Murder suspect Richard Stone has longstanding ties to both Iowa State University and the Story County Sheriff’s Office.
AMES, Iowa — A homicide investigation involving an Iowa State University faculty member who has also served as a Story County reserve sheriff’s deputy widened Friday after police sought him on a first-degree murder warrant in the death of his wife.
Richard Stone, 47, was identified by Ames police as the suspect after officers found his wife, Kristen Stone, 47, dead during a welfare check Thursday morning. Police obtained a first-degree murder warrant for him Friday. Later that afternoon, authorities said, Stone suffered a self-inflicted gunshot wound inside his vehicle during a traffic stop and was flown to a Des Moines-area hospital.
Stone is an associate professor whose academic work has focused on industrial engineering, human performance and related technologies. University records and professional biographies say he joined the Iowa State faculty in 2008 and has held appointments connected to industrial and manufacturing systems engineering and mechanical engineering.
His public professional history also includes service with the Story County Sheriff’s Office. County records show Richard Thomas Stone was appointed as a reserve deputy in 2015. An academic résumé published by Iowa State likewise listed his work as a reserve deputy and a rescue and recovery diver for the sheriff’s office beginning that year.
Those institutional connections add a separate dimension to a case that began as a residential welfare check. Ames police said officers went to a home in the 5000 block of Ontario Street shortly after 7:15 a.m. Thursday and found Kristen Stone dead. Authorities have not said what prompted the welfare check, how she died or what evidence caused investigators to focus on her husband.
By Friday, police had obtained a warrant accusing Richard Stone of first-degree murder. Iowa State University police and the Story County Sheriff’s Office assisted Ames police in the search, according to reports citing the police investigation. The warrant represents an allegation and does not amount to a finding of guilt.
Officers found Stone in a vehicle Friday afternoon and attempted to take him into custody during a traffic stop. Police said Stone stopped but then shot himself inside the vehicle. Emergency personnel provided lifesaving treatment before he was transported to a medical helicopter and flown to a Des Moines-area hospital.
His condition was not publicly known in the latest police accounts. Authorities also had not explained whether Stone’s university employment or reserve law enforcement role affected any part of the search, arrest planning or homicide investigation. No evidence made public so far indicates that either position played a role in Kristen Stone’s death.
Stone’s academic biography describes research involving ergonomics, robotics, augmented and virtual reality, biomechanics and other areas aimed at studying or improving human performance. His years at Iowa State and his reserve service made him connected to two public institutions now touched by the investigation, although the criminal inquiry is being led by Ames police.
Police have not announced a motive, released the cause of Kristen Stone’s death or provided a new public update on Richard Stone’s medical condition. The homicide investigation remains open as authorities continue examining the circumstances surrounding her death and Friday’s attempt to take him into custody.
Author note: Last updated October 31, 2026.