Man choked dying wife to ‘make her pass away quicker’ because ‘he loved her’: Police

DeWayne McCulla, 46, from Utah, has admitted to attempting to kill his terminally ill wife, Arenda Lee McCulla, 47, in what he claims was an effort to “ease her suffering” from cancer.

DeWayne recently pleaded guilty to attempted manslaughter for choking his wife, who was in hospice care at their home in La Verkin, Utah, dying from breast cancer.

Arenda passed away from her illness the day after the incident, on December 21, 2021.

Arenda was diagnosed with breast cancer in 2020, and by October 2021, the disease had spread to her neck, brain, lungs and liver, becoming terminal. She was placed in hospice care with her family by her side.

According to a probable cause affidavit, on the night before her death, DeWayne began choking her in an attempt to end her suffering. Family members, including her son, were present and pulled him off as Arenda gasped for air.

Police began investigating after Arenda’s adult son filed a complaint, accusing DeWayne of attempting to strangle her.

Family members corroborated this account, and in a phone conversation with detectives, DeWayne admitted to the act, saying he put his hand around her neck to “make her pass away quicker” and further told detectives that “he would do it again because he loved her.”

Initially, DeWayne was charged with attempted murder, a first-degree felony that could see him spend the rest of his life behind bars. However, he later accepted a plea deal, reducing the charge to attempted manslaughter, which carries a maximum sentence of 15 years in prison.

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Arenda’s son has expressed opposition to the plea deal and plans to speak during the sentencing hearing.