HENDERSON COUNTY, N.C. (WLOS) — A Henderson County woman is facing multiple first-degree murder charges in a case investigators say spans nearly two decades and involves members of her own family.
According to arrest warrants filed in Henderson County District Court, Gudrun Linda Jean Casper-Leinenkugel, 52, is charged with two counts of first-degree murder, two counts of attempted first-degree murder, and multiple counts of distributing a prohibited food or beverage.
Court records allege Casper-Leinenkugel killed her daughter, Leela Jean Livis, and is responsible for the 2007 death of Michael Schmidt, both by poisoning. Investigators also allege she attempted to kill her other daughter, Mia Lacey, and Lacey’s boyfriend, Richard Pegg, during a Thanksgiving gathering in 2025…