February 19th, 2011 @ 8:52pm
By ksl.com
WASHINGTON, Washington County — A woman and her son were shot and killed Friday, and her husband was taken to a Las Vegas hospital with a gunshot wound after a domestic dispute, police said.
Washington City police responded to 126 Wagon Wheel Drive shortly before 9 p.m. on a report of shots fired in an altercation between the three, said Washington City Police Chief Jim Keith.
Officers heard one gunshot when they arrived and found bodies in the driveway, garage and in a bedroom.
"They're very good people and Chris was a great kid." - Shelley Blackham
Michelle Jones, 42, and Owen Christopher Ellis, 19, died at the scene. Richard Jones, 46, was taken to the University Medical Center of Southern Nevada in Las Vegas with an apparent self-inflicted gunshot wound to the head, Keith said. He remained in critical but stable condition Saturday afternoon.
"We don't know for sure what took place at the residence," Keith said.Michelle Jones was the director of training and coaching at ContactPoint, a sales training company. Jeremiah Wilson, who founded the company, said, "Without a doubt she had problems with her husband. She left him for about a year and lived with parents in Reno. ... She returned late last year to work things out. Life was good for a time."
He said she took Friday off from work to "spend some time collecting her thoughts."
Michelle Jones had worked with Wilson since 2004 and said she was an "inspiration" to those she came into contact. He said he hoped to emphasize the woman's positive influence, including her work providing skills classes to battered women.
"She was a great asset to my company and to our customers whom she served," he said. "Our customers appreciated her inviting approach and ability to capture attention and ignite change within the organizations for whom she was responsible."
He said memorials are being planned in both Reno, Nev. and St. George.
"This is a great tragedy that should not have happened," Wilson said.
Washington County Administrator Dean Cox confirmed that Richard Jones worked in the county's building maintenance department. He was primarily assigned to the buildings used by the sheriff's office.
"There was no evidence of any significant problems with either his work product or personal life," Cox said in an e-mail. "I was shocked when I heard the news."
A neighbor, Shelley Blackham, said she heard popping outside and thought it was Ellis setting off fireworks. She said her sons were good friends of Ellis and played basketball with him every day at a nearby recreation center.
"It's hard to believe this can happen just a few houses away," she said. "They're very good people and Chris was a great kid."
Blackham said Michelle Jones was a "wonderful lady" who had been a single mom for a long time before meeting her current husband. She said Richard Jones was not as friendly but she did not know him well.
Another friend, Jake Kasner, said Ellis was talented at everything he tried, especially basketball and baseball.
"He was going to do great things one day," Kasner said. "It's just a shame that happened just because of someone's selfishness."
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