A Henderson County woman accused of poisoning a man in 2007 was not the last to see him alive, as law enforcement has claimed, according to her attorney.
Gudrun Casper-Leinenkugel, 53, also known as Linda Jean Casper, is charged with first-degree murderin the 2007 death of 42-year-old Mischa Schmidt, also known as Michael Schmidt. Property records show Casper-Leinenkugel received a Henderson County property from Schmidt before he died.
According to an investigative report by a medical examiner, Schmidt was living alone in a camper on Schmidt Terrace at the time of his death, with plans to join his wife in Texas.
He was last seen alive on Oct. 25, 2007, and he was found dead Oct. 29, 2007, according to the report.
His cause of death was acute acetonitrile
toxicity, according to his 2007 autopsy report. Acetonitrile converts to cyanide in the human body.
No one was charged in Schmidt's death in 2007, but the investigation was reopenedafter the 2025 of Leela Livis, Casper-Leinenkugel's 32-year-old daughter. Livis also died from acetonitrile toxicity, according to prosecutors, and Casper-Leinenkugel is accused of killing her by poisoning wine served Nov. 30, 2025 at a Thanksgiving dinner.
Casper-Leinenkugel is charged with first-degree murder in both Schmidt and Livis' death. She is charged with attempted first-degree murder in the alleged poisonings of her other daughter, Maija Lacey, and Lacey's boyfriend, Richard "Evan" Pegg, who both drank the tainted wine. She is also charged with three counts of distributing a prohibited food or beverage.
In a search warrant document filed Jan. 13, 2026 by Henderson County Sheriff's Office Detective Joseph S Tulloch, Tulloch alleged that Casper-Leinenkugel was the last to see Schmidt alive, and that the two had been drinking together.
Casper-Leinenkugel is alleged to have told detectives that she had last seen Schmidt approximately two days prior, that she believed him to be a drug user and alcoholic, and that he had been coughing for a few days prior to his death, the warrant stated.
Casper-Leinenkugel's attorney, Paul Bidwell, told the Citizen Times Aug. 13 that the claims that Casper-Leinenkugel was the last to see Schmidt alive are false. He said that the two drank together two or three nights before he died, but that Schmidt went to work at Applebees the next day. Bidwell said there is a gap of several days from when Casper-Leinenkugel spent time with Schmidt and his eventual death.
Casper-Leinenkugel is scheduled to appear in Henderson County Superior Court Oct. 15.
Kara Fohner is the Public Safety Reporter for the Asheville Citizen Times. Email her at kfohner@usatodayco.com.
This article originally appeared on Asheville Citizen Times: Henderson County poisoning suspect challenges 2007 death timeline
