This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2005, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.
A West Valley City man shot and killed his wife and then turned the gun on himself outside the couple's home following an argument Sunday night.
Neighbors told police they heard shouting, then several rounds of gunfire, said West Valley City police Lt. Bill Frohlich.
The woman was unloading some groceries from a van parked on the street around 8:30 p.m. when the argument began. The couple's two young daughters were seated in the van when the man came out of the home and shot the woman with a handgun. The couple's 17-year-old son heard the shots from inside the home, ran to the street and worked to revive his mother.
Investigators were not sure how much of the incident was witnessed by the girls, who ran to a neighbor's house after the gunfire.
Police arrived at the home near 3700 South 7000 West to find the man and the woman lying in the street, the boy nearby.
"It's just a shocking situation. It's a shame that it had to happen," Frohlich said.
A motive for the killings was not known, and the couple's names were not released Sunday night. There is no history of domestic violence at the couple's address, Frohlich said.
It marks Utah's first homicide of 2005.
Late Sunday, the children were with West Valley City police, relatives and representatives of the Department of Child and Family Services.