A retired Michigan cop made a devastating statement to a 911 dispatcher before he shot his sick wife then himself.
William ‘Bill’ Kitzmiller and his wife Donna Kitzmiller, both 80, died on September 28 in a murder-suicide at their home in Grand Haven Township.
The couple had been together for 54 years and ‘were true partners in life,’ according to their obituary.
Bill revealed the decision to end their lives after his wife’s battle with Alzheimer’s in his 8:58am 911 call to report their deaths, according to records obtained by MLive.
‘I’ve given my wife a merciful ending from her Alzheimer’s disease and I am going to follow her now in death,’ he said.
‘The front door to the house is open, unlocked. There are notes on the kitchen table with some information. That’s all. Thank you very much.’
The dispatcher asked Bill to explain what had happened, but his response was bleeped out and then a gunshot was heard on the recording.
Records from the Ottawa County medical examiner state that Donna was ‘shot in head by husband.’
Bill’s death certificate lists his cause of death as suicide by a gunshot wound to the head.
The couple met while attending Albion College and had careers in public service.
Bill served in the US Army during the Vietnam War from 1967 to 1970, then became a police officer with the Grand Haven City Police Department and retired as sergeant after 30 years of service.
Donna worked as an elementary school teacher for the Grand Haven Area Public Schools, serving at Ferry Elementary, Central Elementary and Mary A. White Elementary for 30 years.
Together they traveled the world, spent time at their family cottage in Lake Michigan and cared for several golden retrievers and cats over the years.
Roughly 7 million Americans are living with Alzheimer’s and those cases are expected to grow to 13 million by 2050, in part due to an aging populous, according to the Alzheimer’s Association.
Approximately one in five women get the disease, and one in ten men.