Adrian Hedden

The Republic | azcentral.com

Eileen Yellin and Cathy Baker were scheduled to go to court to discuss multiple orders of protection the two women had filed against each other two days after they were found dead in their homes from an apparent murder-suicide,

The women had accused each other of threats and trespassing in the year leading up to their deaths, according to court records. They were scheduled to appear in Phoenix Municipal Court on July 25 at a hearing about the orders.

Phoenix police found the women's bodies July 23. Police said they believe Baker went to Yellin's south Phoenix home and killed her before Baker committed suicide at her house in Ahwatukee Foothills.

Yellin was a special education English teacher at Tempe High School. She'd taught at the school for 30 years and also served as the faculty head of the school's Gay-Straight Alliance. Known as an advocate for gay students, Yellin was presented the Safe Schools Adviser Award from the Phoenix Gay, Straight and Lesbian Education Network (GLSEN) in November.

Tempe Union High School District

Baker was a director of High Times, a marijuana-oriented magazine and website, according to her Facebook page.

Baker, 48, filed a July 7 request for an order of protection that alleged Yellin had called her obsessively and violated Baker's privacy in two incidents:

Baker said Yellin entered her home Feb. 3 without permission and refused to leave.

Baker also accused Yellin of calling her 11 times from a blocked number on Feb. 5. Baker wrote that Yellin accused Baker of being a "stalker." Baker said Yellin yelled "incredibly loud" while making such allegations.

Counter allegations

Yellin, 60, on July 7 asked to get Baker's requested order of protection dismissed because the evidence was "unfounded." Yellin detailed counterallegations in a requested order of protection she filed against her former partner four days later, July 11.

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Yellin said she and Baker spoke "amicably" after her 11th phone call Feb. 5. Yellin said Baker didn't hear her knock Feb. 3 when she entered Baker's home.

In seeking an order of protection against Baker, Yellin said she was making the request, in part, because of Baker's initial complaint. In court records, Yellin accused Baker of threatening her and invading her privacy on several occasions from May 2015 through July of this year. She alleged:

Baker grabbed the steering wheel of Yellin's car in May 2015 in an attempt to cause Yellin to lose control of the vehicle. In another driving incident later that year, Yellin said Baker threatened to remove her from the car and leave her on the highway near Strawberry.

Baker threatened to steal her property in February and may have carried through on the threat in early July. Yellin said more than $2,000 in property was stolen from her home. It wasn't clear if she had filed a police report.

In May, Baker accessed Yellin’s home and computer without her permission and printed out one of Yellin’s personal emails. That same month, Baker followed Yellin to her car and continued emailing and texting her despite having been asked to cease contact.

Yellin received an email from Baker on July 7, the date Baker filed the initial order of protection, that said, “There is an easier path, Eileen, it’s up to you if you want to take it.” Yellin said she took the cryptic message as a threat.

Yellin was found dead in her home around 11:20 a.m. Saturday with signs of trauma to her body, according to police. No information has been released regarding what trauma she experienced, but an investigation is underway.

Police said they found evidence of Yellin's homicide in Baker's residence, but they have not given details.

Neighbors shocked by deaths

Yellin’s neighbors in the 7000 block of South 19th Place said Tuesday that they were shocked by the incident in the quiet neighborhood and fearful after witnessing the police response Saturday.

Some said they had heard about recent conflicts between Yellin and Baker and that Yellin had been considering installing cameras on her property.

“It was scary. We’re pretty messed up about it," said Tim Smith, 54, who lives with his wife across the street and two houses down from Yellin’s home.

Smith said Yellin was always waving at people in the area and by all accounts was a pleasant person to live near.

“She would make it her business to throw her hand up, she was real friendly like that,” Smith said. “It’s very sad. It's shocking. You never want something like that to happen to someone, especially that kind of lady.”

In the days after Yellin’s death, Smith said the neighborhood as a whole has become much more anxious. He said he’s seen fewer children playing in the street and felt an overall sense of fear permeate the typically quiet area.

Neighbor Caleb Kern, 17, said Yellin had been living on his block for about three years and was much quieter and more reserved than the previous neighbor.

Kern said he wished he had known about the contentiousness between the two women.

“We could have prevented something like that,” Kern said. “People don’t get to know their neighbors as much these days. Things like this would be less likely to happen. They’d always been relatively good spirited.”

Several residents who were contacted in Baker's Ahwatukee neighborhood Tuesday did not want to comment about their neighbor.

An event celebrating Yellin’s life and accomplishments is planned for 11 a.m. Sunday in the Tempe High School auditorium, 1730 S. Mill Ave. The event is open to the public.

Republic reporters Alexis Egeland and Graig Graziosi contributed to this story.