In the quiet town of Norridgewock, Maine, the life of 58-year-old Caucasian female Marie Lancaster-Hale came to a tragic end on March 31, 2018. On that Saturday morning, a chilling phone call was made to the Somerset County Sheriff's Office at 7:17 a.m. by Marie's husband, 62-year-old William Hale. In his call, he stated that there would be two bodies at their home on Route 2 and that an elderly woman would need care.
Upon their arrival, deputies discovered a grim scene.
Inside the laundry room of the home, they found the bodies of both Marie and William Hale, as well as the family dog. All three had succumbed to gunshot wounds. A handgun and a shotgun were recovered from inside the residence. The investigation by the Maine State Police concluded that the deaths were the result of a domestic violence murder-suicide. Authorities determined that William Hale shot and killed his wife before turning the gun on himself. The Office of the Chief Medical Examiner later confirmed that Marie Lancaster-Hale's death was a homicide caused by a gunshot wound to the head, while William Hale's death was a suicide from a shotgun wound to the head.
The elderly woman William Hale had mentioned in his call was his 87-year-old mother, Faye Hale, who also lived at the residence. She was found unharmed, sitting in a vehicle in the driveway. It is believed that William had assisted his mother into the vehicle before he returned inside and carried out the murder-suicide. Faye Hale was subsequently taken to a hospital for a medical evaluation. While it was clear what had transpired, investigators did not find a note that offered a definitive explanation for William Hale's actions, though he did leave instructions for his mother's care.
