Sunday, August 23, 2009

Victim: Donald Althaus

I don't normally read the obituaries in the San Antonio Express-News, but one day last April as I flipped through the paper, a photograph with the Central Texas name of Althaus underneath it caught my eye. I knew I hadn't heard of anyone with that name passing away recently, so I read the obit. It stated that Donald Herbert Althaus, 55, of San Antonio and formerly of Iowa, had been the victim of a homicide in San Antonio on Jan. 22, 2009. I didn't recall seeing or hearing anything in any of the local media (print, television news, local obits., etc.) about this death, much less that it was a homicide. I also wondered about the long wait to announce the death, post the obit., and announce the funeral.

It has long disturbed me the way obvious homicides were being ruled accidents, suicides, etc. around here (ex: Phillip Shue). Is the latest strategy to simply not report them at all? [Is Donald Althaus related to local "insider" Dudley Althaus who writes for the Houston Chronicle?]


3 comments:

Unknown said...

i looked online, the article was in the e-n THE NEXT DAY the poor guy was stabbed in a bar brawl no relation to d.a. and certainly no mystery

ML said...

I have not been able to locate any articles anywhere about this death. Also, the problem regarding the dates remains unanswered (died in Jan., but obit. in April).

ML said...

I have now added updated information on this case in my 7/19/10 post above entitled "Coincidences".