On December 28, 2015, Brittany Engstrom, a 27-year-old Caucasian female, was found deceased in her Orem, Utah, apartment. The cause of her death was multiple gunshot wounds. The tragic events of that day unfolded after neighbors reported hearing a woman screaming and a sound resembling a fire alarm coming from Engstrom's apartment just before noon. When Orem police initially responded, they received no answer at the door and, hearing nothing amiss, they left.
However, a sense of unease prompted an officer to return to the apartment complex.
Later that afternoon, around 2:15 p.m., after a concerned party requested a welfare check, officers found the apartment door unlocked. Upon entering, they discovered Engstrom's body on the floor. It was a violent scene that marked the end of a life full of promise. Engstrom was a mother of two and a recent graduate from Provo College, with aspirations of becoming a physical therapist's assistant. Those who knew her described her as a hardworking and dedicated mother who was looking forward to her future.
The primary suspect in her murder was quickly identified as her 37-year-old ex-boyfriend, David Driscoll, an Army veteran from Eagle Mountain. The couple had been engaged at one point but had been broken up for some time. The day after Engstrom's body was discovered, Driscoll was scheduled for a preliminary court hearing on four counts of aggravated sexual abuse of a child. Engstrom was expected to testify as a witness against him in that case, providing crucial information about the circumstances surrounding the allegations.
In the time leading up to her death, Engstrom had taken steps to distance herself from Driscoll. She had moved into a new apartment, obtained a concealed carry permit, and installed additional locks on her doors. A court-issued no-contact order was also in place to protect her. Despite these precautions, Driscoll confronted her in her apartment on that fateful day. After shooting her, he contacted a family member, confessing that he had "done something horrible" but claiming he had acted in self-defense, a claim starkly contrasted by his statement that he had shot her multiple times in the back. He also admitted to collecting the spent shell casings before fleeing the scene.
Law enforcement tracked Driscoll to the parking lot of the Ranches Golf Club in Eagle Mountain by pinging his cellphone. A standoff ensued, with officers attempting to negotiate his surrender for approximately two hours. As darkness fell, and officers illuminated his vehicle, Driscoll took his own life with a self-inflicted gunshot wound. No shots were fired by law enforcement, and no officers were injured during the standoff. His suicide brought a grim end to the investigation into Brittany Engstrom's murder, leaving no opportunity for a trial or for her family to see justice served in a courtroom.
