Man found in hotel room with self-inflicted injuries accused of murdering wife, authorities say

The man was arrested in Missouri and is awaiting extradition to Kansas.

April 10, 2019, 8:01 AM

A man found with self-inflicted wounds in a Missouri hotel this week is accused of murdering his wife in Kansas, authorities said.

Lori Shields, 38, was found dead Sunday afternoon at her home in Norton, Kansas.

Her husband, 42-year-old Damien Shields, was identified as a suspect, according to the Kansas Bureau of Investigations.

The next morning, police responding to a report of someone calling out for help from a hotel room in Cape Giradeau, Missouri, discovered Damien Shields with lacerations that appeared to be self-inflicted.

Damien Shields, 42, of Norton, Kan., was charged with the murder of his wife, April 8, 2019.
Cape Girardeau Police Department

He was hospitalized in Cape Girardeau, hundreds of miles away from his home in Kansas.

On Monday afternoon, upon being released from the hospital, Damien Shields was arrested with first-degree murder in connection to his wife's killing and booked into Cape Girardeau County Jail. He was awaiting extradition to Kansas.

Lori Shields worked as an elementary school secretary in Norton, which is home to fewer than 3,000 people.

The city's public schools canceled all classes, activities and practices on Monday in the wake of her death, according to ABC Wichita affiliate KAKE.