On May 30, 2022, Prentis Rusty Hale III, 80, and his third wife, Karen Hansen-Pieri, 60, were found dead from gunshot wounds at their remote home in the 11000 block of Southwest Dupee Valley Road in rural Yamhill County, Oregon, between McMinnville and Sheridan. A 911 caller checking on animals discovered the two and deputies confirmed the deaths. Detectives from the sheriff’s office Special Investigations Unit processed evidence and sent some items to the Oregon State Police Forensic Laboratory for analysis.

The sheriff’s office described the shooting as having occurred during an episode of domestic violence and reported no suspects or arrests; investigators noted a non-criminal incident involving the couple at the same property in 2020. Hale had lived on the Dupee Valley property about 25 years, the couple for five years; Hale’s background included Yale and an MBA from Stanford and he was the son of Prentis Cobb Hale Jr., former chairman of Carter Hawley Hale Stores.

Anyone with information about the couple or the events at that property is asked to come forward.