Search warrant records show investigators are still looking for answers after a March 13 homicide on the city’s north side.
MILWAUKEE, Wis. — A 41-year-old Milwaukee woman whose body was found in a home on March 13 had been stabbed 107 times and appeared to have been dead for several days before officers arrived, according to court records and local reports.
The killing of Janie Pendleton has become one of the city’s most closely watched unsolved homicide cases this month because of the brutality described in a search warrant affidavit and the lack of an arrest so far. Investigators say they searched the home of a man who knew Pendleton after concluding he gave inconsistent statements, but police have not publicly named a suspect or announced charges.
Police were called to a residence near 37th Street and Townsend Avenue shortly after 4:15 p.m. on March 13, according to the affidavit cited by local news outlets. CBS 58 reported that Pendleton was first found by family members who had gone to check on her. Early in the investigation, detectives believed she had suffered more than 20 stab wounds. That picture changed after the autopsy. Detective Michael Braunreiter wrote in the affidavit that investigators also observed a distinct shoe pattern on Pendleton’s right forearm before the medical examiner completed a full count of her injuries. The autopsy later found 107 stab wounds and ruled the death a homicide, according to the warrant materials. The body’s condition led detectives to believe Pendleton had been dead for several days before officers reached the home.
Those details pushed investigators to seek a search warrant for the home of a man they said knew Pendleton and had given conflicting information during interviews. A Milwaukee County judge approved that warrant, but the return on the search contained a blunt result: “No evidence obtained,” according to WISN’s report on the document. That left the case in an unusual place. Detectives had enough concern to seek access to a private residence, yet the public record reviewed so far does not show that the search produced physical evidence tying anyone to the killing. Police also have not said whether they recovered a weapon, whether signs of forced entry were found, or when Pendleton was last seen alive. Those missing pieces have become central to the case because they shape the timeline and may explain whether the attacker was someone she knew.
Pendleton’s death has drawn attention not only because of the violence described in court papers, but also because the public record gives only a narrow look at who she was outside the investigation. Local and national reports identified her as a Milwaukee mother. Her social media posts, cited by People, showed snapshots of family life and everyday moments, including recent posts about her children and about herself. After her death, relatives shared tributes online, including one message from her daughter that read, “Forever us.” Those public expressions of grief have sharpened the contrast between the personal life remembered by relatives and the sparse, clinical language of the warrant. In Milwaukee, where police continue to investigate multiple violent crimes each year, cases often move from a shocking first disclosure to a slower period of evidence gathering. This one appears to be in that stage now, with key questions still unanswered.
So far, police have said little publicly beyond confirming the homicide investigation. No arrest has been announced. No prosecutor has publicly disclosed that charges have been referred for review. And no person named in the warrant has been publicly identified as a suspect. That means the next official step could come in several forms: a criminal complaint, a new search warrant, an arrest announcement, or a request for more public help if detectives believe someone in the community knows more than has been shared. Court records may also reveal whether investigators pursue phone data, surveillance video, forensic testing or additional interviews to narrow the timeline. In homicide cases, those steps often become visible only after charges are filed, leaving families and neighbors to wait through long stretches with little public information.
At the scene this month, the available details were limited to what officers, reporters and relatives could piece together from a sudden and violent death. The neighborhood near the reported address sits just off a busy Milwaukee corridor, a place where daily traffic and ordinary routines continued even as investigators worked a homicide scene nearby. That contrast can deepen the shock in cases like this, where a deadly attack is discovered only after a silence long enough to trigger a welfare check. Braunreiter’s affidavit, with its brief but graphic details, gave the public the first clear picture of what investigators believe happened inside the home. But even that document leaves the human part of the story incomplete: who last spoke with Pendleton, what changed in the days before her death, and who may have seen something important without realizing it at the time.
The case remained open Friday, with Milwaukee police still seeking information and no publicly identified suspect in custody. The next milestone will likely come through court filings or an arrest announcement if investigators decide the evidence is strong enough to support charges.
Author note: Last updated March 27, 2026.