Karen Solomon found dead after search in officer husband’s death

Karen Solomon, a Massachusetts advocate for law enforcement mental health who was being sought in connection with the death of her Worcester police officer husband, was found dead Monday after a multiday search, authorities said.

Worcester Police Chief Paul Saucier said at a news conference that two employees of Fairlawn Rehabilitation Hospital on May Street discovered a body in the woods shortly before 1 p.m. Monday while out for a walk. Police said a gun was found near the body. NBC News reported that authorities believed the body was Solomon’s and were awaiting confirmation of her identity.

Investigators believe the deaths of Karen Solomon and her husband, Officer Kurt Solomon, were the result of a murder-suicide, Saucier said.

“At no time did the Solomons have any history of domestic abuse,” Saucier said. “I want to make myself absolutely clear, at this point that has nothing to do with this case. We believe this case is a tragic murder-suicide that occurred and we still have plenty of work to do as far as wrapping up all the pieces to this.”

Kurt Solomon, a 31-year veteran of the Worcester Police Department, was found dead just before 5:30 a.m. Tuesday at the couple’s home on Wildwood Avenue after police were called for a report of a person down. He was off duty at the time, NBC News reported. Authorities have not released his cause of death, though NBC News reported that officials had described his death as “an act of domestic violence.”

Karen Solomon, 58, was last seen walking in the area wearing pajama shorts and a tank top. Police had said she was “presumed to be armed and dangerous.” The search focused on the area around Mill Street and Coes Pond, about a half-mile from the couple’s home. A U.S. Customs and Border Protection helicopter, Homeland Security Investigations and the U.S. Marshals Service assisted Worcester police.

Saucier read a statement from the Solomon family thanking those who helped search for answers.

“The nightmare of the past week has left our family heartbroken and rudderless,” the family said. “The compassion, dedication and empathy of all agencies involved have given us light in face of darkness. The selflessness of those who have helped us weather the storm cannot be expressed in simple words.”

The family added: “You men and women have taken time out of your lives to help us find answers, if there ever will be any. You have given us comfort knowing you are working on our behalf, for us. God bless you all.”

“For those in Massachusetts and throughout the world who have offered up prayers and sympathies, they have helped us through each minute of the day,” the statement said. “Thank you for your basic human compassion. May God be with all of us.”

Karen Solomon co-founded First H.E.L.P., an organization focused on the mental health crisis facing first responders. She wrote “Hearts Beneath the Badge,” about good deeds and experiences in law enforcement, and NBC News reported she also wrote “The Price They Pay,” about the emotional and physical effects of traumatic events on officers. She had written articles on law enforcement suicide and participated in a 2020 Justice Department hearing on support for officers and their families.

In a 2016 interview with WBZ-TV about an app she was developing to support police officers in crisis, Solomon described the stories she wanted to tell about law enforcement. “I’m going to tell some stories about all the good things people forget they do,” she said. “They buy meals, they save people’s lives, they put themselves in jeopardy.”

Kurt Solomon was nearing retirement and had two adult sons, the local police union said. Officer Thomas Duffy, president of NEPBA Local 911, called him “a loved and respected member of our department.”

“When you serve 31 years with an individual, you become more than co-workers, you become family and today we lost a member of our family,” Duffy said.