David Carter Found Dead In Foreclosed Home As Many As Four Years After Suicide (VIDEO)

Abandoned homes have become an increasingly common sight amidst a national foreclosure crisis. Yet what may lurk forgotten behind closed doors may be much worse than nothing at all.

A Milwaukee real estate agent entered one such house last month after it was repossessed due to tax foreclosure -- the government can foreclose on a home if taxes and subsequent fees are not paid off within a designated time period -- to find a sight he's not likely to forget soon. The body of the owner David Carter was found on the stairs in a "nearly skeletonized" state after being left there undiscovered for what investigators believe to be up to four years, The Daily Mail reports.

Carter, whose friends and acquaintances described as "smart and generous," even "funny," quit his job as a nuisance control officer for the City of Milwaukee in 2007, telling co-workers that he planned to move to New Mexico, according to the Milwaukee-Wisconsin Journal Sentinel. Instead, it appears that Carter committed suicide. He was found with a bullet wound through his head and a handgun on his chest the day that he would have turned 45 years old.

Sadly, Carter's isn't the first body to be discovered after a seemingly unfathomable amount of time. In England, creditors looking for unpaid bills found the body of a 38-year-old London woman in her rented room in 2006 nearly three years after she's believed to have died. The episode is the subject of a forthcoming film, Dreams of Life, the research for which revealed that the woman was acquaintances with many influential members of London's 80s and 90s pop music scene.

In addition, police last year found an elderly woman's body in a home in Sydney, Australia after she was believed to have died sometime around 2003.

Though Carter and others were found in their homes years after their deaths, the opposite situation -- declaring someone dead prematurely -- has also occurred. A Florida woman is currently suing her lender, JPMorgan Chase, after the bank mistakenly declared her deceased in 2010, which she claimed ruined her credit score. Similarly, a veteran has had to prove his existence four times over in the past two years after the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs stopped paying him his pension benefits on the grounds that he's no longer living.

One in every 627 Wisconsin housing units received a foreclosure filing in December 2011, according to RealtyTrac. In total, the state had the tenth most foreclosure activity of any state.

Here are the 11 most bizarre foreclosure stories of 2011 :

Comments

[Siebenstein]

05:40 AM on 02/17/2013

Here is what I do not understand. If a person wants to leave this planet due to bankster harassment; why not take a few banksters with ya before you go?

[almchrl13]

09:18 PM on 02/16/2012

Well hon, that's what ya get for being a Ba-itch!

sorry.

[Siebenstein]

05:41 AM on 02/17/2013

who are you referring to ?

[Tod Thompson]

05:17 PM on 02/21/2013

There was a person in the article by that name: Baitch

[audup]

08:22 AM on 02/12/2012

what did the postman do with 4 years of mail piling up?

[tombill333]

08:48 AM on 02/12/2012

A neigbor a couple of blocks from me died in his house two summers ago (of natural causes) and it was the mail carrier who discovered it for the reason you mention. The man's house happened to be next to a vacant house and on the other side the neighbors were away for a couple of weeks. The man had some mental issues and generally kept to himself except when he had spells where he harrassed neighbors. About a week after his death, the mail carrier noticed the mail was piling up, so she went up to the house to inquire and that's when she smelled the strong odor. She called the police and they found that he had died. We're fortunate that our mail carrier knows her "customers" and is a caring person. Of course there's also the possibility that David Carter had a post office box rather than a mailbox at his premises.

[audup]

09:01 AM on 02/12/2012

the po box would also have mail piling up. very strange!

[tkizzycat]

07:25 AM on 02/12/2012

Too bad for this man...I hope he is resting in peace

[eveningswhisper]

07:20 AM on 02/12/2012

Its sad, he had no one at all who missed him. No one worried about not hearing from him. No family or friends who were close enough to think something was not right. I wonder how often this happens, we all seem to be busy dont reach out . Its sad but so many of us think we have friends who would miss us , but dont.

[sjannese]

05:59 PM on 04/09/2012

$adly,......this world has changed since the ''great-recession'' hit back in 2007,.....i don't hear much from my old friends anymore since 2007, prior to that we'd hang-out and get-together at parties occasionally., call-up each-other/chat,........less people are out socializing [bars,restaurants,etc.] compared to pre-2007,.......[m.-op.]

[rpd111]

06:32 AM on 02/12/2012

I bet the bank now wishes they had worked out a deal with the owner for him to stay in his home. Now they will never be able to sell that house. Maybe a bank employee can buy it and live in it with his/her family.

[Really YoureAnIdiot]

07:52 AM on 02/12/2012

Really - so the Bank should have worked out a deal with a dead man? They only repossed it cause he didn't pay his taxes BECAUSE he had killed himself - I sure hope you don't vote... or pro-create!

[gregbrooksme]

05:36 AM on 02/12/2012

The police would constantly call me and ask for money. My wife and I were seriously getting tired of this annoying call. So one day my wife told them I was dead. The calls stopped.

[Melissa Kunkel]

02:32 AM on 02/12/2012

This is just too odd to be a suicide. Dead for four years and NO ONE suspected anything?! The smell of decomposing flesh is not a scent that can be easily mistaken for something else. There had to have been a horrid smell, insects, and other animals finding their way into this guys house due to the smell. I have a very hard time believing that this was a suicide.

[Really YoureAnIdiot]

07:56 AM on 02/12/2012

You watch (& believe) too much TV. Read the obituaries and you'll think something strange about everyone who has died! The only good outcome of your kind of brain, is that if you actually USED it, you could probably write some very interesting (but probably bizarre) fiction stories!

[stripedbass7]

01:29 AM on 02/12/2012

Some say Bank of america is Run by the King of Thieves. I agree.

[watsonkb]

02:22 AM on 02/12/2012

You do realize that this foreclosure had nothing to do with ANY bank?
A Milwaukee real estate agent entered one such house last month after it was repossessed due to tax foreclosure -- the government can foreclose on a home if taxes and subsequent fees are not paid off within a designated time period --

[hisharleyquinn1]

07:20 AM on 02/12/2012

they are talking about the slideshow

[Penny J Ragan]

01:03 AM on 02/12/2012

That's spooky for us.. My Mom and I today were talking about my Brother Steve.. 15 years ago in Jan he committed suicide. He was dead for an estimated 2 weeks before he was found. If he had lived he would have been 51 on the 13 of this month. Every Mid Jan to Mid-February we think a lot about him... It was freaky to see this when I turned on the computer.. We really miss Steve.

If any of you out there are contemplating suicide I would advise that you talk to a friend or family member don’t act on those thoughts. Things can get better, they will… You may think nobody cares but they do, it hurts to be the family that deals with the results of the suicide. Like I said it’s been 15 years I miss my Brother Steve.

[amyrenea1974]

02:00 AM on 02/12/2012

So true. My grandfather committed suicide January 25, 1985, when I was 10 years old. I still bear the emotional scars of his actions. I was only a child when he died, and could not understand how he couldn't love me enough to live when I loved him so much. Even now, 27 years later, it still hurts, still makes me doubt the sincerity of those who say they love me, and honestly, still makes me angry at him. I miss him dearly, and often find myself thinking how much he would have adored my children, if he had just gotten whatever help he needed, and had chosen life.

[gregbrooksme]

05:50 AM on 02/12/2012

My nephew, second cousin, and I think a 2nd cousin once removed commit suicide, and yes all missed dearly.

You have good words. Someone thinking of suicide has to be very strong at those moments. In the future they will look back finding themselves happy not to have followed thru that day.

[happyjoyjoy333]

12:52 AM on 02/12/2012

Really sad. The guy is dead and no one missed him at all. Maybe that's why he did it..he had no one that cared. Absolutely no one who really cared about him enough to notice he was gone, not even his neighbors. It's just plain sad.

[ladyrider1958az]

01:29 AM on 02/12/2012

I thought the same thing. I would hope that my friends would become concerned if they didn't hear from me for a week let alone 4 years. I work alot and they all know I am too busy to be out socializing much anymore til I get my business totally up and running but they post to me on FB to check in and send emails. Some do call me if they don't hear from me or see emails within a few days.

[motherbird2]

08:09 AM on 02/12/2012

I have children who get upset if they do not hear from me. Also a niece who is like a daughter to me. Always told them to stay close. as they will need each other when they get older. They listen. I feel it is a shame to fall apart because you get busy. Some times separations can become permanent with out meaning to. I will be 85 tomorrow and all have already called me or e mailed me. I count my blessings, but know this is because I did not let us fall apart or any silly fight come between us. Please do this so you will neveer be alone when you get older and end up like this. . Time does go by fast and 10 min from any ones day is not to much to take time out for. Happy Birthday to me. Go call some one you love and tell them so It will come back to you 100 times over.

[mulepick]

12:35 AM on 02/12/2012

No wife or real close friends, I can see dying in the house and it going unnoticed. Hope he didn't have any pets.

[hattie54]

12:29 AM on 02/12/2012

I'm remembering a story that CNN was covering ten some years ago.A man had written a book about life in the south in the old days and now.He said that life changed so much once everyone got good old air conditioning in their homes.Prior to that,people sat on their porches after dinner until it was time to hop in the tub and go to bed.I remember this as a child visiting family.We all sat on the porch and would talk to a person or neighbor if they walked by.Also TV changed the country too.We all sit inside and watch TV.Then the internet came along.RIP Whitney Houston.She also sadly died alone in that hotel room.

[Benjaminwblw]

01:19 AM on 02/12/2012

Rest in peace Whitney Houston. She will be missed.

[whazupshande]

11:42 PM on 02/11/2012

So no one has been in that home for 4 years? You would think if the government thought it was important to foreclose on this homeowner due to Non Payment of taxes, that attempting to sell it would have occurred...To get "their" money. Maybe I'm missing something in this article

[devinegirls3]

12:33 AM on 02/12/2012

Not to make lite of Mr. Carters death..may he RIP, but I would love the info of his mortgage holder. Who keeps their records??

[amp81803]

02:23 AM on 02/12/2012

his house was paid for. the state usually does not foreclose on a property until the taxes are past due 2 to 3 years ad takes another 6 months or so to finish seizure of property

[watsonkb]

02:24 AM on 02/12/2012

What mortgage holder? The article says nothing about a mortgage holder and if there had been one, they typically pay the taxes. This is about the Government and taxes, not about any mortgage holder.

[bmitche]

11:15 PM on 02/11/2012

Even though today we have more ways of communicating, we seem to be more isolated. We have a working relationship with people, and we get to know a little about each other, but in most cases that is as far as it goes. Even families are not as close anymore.

[motherbird2]

08:22 AM on 02/12/2012

That I believe is their fault. They let it happen. No modern luxury is more inportant than a human one. Family should come first. When we are sure every one is ok, then we can go do as we want. go hug your kids and close family. the TV will always be there and maybe they will not . Get love going again.

[bmitche]

10:02 AM on 02/12/2012

Absolutely !