Police release identity of deceased wanted California man

IDAHO FALLS, Idaho (KIFI/KIDK) – UPDATE 6:00 p.m. The Riverside County Sheriff’s Office of California has released the identity of a man wanted for felony homicide.

61-year-old Lawson Blanchette of San Jacinto, California died from an apparent self-inflicted gunshot wound in Idaho Falls on Sunday.

The victim in the homicide investigation has been identified as Marie Hannah, a 47-year-old woman, also of San Jacinto, California.

Deputies found Hannah deceased with injuries on Sunday, July 5.

This is an active investigation and no additional details are currently available.

ORIGINAL: A man wanted for felony homicide out of state died from an apparent self-inflicted gunshot wound in Idaho Falls on Sunday.

The Idaho Falls Police Department was notified by an out of state law-enforcement agency the suspect from a homicide investigation in their jurisdiction may be in the Idaho Falls area Sunday.

At approximately 4:30 p.m., an Idaho Falls Police officer located the suspect's vehicle in the area of 575 River Parkway which was unoccupied at the time.

Additional officers responded to the area and were able to locate the suspect in the area near his vehicle.

Officers made efforts to contain the suspect in order to safely take him into custody without alerting him to their presence.

When the suspect returned to his vehicle, officers moved in to make contact with him.

The suspect saw the officers approaching and took his own life with a firearm inside the vehicle.

After hearing the gunshot, officers attempted to communicate with the suspect, not knowing for certain that he was deceased, and called for EMS from the Idaho Falls Fire Department to respond.

Officers approached the driver’s side window and were able to confirm that the suspect was deceased from an apparent self-inflicted gunshot wound.

Idaho Falls Police Officers and Idaho State Police Troopers created a roadblock around the immediate area in order to safely document the scene. The roadway was blocked until approximately 8:30 p.m.

A handgun and a spent shell casing were found inside in the vehicle.

No Idaho Falls Police officers discharged their service weapons at any time during the incident.

The out of state law enforcement agency handling the homicide investigation is working to make notifications to both the suspect’s family and to the homicide victim’s family.

When those notifications have been made, additional information is expected to be released.