on on a number of high-profile cases — including Phoenix’s Baseline Killer serial shooter, who killed nine people between August 2005 and June 2006, and JonBenét Ramsey, who was found dead the day after Christmas in 1996.
Witnesses told police they heard a loud argument before Thursday’s killing followed with gunshots, Phoenix Police Sgt. Vince Lewis said Friday. Pitt was pronounced dead at the scene.
The shooter fled the area. Witnesses described the shooter as an adult male, bald and wearing a dark-colored hat with a short brim, Lewis said.
If you have four connected murders, you would think USA Today would provide a little more info than who died. We can read that nonsense in the obituaries.
A forensic psychiatrist? What was he working on? Any connection to the Clinton Foundation? Whose imprisonment was he responsible for in the past that was recently released?
Was he about to expose the murderous fraud of psychotropic drug prescriptions?
Okay….. I just read elsewhere that this guy was part of the infamous Jon Benet Ramsey case, but for some reason, USA Today doesn’t want us to know that.
With that case making headlines for about a year, don’t you think it’s worth mentioning that the four murders were connected to the forensic psychiatrist in the case?
Nice sweep, USA Today. You almost got it under the rug.
“… I just read elsewhere that this guy was part of the infamous Jon Benet Ramsey case,…”
LOL… I read it right here, JR.
Time for some reading glasses? 🙄
“Pitt had been a consultant on on a number of high-profile cases — including Phoenix’s Baseline Killer serial shooter, who killed nine people between August 2005 and June 2006, and JonBenét Ramsey, who was found dead the day after Christmas in 1996.”
It’s that darn climate change…
No, it’s those darn DEMOCRATS. 🙄