A 25-year-old Wisconsin man, Sean C. Couture, has been sentenced to 26 years to life in prison for the 2024 murder of his 74-year-old grandmother, Nancy Lovejoy. Couture fatally shot Lovejoy to prevent her from calling the police after she found a gun hidden in his room.
Murder of Nancy Lovejoy
Couture pled guilty to one count of first-degree intentional homicide with a domestic abuse modifier. In exchange for his plea, additional charges, including failure to comply with an officer and operating a firearm while intoxicated, were dropped.
Waukesha County Circuit Judge J. Arthur Melvin III sentenced Couture to 26 years to life in a state correctional facility. Couture was credited with 388 days served.
The incident occurred on August 25, 2024, when Couture’s grandmother discovered the gun in his room. Couture, fearing that Lovejoy would report him to the police, shot her to stop her from doing so.
After the shooting, Couture called his parents, who were on vacation, and told them, “It’s over, it’s over,” and stated that he had shot his grandmother and was planning to shoot himself.
The Crime Scene and Investigation
When authorities arrived at the scene in Waukesha, Wisconsin, Couture had locked himself inside the home. Police used a drone to confirm the body of an adult female lying motionless on the stairs.
Couture eventually allowed police to enter the home, and Lovejoy’s body was found and later pronounced dead from several gunshot wounds.
Couture, who had a blood alcohol content of 0.45—more than five times the legal limit—was detained by police. A handgun and multiple magazines were recovered from the home, along with a receipt showing Couture purchased the firearm on June 4, 2024.
Couture’s Admission
At the hospital, Couture admitted to shooting his grandmother. He explained that after an argument over the gun, he believed she would call the police, and he shot her outside the side door to the residence. He then dragged her body into the house and left it on the basement stairs.
Couture also admitted to drinking alcohol before and after the shooting.
Couture’s guilty plea and subsequent sentencing bring closure to the tragic murder of Nancy Lovejoy. This case highlights the dangers of gun violence and alcohol abuse, as well as the devastating consequences of domestic disputes. Couture will now face a lengthy prison sentence for the senseless killing of his grandmother.
