Ann Elizabeth Harrison, a 66-year-old White/Caucasian woman, was found shot to death on February 25, 2025, inside the Franklin, Wisconsin, home she shared with her husband, Ricky Lee Harrison. Police and firefighters were sent to the residence in the 11100 block of West Drake Lane, near Mission Hills Drive, at approximately 5:20 p.m. after authorities received a report that someone could be seen lying on the floor inside the house.
Officers were unable to enter normally and forced their way into the residence. Inside, they discovered Ann and her husband suffering from gunshot wounds. Both were pronounced dead at the scene.
The discovery initially prompted a death investigation, with Franklin police telling the public there did not appear to be an ongoing threat. As investigators and the Milwaukee County Medical Examiner's Office examined the circumstances, authorities identified the second person as Ricky Harrison, Ann's 65-year-old husband. On February 27, the medical examiner classified Ann's death as a homicide and Ricky's death as a suicide. Subsequent reporting described the incident as a murder-suicide, with the medical examiner determining that Ricky killed Ann before taking his own life. Both had died from gunshot wounds.
The deaths stunned those familiar with the couple. Neighbors described Ann and Ricky as longtime residents and good neighbors and said they had not heard gunfire on the evening of the shooting. Publicly available reports did not identify a history of disturbances at the residence or disclose a motive for the killing. The couple had been married since October 16, 1982, and had raised two children in Franklin. Ann, who was born Ann Elizabeth Burlingame on April 12, 1958, graduated from Whitnall High School in 1976. She spent approximately 30 years working for the telephone company, including Ameritech and later AT&T, before earning an associate degree in medical billing and coding from Milwaukee Area Technical College. She subsequently worked for the Medical College of Wisconsin Spine Care Clinic before retiring in 2017 to spend more time with her family and grandchildren.
Because the person authorities identified as responsible died at the scene, there was no arrest, criminal charge, trial, or conviction arising from Ann's killing. Available reporting does not indicate that investigators identified another suspect or believed anyone else participated in the shooting. The case instead was treated as a domestic murder-suicide based on the medical examiner's findings, with Ricky Harrison identified as having killed his wife before dying by suicide. Franklin police continued investigating the circumstances following the deaths, but no publicly reported motive was disclosed in the available coverage.
