(CBS/AP) A Kent State University professor who was fatally beaten in her home was devoted to caring for her 18-year-old, severely autistic son, friends say.
He is charged with attacking her, but should he stand trial in his mother's death? The question was raised on The Early Show Saturday Edition. There was a memorial service Friday night on the Kent State campus for Gertrude "Trudy" Steuernagel, 60. She struggled to raise her son, Sky Walker, but she loved him and would want people to know that autism doesn't equal violence, said Steven Hook, chairman of the school's political science department, where Steuernagel taught political theory and women's studies. Steuernagel died a week after she was severely injured in a beating. An autopsy showed bruises around her head and chest, said Gary Guenther, an investigator with the Summit County medical examiner's office. The cause of death had not been determined. Walker, who is being held in jail on $2 million bond, was scheduled to be arraigned on charges of attempted murder and assault on a police officer. Portage County Sheriff David Doak said the charge might be upgraded to murder. Errol Can, an attorney representing Walker, declined to comment. Authorities have not discussed a possible motive.
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