Sheriff's officials named Edward Villa as the suspect after Katie Kinder, her son and her mother were found shot to death in Happy Valley.

Thursday's briefing names the three people and names Villa as the only suspect. The warrant was three counts of first-degree murder. He was found dead before an arrest. KPTV, citing Warrenton police, called it an apparent self-inflicted gunshot. KGW reported Detective Matt Lysaght would not go past a gunshot deputies heard, a firearm in the room, and the fact that no officer fired. KPTV and OPB call the motel the South Jetty Inn. The Oregonian calls it the South Jetty Motel.

Clackamas County sheriff's officials on Thursday, Oct. 22, 2026, named the three people found shot to death in a Happy Valley home as Katie Lynn Kinder, 47, her son Evan Scott Kinder, 15, and her mother Patricia Lynn Campbell, 78, KGW and KPTV reported. The Oregonian and OPB used the shorter names Katie Kinder, Evan Kinder and Patricia Campbell. KGW and KPTV reported detectives named 45-year-old Edward Villa, who they said was Katie Kinder's boyfriend and lived in the home, as the person they believe was responsible. The Oregonian reported the sheriff's office believes he intentionally killed all three and acted alone. KGW reported Detective Matt Lysaght said officials believe Villa was solely responsible and that no one else was involved. That is the sheriff's office account of the case. He was not taken into custody, and there has been no trial.

KPTV reported Happy Valley officers found the three Tuesday afternoon during a welfare check at a home in the 13000 block of Southeast Highpointe Street. The Oregonian reported coworkers went into the house around 12:30 p.m. Tuesday and then called police. KGW reported the Happy Valley Police Department first received a welfare-check request on Monday after Kinder did not show up for work. Officers could not reach anyone at the house and did not see anything suspicious outside, and they could not reach Campbell, listed as Kinder's emergency contact, Lysaght said, according to KGW. Neighbors told officers they had not seen anyone at the residence in a few days. KGW reported that after the employer called again Tuesday, police contacted out-of-state relatives and learned she lived there with her son, her mother and Villa. The Clackamas County Medical Examiner's Office said autopsies showed all three died of gunshot wounds, KPTV reported. KGW and The Oregonian reported investigators believe the deaths happened between Sunday evening and early Monday, and that they are still narrowing the time. Evan Kinder was a 10th grader at New Urban Online, the North Clackamas School District confirmed, KGW and OPB reported. KGW reported the district said the online school is associated with New Urban High School.

An arrest warrant was issued for Villa on three counts of first-degree murder, KGW reported. He had worked for the North Clackamas School District since 2007, most recently as a student and community engagement specialist, KPTV reported. KGW reported Lysaght said Thursday that detectives learned Villa had failed to show up for work on Monday. KPTV reported the district said he did not show up for work Wednesday. Those accounts name two different days. KGW reported his vehicle was located at a motel in Hammond, and that officers from the Clatsop County Sheriff's Office, the Warrenton Police Department, the Oregon State Police and the U.S. Marshals Service gathered there. The station reported the task force surrounded the motel around 1 p.m. Wednesday after Warrenton officers, watching the room, had seen signs of life. KPTV and OPB identified the motel as the South Jetty Inn. The Oregonian called it the South Jetty Motel. KGW reported Lysaght said deputies then heard what sounded like a single gunshot, that Villa did not respond, and that he was found dead when they went in. No officers fired, and investigators recovered a firearm in the room, Lysaght said, according to KGW. He declined to elaborate. KPTV, citing Warrenton police, reported the death was an apparent self-inflicted gunshot wound. KGW reported a separate Clatsop County Sheriff's Office release said he took his own life. OPB, citing a U.S. Marshals Service press release, reported he killed himself before he could be taken into custody.

Sheriff James Rhodes read a family statement at Thursday's news conference, KGW reported. "Our family is living through a nightmare that no family should ever have to experience," the statement said, in part. "In one heartbreaking tragedy we lost three beautiful people: my mother, my sister and my nephew. There are no words strong enough to describe the pain, grief and devastation we are feeling." OPB reported the statement also said, "These were not just three lives lost – they were our family, our loved ones and an irreplaceable part of our lives." OPB reported Rhodes said, "Domestic violence and violent crime has no place in Clackamas County." The North Clackamas School District said students and families "have the right to live free from fear, abuse, and violence, both within their home and throughout their community," OPB reported. The Oregonian reported the district also said it "stands firmly against any form of domestic violence." KPTV reported Villa's ex-wife, Tiffany Villa, said Wednesday that they share a son and that her main concern is his well-being. That son is not named here. Evan Kinder is named because the sheriff's office named him Thursday. He is not pictured. KGW reported the sheriff's office asked anyone with information to call 503-723-4949 and reference case number 26-020747.

The warrant and the detective's conclusion are the investigation's account of who fired. They were not tested in a courtroom. Villa was dead before an arrest. All defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.