COLORADO SPRINGS — David Mitchell, the man who drove his wife’s body to the Criminal Justice Center (CJC) in Colorado Springs on June 24, had premeditated the murder along with his own suicide, but he couldn’t see through the suicide.
According to an arrest affidavit obtained by FOX21 News, Mitchell had been unemployed since a sinus surgery in December of 2020. Before that, he had been employed for 13 years at Scotts Miracle-Gro in Fountain. Mitchell told detectives that he and his estranged wife, identified in a separate press release sent out by the Colorado Springs Police Department as 44-year-old Melody Horton, had been having financial problems since the loss of Mitchell’s job.
Mitchell said in an interview with detectives that his unemployment and health issues, along with complaints from Horton about lack of child support payments, had caused significant stress for him. He also said he had given Horton $1,500 to attend a trucking school, but instead she decided not to attend the school and spent the money on other things.
Mitchell said he was very upset that Horton did not return the money to him, especially since he is unemployed.
Mitchell then planned to kill Horton and himself, and planned a ruse in which he would pick her up under the guise of going to a T-Mobile in Fountain to reactivate their shared phone plan. He decided to do it on June 24, but changed up his initial plan to drive to a remote location off Grinnell Boulevard, and instead decided to drive to the El Paso County jail so their bodies would be found.
Mitchell said he owned a 9mm pistol and normally kept it in the center console of his car. Before driving to pick Horton up, he removed the pistol from the center console and positioned it between the console and driver’s seat.
Mitchell said he greeted Horton’s family, along with Mitchell’s four children he had with Horton, when he picked her up just after 12:30 p.m. on June 24. Once he was about 100 yards away from the house, he retrieved the pistol, aimed it at Horton, and shot her four to five times.
Mitchell then drove to the El Paso County Jail with Horton’s body, and planned to commit suicide once there, but he couldn’t bring himself to do it. Instead, he walked inside the jail and turned himself in.
David Mitchell is facing a charge of first degree murder for Horton’s killing. His first appearance in court is set for July 6.
You can read the entire arrest affidavit below.