Women to stand trial in murders of homeless men

By: TERRI VERMEULEN KEITH - Associated Press | Thursday, March 15, 2007 7:59 PM PDT ∞

LOS ANGELES - Two women suspected of killing two homeless men they befriended, allegedly to collect more than $2.8 million in life insurance, were ordered today to stand trial on murder and conspiracy charges.

Helen Louise Golay, 76, of Santa Monica, and Olga Rutterschmidt, 74, of Hollywood, are charged in the June 21, 2005, death of Kenneth McDavid, 50, and the Nov. 8, 1999, death of Paul Vados, 73. Authorities said both men were killed in hit-and-run crashes.

Following a 3 1/2-day hearing, Los Angeles Superior Court Judge David S. Wesley found there was sufficient evidence to allow the case to proceed to trial.

The two women were ordered to remain jailed without bail pending their arraignment March 29 at the downtown Los Angeles courthouse.

The friends of 20 years paid rent for the men, along with their life insurance premiums, for two years so it would be easier to collect on the policies once the men died, Deputy District Attorney Shellie Samuels told the judge.

The two lied about their relationship with the men -- claiming to be a fiancee or cousin in numerous instances -- to get the multiple insurance policies, Samuels argued.

The judge rejected requests from Golay's attorney, Roger Jon Diamond, and Rutterschmidt's attorney, Michael Sklar, to dismiss the case.

Sklar argued that evidence presented of alleged "inappropriate insurance practices" didn't prove that his client was involved in a conspiracy to murder either of the men.

While a car salesman identified Rutterschmidt in court as the woman who bought a 1999 used Mercury Sable using the driver's license of another woman, Sklar noted that the salesman had initially identified Golay when shown photos of the two defendants.

Copies of the woman's driver's license were found at Rutterschmidt's house, and a handwritten notation in a day-planner found in Golay's Mercedes- Benz contained a partial match to the vehicle identification number, FBI Special Agent Sam Mayrose testified.

The woman, Hilary Adler, testified yesterday that her purse -- containing her driver's license -- was stolen in April or May 2003 while she was at a Santa Monica sports club. She told the judge she never got her driver's license back and did not buy the car.

Other prosecution witnesses testified that a woman identifying herself as Golay called AAA late the night McDavid was killed and asked that a 1999 silver Mercury Sable be towed from a Santa Monica gas station.

Prosecutors contend the vehicle was later abandoned about four or five blocks from Rutterschmidt's residence.

LAPD criminalists determined last year that the car's undercarriage had blood stains matching McDavid's DNA profile.

Golay and Rutterschmidt collected about $2.8 million from life insurance and accidental death policies they took out on McDavid and Vados, according to Robert Brockway, a former California Department of Insurance investigator who now works for the state Department of Justice.

About a half-dozen other policies were not paid out because they were under investigation, and several others seeking more than $2 million in additional coverage had not been issued, Brockway testified earlier this week.

Along with murder and conspiracy, Golay and Rutterschmidt are accused of the special circumstance allegations of murder for financial gain and multiple murder. Prosecutors have not decided if they will seek the death penalty. CNS-03-15-2007 14:56

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