In the quiet community of Loveland, Colorado, a sense of unease settled over the 3600 block of Butternut Drive in early February 2015. Angela Howard, a 36-year-old woman known for her friendly personality and for running a local cleaning business, had not been seen for a couple of days, prompting concern among her neighbors. This concern led to a welfare check on Sunday, February 1st. What officers discovered inside her home, just north of Lake Loveland, was a scene of violence. Angela Howard was found deceased, having suffered from multiple gunshot wounds. The initial discovery was jarring for the neighborhood, with police removing a mattress riddled with bullet holes from the residence as part of their investigation.
The mystery deepened the following day when investigators located Angela's truck near Lyons. Inside the vehicle, they found the body of 52-year-old Russell Steven Woolman of Loveland. A firearm was also recovered from the truck, which was later determined to be the weapon used to end Angela's life. It was revealed that Woolman's last known address was the same as Angela's, though the exact nature of their relationship was not immediately detailed by authorities. Neighbors, however, spoke of a new boyfriend from Pennsylvania who had recently moved in with Angela, and some had observed a change in her demeanor. One neighbor recalled seeing her with a black eye a few weeks prior, suggesting a potentially volatile domestic situation that may have preceded the tragic events.
With the discovery of Woolman's body and the murder weapon, the investigation pointed towards a murder-suicide. The Larimer County District Attorney's Office was presented with the case, naming Russell Woolman as the suspect in Angela Howard's homicide. While the Boulder County Coroner's Office continued to investigate the circumstances of Woolman's death, the Loveland community was left to grapple with the sudden and violent loss of a woman described as personable and who was a mother to an 11-year-old daughter. The case, as presented by the facts, painted a grim picture of domestic violence culminating in a tragic end for both individuals.
