Estranged husband-wife dead after homicide followed by car crash during police pursuit

Stephanie Francis, 44, was found dead in her Hopkinton home

RICHMOND − Two people are dead after a man shot his estranged wife on Friday, police say. He then died after crashing his car while being chased by the police the following day.

Stephanie Francis, 44, was found dead from a gunshot wound in her Hopkinton house on Friday, State Police Lt. Col. Robert Creamer wrote in a news release.

Detectives identified her estranged husband, Joseph Francis, 45, as her alleged killer and obtained an arrest warrant charging him with domestic violence murder and violating a domestic violence no-contact order. Police put out a be-on-the-lookout order for Joseph Francis and his black Chevrolet Suburban, noting he should be considered armed and dangerous, Creamer wrote.

On Saturday, at 10:50 a.m., Westerly Police Department officers spotted Joseph Francis in his Suburban on Route 1 North, near the intersection with Route 78.

Husband flees from police

“Despite multiple attempts to stop Mr. Francis, he evaded law enforcement,” Creamer wrote.

Just 46 minutes after he was first spotted in Westerly, the SUV was spotted on Route 2 North in Charlestown. Police officers from Charlestown and Richmond began to pursue him, trying to stop the vehicle. Francis then sped down Dawley Park Road and lost control at the intersection with Nooseneck Hill Road. His car went across both northbound lanes of Nooseneck Hill Road and began rolling, coming to rest on its roof at the tree line, Creamer wrote.

Charlestown and Richmond police officers did not approach the crashed SUV, instead waiting until the State Police tactical team “affirmed the safety of the scene.” When officers finally approached his car, they found him inside and medical personnel pronounced him dead at the scene. His cause of death is pending an autopsy, Creamer wrote.

Photos taken by the TV station WJAR, Channel 10, show the front of the vehicle to be totally destroyed.

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Reach reporter Wheeler Cowperthwaite at wcowperthwaite@providencejournal.com or follow him on Twitter @WheelerReporter