RIT student accused of killing her mom; father also charged

A fourth-year student at the Rochester Institute of Technology and her father have been charged with murder in connection with the death of her mother in Corning last August.

Corning police this week charged Karrie M. Neurauter, 20, of Syracuse, and her father, Lloyd J. Neurauter, 45, of North Brunswick, New Jersey, with second-degree murder in the death of 46-year-old Michele Neurauter.

The accusation immediately brought to mind two high-profile cases of alleged parricide in the Rochester area.

Charles Tan, a student at Cornell University, was accused of shooting his father, Liang "Jim" Tan, at their Pittsford home in January 2015. Charles Tan was tried for second-degree murder later that year, but the charges were dismissed by the judge after the jury was unable to reach a verdict.

Colin and Alex Rideout, along with their mother Laura and her boyfriend Paul Tucci, all of Perinton, were accused of killing Laura's estranged husband, Craig Rideout, in July 2016. All four stood trial for second-degree murder last year. Laura Rideout and her son Colin were convicted of murder while Alex Rideout and Tucci were acquitted of that charge. Alex Rideout was convicted of tampering with evidence.

Update:Karrie Neurauter pleads not guilty

In an unusual coincidence, both Tan and Colin Rideout had been members of the Pittsford Mendon High School crew team. Karrie Neurather had been a member of RIT's crew team, according to several university web pages.

The investigation into Michele Neurauter's death began in late August 2017 when police responded to a “suspicious circumstances” call to her home on Dwight Avenue in Corning. Police released no details about their inquiry at the time.

On Wednesday, search warrants were executed at Michele Neurauter’s home in Corning, as well as in Syracuse and North Brunswick.

Karrie Neurauter, who is majoring in computer engineering technology, was arrested at her Syracuse apartment and returned to Corning, where she was arraigned in Corning City Court on Wednesday evening and sent to the Steuben County Jail without bail.

Lloyd Neurauter was located in Princeton, New Jersey by local police. He threatened to jump off the roof of a five-story parking garage, but police were able to talk him down and take him into custody, according to Corning Police Chief Jeff Spaulding.

Lloyd Neurauter remains in a New Jersey jail pending extradition back to New York state.

Michele Neurauter died of strangulation, but police suspected her death wasn’t a suicide, Steuben County District Attorney Brooks Baker said at a Thursday news conference.

Michele Neurauter and another daughter, age 14, were in the house at the time of the murder, Baker said. He wouldn’t comment on the current status of the other daughter.

Baker also said it’s premature to discuss possible motives or other evidence in the case, citing an ongoing investigation and other people who still need to be interviewed. Representatives from the state police and Corning Police Department are still in New Jersey working on the case.

There was a history of domestic violence calls at Michele Neurauter’s residence, Spaulding said.

New York State Police, the FBI and the North Brunswick and Princeton, New Jersey police departments and New Jersey State Police assisted in the investigation.

Spaulding praised the other law enforcement agencies for their cooperation and said in 30 years of police work, he has never been involved in an investigation that involved so many agencies.

Karrie Neurauter is scheduled to be arraigned Friday in Corning City Court.

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