Utah man charged with manslaughter for shooting, killing his wife in their bedroom

OGDEN, Utah — Christopher James Trivino, 28, shot and killed his wife when he saw an unidentified figure in his dark bedroom on Nov. 19, 2022.

Police characterized the shooting as accidental at the time. Charging documents from district court in Weber County show he now faces a single charge of manslaughter. The charge, a second-degree felony, is defined as recklessly causing the death of another person. His wife, Jaycelin Gray Trivino, 27, died from a single gunshot wound to her torso after she was taken to a hospital.

She was a beloved teacher at Highland Junior High and a dancer. Her death was mourned by her community.

Ogden performing arts community mourns loss of Highland Junior High teacher

Christopher Trivino called 911 to report shooting his wife in their home on Adams Avenue in Ogden. Court documents report that he said he thought he heard his home intrusion alarm and woke up to see a dark figure approaching his bed. He reached over in bed and thought he felt his wife lying next to him so he grabbed the gun he regularly keeps next to his thigh as he sleeps and shot the unidentified figure.

Jaycelin Trivino immediately screamed.

After responding to the shooting, police advised Christopher Tirivino of his Miranda rights, then interviewed him. He told investigators he sleeps with the gun next to him, not in a holster. He told police he didn’t look to see if his wife was in bed with him and that it was too dark to see the figure in the room. The figure had not spoken and he didn’t make any callouts before he shot.

According to Christopher Trivino, after his wife screamed, he knew he had shot her. He told investigators his wife is known to wake in the middle of the night to use the bathroom or get a drink of water.

“Persons related to this case stated that Chris regularly carries his firearm, shows it off, brags about it, and has openly left it unattended and unsecure at family events,” the document states.”Family members report that they had spoken with Chris before about the dangers of his recklessness with firearms. The Utah Office of Medical Examiners confirmed Jaycelin’s cause of death was a single gunshot wound to her abdomen.”