Naman Shrestha
In November 2021, Tricia Green Westfall met her sudden demise near her workplace in Colorado. The tragic passing of the mother of two shook the entire community to its core, while grief took over her family and loved ones. Although it was an open-and-shut case, the familial secrets were uncovered during the swift investigation. All the intricate details about the case and the investigation that ensued are covered in a detailed manner in the episode titled ‘Control Freak’ of Investigation Discovery’s ‘American Monster,’ which also features insightful and emotional interviews with Tricia’s family and friends and the officials linked to the investigation.
Tricia Green Westfall Was Found Dead a Few Blocks Away From Her Office
On May 7, 1975, Jim Patrick and Beverly Abbaduska were blessed with twin daughters, Terri and Tricia Sue Green, in Charlotte, Michigan. Besides her twin sister, Tricia also had the love and support of her other siblings — brothers Marc and Corey Green and sisters Cora and Cherie Green — while growing up in a loving household in Sunfield, Michigan. By the time she graduated from Lakewood High School in 1993, she was in a relationship with Brian Briggs. The couple also went on a cross-country trip to Colorado, making their bond stronger. In the following years, they became parents to three children — Christopher James “CJ” Briggs, Noah Briggs, and Tiffany Marie Briggs.
At some point, Tricia and Brian tied the knot and made their relationship official. Unfortunately, they suffered a huge loss when their infant daughter, Tiffany, passed away. While residing in Colorado, Tricia was employed at the Douglas County Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) and the Arapahoe County Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) for several years. Besides being a doting and supportive mother to her children, she also took out time for her passions, including crafting, DIY projects, and scrapbooking. At her workplace, she also loved to decorate the place for birthdays and holidays. In the 2000s, the marriage between Tricia and Brian deteriorated, and they went through a difficult divorce.
Not long after her divorce, in 2009, she got married again to another man named Galen Westfall, who was a successful businessman and a single father of a daughter from a previous relationship. They relocated to the town of Castle Rock, Colorado, where they lived with Tricia’s two sons and Galen’s daughter. Everything seemed to be going well for the Westfalls until November 15, 2021, when Tricia was found dead inside a crashed car just a few blocks away from her workplace, near East Geddes Avenue and South Havana Street. When the authorities inspected her remains, they determined that her cause of death was gunshot wounds to her face and arm.
Tricia Green Westfall’s Marriage Had Turned Rocky
Upon digging deeper into Tricia Green Westfall’s personal life, the detectives learned that her marriage to Galen Westfall was far from perfect. According to Tricia’s family, Galen started showing signs of being manipulative and controlling towards Tricia. Tricia’s sons, CJ and Noah, claimed that the couple used to get into many fights and arguments. Although the altercations never seemed to have turned violent, Tricia’s twin sister, Terri, believed that things got worse between them after they returned from a vacation in Mexico in November 2021. As per her accounts, Galen removed all the cameras from their house on November 7, without letting Tricia know about it.
On the fateful day of November 15, 2021, Galen dropped Tricia off at work at the Arapahoe County DMV and took her car for servicing. After that, Galen reportedly made a financial transfer and hinted to his daughter about finding out some things about his wife. He allegedly found out about Tricia’s alleged extramarital affair, which led him to take some extreme actions against her. Right before her shift at the office was about to end, she reportedly received a call from her husband of 12 years, who asked her to get out of work at 3:30 pm that afternoon and meet him outside in his truck.
Tricia Green Westfall’s Alleged Killer Died by Suicide After Killing Her
After picking her up around 3:30 pm outside her office, they allegedly got into a heated argument. A few minutes later, the 57-year-old man reportedly shot Tricia to death inside the car before taking his own life by shooting himself in the head. The truck collapsed into a tree around South Havana Street, leading to many people calling the authorities for help. One of the investigators told 9News, “Galen had the accelerator floored all the way to the ground at 99% depression. There was no indication of any brake being applied when it struck that first vehicle when his vehicle left the roadway.”
Following the tragedy, Tricia’s office released a statement regarding the loss of their employee. It read, “Tricia Westfall was a veteran employee of more than nine years with Arapahoe County and was well-loved by her colleagues. Her death was heartbreaking, and our employees are still grieving and processing her loss. Since this incident, the County has provided grief counseling for employees, and we continue to offer them mental health resources. We also have prioritized raising awareness among our employees and our residents of the many harmful effects of domestic violence, in the hope of preventing similar tragedies in the future.”
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