Death of Lydia Schatz

Background

Kevin and Elizabeth Schatz lived in Paradise, California. They claimed to follow the teachings about child discipline of the No Greater Joy Ministries, a Fundamentalist Christian organization headed by Michael Pearl and Debi Pearl. In 2007, they adopted Lydia along with two other children from Liberia. In the same year, Kevin Schatz also talked about his love for children in an interview with NBC 24 Action News regarding the adoption process.

The Schatz family homeschooled their six biological and three adopted children.

Death

On February 5, 2010, Lydia received forceful and numerous whippings with a quarter-inch plastic tubing. She was held down for nine hours by Elizabeth and beaten dozens of times by Kevin on the back of her body, causing massive tissue damage according to Butte County District Attorney Mike Ramsey. She was being disciplined for apparently mispronouncing a word. She died in hospital on February 6, 2010. Her sister Zariah, 11 years old, was also beaten for "being a liar and a bad influence on the 7-year-old." Zariah was hospitalized in critical condition with severe injuries but she survived.

Details Of The Emergency Response

Due to the nature of the criminal case against Kevin and Elizabeth Schatz, the series of events that happened leading up to Lydia Schatz's death has been verified in a court of law. Multiple testimonies from first responders and emergency personnel tell the story of the 911 call and the succeeding response.

At approximately 1 am on February 6th, 2010, Elizabeth Schatz called 911 to ask for medical assistance for their adopted seven-year-old daughter. The reason for the emergency call was that the girl had stopped breathing, and Elizabeth’s husband, Kevin Schatz, was attempting to administer CPR. A nearby Paradise Police officer responded to the call, and upon arriving, took over CPR on Lydia’s limp body.

According to the officer, the parents stated that she didn’t understand what caused Lydia to suddenly become sick, start vomiting, and stop breathing. Medical emergency personnel soon arrived on the scene, but their emergency medical treatment had little effect on the girl. The paramedics rushed Lydia to Feather River Hospital, which was only a few miles away.

Doctors at Feather River Hospital tried to save Lydia Schatz, but her condition did not improve. Her parents were questioned by hospital personnel but did not admit to any reason as to why she collapsed. After some time had elapsed, a nurse turned over Lydia to discover marks on her body that indicated a severe beating.

There was a Paradise Police detective present at the hospital, responding to an unrelated case, who started to question Kevin and Elizabeth Schatz about their daughter. The couple reluctantly admitted to the detective that they had disciplined Lydia earlier that evening by spanking her using a tube made of hard, rubber-like material. They also stated that they did this because Lydia “refused” to correctly read aloud a word that appeared in her home-school reading book.

Lydia’s adoptive parents talked to the detective at length about their displeasure with Lydia and her sister, Zariah, letting slip that they had also disciplined Zariah with the same plumbing tube. Becoming concerned with Zariah’s condition, the detective asked their permission to go to their home on the premise of “looking around,” which the couple gave.

Upon reaching the Schatzs’ home, the detective asked to speak with Zariah without her parents present. The detective noticed that Zariah arrived with a limp, and asked her to lift her nightgown to show him her legs. When Zariah lifted the nightgown, the detective saw marks of a severe beating on her legs and arms. He then had Zariah transported to the hospital and arrested Kevin and Elizabeth Schatz on the spot.

Hours after she was admitted to the hospital, Lydia Schatz died from her injuries, in spite of the heroic measures taken by Feather River doctors to save her life.

Autopsy Report

The autopsy report for Lydia Schatz showed that she died of complications from Rhabdomyolysis. Rhabdomyolysis is a potentially fatal condition characterized by a rapid breakdown of skeletal muscle due to muscle tissue injury. It can be caused by a variety of factors, chemical, biological, or physical; though it was clear that, in Lydia’s case, it was caused by blunt force trauma.

The destruction of the muscle tissue in Lydia’s body led to the destroyed muscle tissue entering her bloodstream. The proteins and enzymes circulated in her bloodstream due to the damaged muscle tissue likely caused her kidneys to fail. Kidney failure can lead to other organs failing, which likely caused the rest of Lydia’s body to shut down. Her 11-year-old sister, Zariah, was also hospitalized for acute kidney failure.

Kidney failure causes an increase of potassium in the bloodstream, which is associated with cardiac arrhythmia, also known as a change in the heart’s natural rhythm. This condition leads to cardiac arrest, then death.

District Attorney Mike Ramsey, who was part of the prosecution team against Kevin and Elizabeth Schatz, said that the autopsy report was what he expected to see. However, the report itself took a little longer than expected to arrive due to the meticulous nature of the doctor conducting the autopsy. The final report was signed on March 15, 2010, which would have been Lydia’s 8th birthday.

Trial

Kevin Schatz was convicted of second-degree murder and torture, resulting in a sentence of a minimum of 22 years from two life sentences. Elizabeth Schatz was convicted of voluntary manslaughter and unlawful corporal punishment, receiving a minimum sentence of 13 years.