On a summer evening in Decatur, Alabama, the life of Autumn Renee Wydner, a 45-year-old White/Caucasian woman, was tragically cut short. On August 4, 2018, concerned individuals requested a welfare check at a residence on Wheat Avenue. Responding to the call at approximately 5:39 p.m., Decatur police officers made a grim discovery inside the home. Wydner was found deceased alongside 54-year-old Ron Light.
Neighbors described Wydner and Light as having been in a relationship for several
years, a couple who mostly kept to themselves. The preliminary investigation by authorities pointed to a domestic violence incident that ended in a murder-suicide. Investigators believe that Light fatally shot Wydner before taking his own life. The bodies were subsequently sent to the Department of Forensic Sciences in Huntsville for further examination to confirm the sequence of events.
In the wake of this violent act, no arrests were made as the primary suspect was deceased. The case was investigated as a murder-suicide, leaving a community to grapple with the sudden and tragic loss. Funeral services for Autumn Wydner were held on August 10, 2018, at the Shelton Funeral Home Chapel, with her burial at Burningtree Memorial Gardens. She was remembered by family and friends, leaving behind her father, two brothers, and two sisters.
