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70-year-old Hickory man bludgeoned to death

43-year-old arrested

Robert C. Reed

Workers from SERVPRO clean up the scene of a murder at Walden House in Hickory on Thursday. Dennis Scherzer, 43, is charged in the death of Roland Simmons, 70. Both men were residents at the Walden House Assisted Living Center on Third Avenue, SE.

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By Richard Gould | Hickory Daily Record

Published: July 10, 2009

HICKORY - Police are trying to figure out why a 43-year-old man beat a 70-year-old man to death on the grounds of the assisted-living center where they both lived.

Police received a 911 emergency call at about 11:45 p.m. Wednesday about an assault on the grounds of Walden House Assisted Living Center on Third Avenue, SE. The home is behind the Kenworth Hall apartments on Second Avenue, SE.

The caller told the dispatcher, "I need an ambulance down here at the Walden House right away. One of the residents here beat another one in the head. I need one right now, ASAP."

The caller said she had seen a resident beating another resident in the head with a stick, then the attacker ran from the scene.

When police arrived, they found Roland Claude Simmons unconscious on a bench behind the home. Police found a large amount of blood at the crime scene.

According to police reports, a blunt object such as a hammer or club was used in the attack, and Simmons was unconscious when officers arrived. He later was pronounced dead at the scene.

Witnesses told investigators who attacked Simmons. Within minutes, police found Dennis Edward Scherzer walking near the home and arrested him. The arrest report says he had not consumed drugs or alcohol at the time of the attack.

A motive for the apparent unprovoked attack has eluded police and residents at the home.

Scherzer was charged with murder. He is being held in the Catawba County jail on no bond.

Hickory Police Capt. Thurman Whisnant said there was no known animosity between the residents, and the preliminary investigation suggests the attack was spontaneous.

"We may never know why this happened," he said.

Melissa Silverman-Connolly, regional director of Walden House's parent company, DePaul Adult Care Communities, declined to answer any questions about what may have sparked the attack, saying that doing so would be a violation of the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act.

She said her company is cooperating with the investigation and referred questions to law enforcement.
"Resident safety is our primary concern," Silverman-Connolly said.

She added that residents are allowed to move about the facility freely at night because they are adults who are living in the facility voluntarily.

"This is not a jail," she said.

Other residents of the home are struggling with the thought that a murder happened outside their door.

Steve Triplett said he doesn't know the specific details of the murder or what led up to it, but he's made up his mind about what he's going to do.

"I'll be moving on," he said. He plans to live in Lenoir.

"It was awful what happened last night," Mary Saunders said.

She said Simmons was a nice person who never had any problems with anyone. She didn't know Scherzer as well, but said she wasn't aware anyone had any problems with him.

That is not how Luther Banks remembers Scherzer.

Banks said he's only lived at Walden House for about a year, but in that time he's seen Scherzer lose his temper and shout at other residents. He said Scherzer had been ordered to leave the facility by a certain date but continued to live there after the deadline passed.

Silverman-Connolly declined to comment.

"He should have been gone," Banks said. "Somebody who doesn't do right — they should make him leave."

Scherzer's first court appearance is scheduled for today.