Washington murder suicide: Dustin Altshuler murders wife Laura Cole days after being arrested for groping a taxi driver
A school teacher who fatally shot his wife Wednesday before turning the gun on himself was charged that same day for allegedly groping a female taxi driver after a night of drinking last weekend.
Laura R. Cole, 35. was a Pasco elementary school teacher working with special education students.
Altshuler, also a teacher in the Pasco School District, was on paid administrative leave from Pasco High following his arrest. He was charged Wednesday with felony indecent liberties and was scheduled to appear before a judge Thursday.
He was out of jail on $15,000 bail.
Kennewick police went to Altshuler’s home at 2932 S. Keller Place in Canyon Lakes about 1:30 p.m. Wednesday to do a welfare check after a relative reported being worried.
“Officers went to the house. All the doors were locked. They looked in the windows and couldn’t see anything. Nothing exigent that would allow our officers to breach the doorway and check on something. So they left,” Sgt. Aaron Clem of the Kennewick Police Department said.
“(It’s an) ongoing investigation, so we don’t know if we’ll find something in their history or something that led to this but with both of them deceased who knows what we’re going to find,” Clem said.
Dustin Altshuler and Laura Cole
Pasco School District leaders said they were “deeply saddened” to learn of the teachers’ deaths.
“We will have counselors available at both schools this week to support the students and staff members who knew and worked with these teachers. Counselors will also be available to support students and staff members at other schools who have worked with these teachers previously,” the school district said in a statement.
Cole, who also was hired in 2016, was a special education teacher at Whittier Elementary.
She taught at Stevens Middle School and the district’s Early Learning Center before moving to Whittier.
