Man charged in murder of Loring Park grocery store worker found competent to stand trial

MINNEAPOLIS — The man accused of using a golf club to fatally impale a Minneapolis grocery store employee has been found competent to stand trial.

Taylor Schulz was charged with second-degree murder in the death of 66-year-old Robert Skafte on Dec. 8. 2023, Officers responded to Oak Grove Grocery and found the victim behind the counter "with a golf club impaled through his torso," police said at the time. Skafte died at a hospital.

Skafte was a clerk at the store for nearly two decades and also an acclaimed ballet dancer. A neighbor described Skafte to WCCO, saying he "did nothing but altruistic acts for this community."

"He was friends with everybody in the whole neighborhood. You know, they come into the store, and he was friends with all everybody who shopped there. I guess the best way to describe Robert is he was kind of a pillar of the neighborhood," said Daniel, a nearby resident of the store.

Schulz lived in an apartment across the street. Court records show Schulz had been evicted a week before the killing and had previously assaulted other apartment residents.

Schulz was civilly committed for six months in 2021 when a doctor found he was at "unacceptably high risk of further psychiatric deterioration unless strong support is given," according to court documents. He's also been diagnosed with schizophrenia. He received treatment and services through Veterans Affairs in the past.

In January, a judge ruled Schulz as mentally incompetent to stand trial. At the time, the county attorney's office said it would immediately resume proceedings on the case if he were found competent at his July hearing.

At a memorial for Skafte in late December, friends and family shared a petition to bring more attention to mental health issues like those of Schulz.

No further court dates have been scheduled yet.

If convicted, Schulz faces up to 40 years in prison.