No one searched for David Carter or even thought to search for him. Friends thought he’d moved to New Mexico. The city maintained his lawn and shoveled the snow, which resulted in an escalating, unpaid tax bill. The outstanding tab led to a tax foreclosure and the discovery of Carter’s skeletal remains inside his home four years after his death, according to the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel.
Carter committed suicide in his West Allis home by shooting himself in the head on the second-floor landing, authorities said. They believe he died in late 2007 and state workers discovered Carter’s remains on January 23, what would have been his 45th birthday.
It’s an implausible story if only because Carter’s home is located in a dense urban area, they say. Carter’s utilities were disconnected and when a carrier noticed his mail piling up, delivery was ceased. Yet, police say no one ever asked them to check on Carter’s welfare.
"I knew he was alone and I wanted to talk to him," Theresa Bornheimer told WDJT. "But I never did because he was never home."
WDJT reported that friends speculated Carter, a chef by trade, may have been distraught over a breakup with the mother of his child.
The medical examiner’s report quotes the mother of Carter’s daughter as saying Carter told her in 2005 he didn’t want to be in their lives anymore.
Carter's cousin Kevin O'Neill told the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel the death of Carter’s mother left him deeply saddened. In the years following Carter’s supposed move, O’Neill said he wanted to contact him, but didn’t know how to reach him. He considered hiring a private detective, but didn’t.
O'Neill and friends are planning a Saturday memorial for Carter.
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