The Curious Case of Leo Schofield
Murderer or Victim?
Who Is Leo Schofield?
Leo Schofield is a Lakeland, Florida prisoner was convicted of killing his first wife Michelle Schofield back in February 1987. Michelle’s body was recovered in a canal near Lakeland, Florida after she went missing one evening after her shift at a local restaurant on February 24, 1987. Leo was charged with her murder in June 1988.
What’s the Case Against Him?
Personally, I think the case against Leo is pretty weak if you ask me. He was simply charged with the murder of his wife because he was the husband and because people had witnessed them get into a few arguments from time to time.
I don’t know about you, but, my partner and I have had arguments before and we have disagreed on things. It’s a perfectly normal thing for couples to do, and that doesn’t always mean that if one of them goes missing or is found murdered that the other one did it. Now I know that a lot of the time this is the case, I’m not an idiot. But I do feel like many times the police don’t even want to look at another suspect because they want to solve the case and move on. So they just charge the spouse, and then it’s case closed.
In Leo’s case, I don’t believe he got a fair trial at all. Leo was at a friend’s house while Michelle was at work. He was waiting for her to get off, so she could pick him up, and they could go home. Leo wasn’t driving at the time.
When Michelle got off work at 9:45 she called Leo from a pay phone and told him she was off and she was on her way to pick him up. What should have been a 10–15-minute drive turned into a nightmare when Michelle never showed. After waiting with his friend, for an hour, Leo called his dad who told him to wait just a little while longer and then call the police if she still wasn’t there. Maybe she had car trouble. After all, she was calling from a pay phone, it’s not like she could just text him.
At midnight, Michelle still wasn’t there so Leo called his dad to pick him up and he also called the police and let them know his wife was missing. In the 911 call, you can hear Leo politely pleading for the police to help find his wife.
Did Leo Schofield Kill His First Wife?
In my opinion, no. And here’s why. Here are the facts:
- Leo was at a friend’s house from the time Michelle went to work until the time his father picked him up at midnight after Michelle didn’t show up to get him. She got off at 9:45 pm.
- Michelle made the call to Leo when she got off of work from a pay phone at a gas station next door to her work, and then was never seen again. At this time, Leo was at his friend’s house waiting for Michelle.
- Leo called 911 from his friend’s house. If the police could track that phone call today, back to his friend’s house, they could see where he was and know it would be impossible for him to have murdered Michelle if he wasn’t even with her.
- Someone else’s fingerprints were found in Michelle’s car. On her radio and on a receipt that was found on the dashboard. This person also later confessed to killing Michelle after asking her for a ride home.
- Witnesses testified that Leo was abusive to Michelle on occasions, and he took full responsibility for being emotionally abusive to his wife at certain times. He didn’t lie about it or shy away from it.
- The Schofield’s next door neighbor testified that she has seen Leo carrying Michelle’s dead body from their house at the alleged time of the murder, shortly after Michelle got home from work. There are two problems with this testimony. One Leo wasn’t even home, and he wasn’t close to home. Two he wouldn’t have had enough time to leave his friends, go pick up Michelle (though he didn’t have a car), murder her, call his dad to come help him, and then clean up the crime scene just in time for police to show up. It just didn’t happen.
Where Is Leo Today?
Unfortunately, today Leo Schofield is still incarcerated in a prison in Lakeland, Florida. He is eligible for parole in 2023 and I hope for his family’s sake, for his wife and his daughter, that they let him go free.
