On a summer evening in Orangeville, Utah, the life of Kristi Price Maxwell, a 47-year-old Caucasian female, came to a tragic and mysterious end. On July 17, 2016, concerns for her well-being prompted her daughter to request that authorities perform a welfare check at her home. When family members arrived with a key, a deputy from the Emery County Sheriff's Office accompanied them inside.
Upon entering the residence, they discovered a grim scene.
Kristi Maxwell was found deceased in a bedroom, having been dead for what investigators estimated to be several hours. In another part of the house, they found her husband, Richard Maxwell, with a gunshot wound to his torso. As the deputy was escorting the family members out of the home, a single gunshot was heard. Richard Maxwell had shot himself but survived the initial injury and was transported to a hospital for treatment.
In the days that followed, the Emery County Sheriff's Office remained tight-lipped about the investigation, releasing minimal information about the circumstances surrounding Kristi's death or her husband's condition. Neighbors reported hearing shouting and seeing police surround the house on the night of the incident. Friends and community members remembered Kristi as a generous, friendly, and vibrant person, leaving them devastated and with many unanswered questions. Richard Maxwell was named the sole person of interest in his wife's death. However, he was not taken into custody upon his release from the hospital. A few days later, on August 8, 2016, Richard Maxwell died by suicide from a self-inflicted gunshot wound.
The investigation into Kristi's death was eventually closed. The official autopsy report from the Utah State Medical Examiner's Office was unable to determine a specific cause, ruling her death "inconclusive." Despite this, the report noted that "the positioning of the body and events during the welfare check are strongly suggestive that a homicidal act had taken place." Kristi's family has publicly stated their belief that she was murdered and have fought to clear her name of any speculation that she took her own life or died from a drug overdose. With the only suspect deceased, no arrests were ever made in connection with the death of Kristi Price Maxwell, leaving her family and community with a painful and unresolved loss.
