Couple Found Dead After Videotaping Suicide Plan

ANAHEIM — In a 15-minute videotape sent to a relative, Douglas and Dana Ridenour described themselves as deeply in love and satisfied with their lot in life. They ticked off some recent successes and said they planned to treat themselves to a $50,000 spending spree.

But the couple also talked about their fear of growing old; then, as Douglas’ brother, Ronald, watched in horror, they spoke of ending their lives.

Ronald Ridenour raced from Santa Barbara to Orange County, hoping to talk his brother and sister-in-law out of their apparent suicide plans.

He was two days late.

Early Wednesday, Ronald Ridenour broke into his brother’s home to find the bodies of Douglas L. Ridenour, 48, and Dana S. Ridenour, 45, lying on separate couches in the family room of their Dickel Street home.

Each had been shot once in the head with a 12-gauge shotgun, Anaheim Police Sgt. Chet Barry said. Dead on the floor near their owners lay the couple’s two cherished poodles.

Police estimate the shootings occurred 48 hours earlier and believe the couple died as the result of a murder-suicide pact planned months before. The tape apparently was made in April and delivered to Ronald Ridenour’s house after the couple had died.

Ronald Ridenour said he and his brother often delved into “philosophical arguments” about life and death, with Douglas insisting that he wanted to die on his own terms.

“He told me (last week) that I’d be receiving an important package in the mail,” Ronald Ridenour said about the envelope that contained the videotape, a will and a receipt for cremation services. “As soon as I saw those papers, I knew what the videotape was. . . .”

The Ridenours, who were married for 22 years and had no children, said in the tape they had achieved financial success and were satisfied with their lives.

“They decided they reached the age where they have gone as far as they are going to go,” Barry said after he viewed the videotape several times.

Although the contents of the tape were not made public, pending an investigation, Barry said the couple seemed calm and upbeat as they talked about “the time that their lives should end.”

“They said they had a full life and are very happy with it,” Barry said. “But neither one had a desire to grow old, and they were going to take care of it. They didn’t leave any doubt what they had in mind.”

In the tape, they also instructed Ronald Ridenour to have their bodies cremated and the ashes scattered in the ocean. Ronald Ridenour said his brother had even paid for all the arrangements.

A mental health expert who specializes in the study of suicide was cautious in assessing possible reasons for the couple’s decision, but suggested they might have believed they were improving their existence.

“What’s suggested is that they were engaged in a transcendental suicide, where they hope to go to a better place,” said Dr. Bruce Danto, a Fullerton psychiatrist who is a former president of the American Assn. of Suicidology.

“Assuming they were really close, this sort of death carries with it the idea of a fantasy reunion,” he added. “The suicide is not an end to life but the beginning of the next phase. It’s a philosophical thing.”

He said he was puzzled at the couple’s timing. “It makes me wonder if there was some concealed illness; I don’t think the full story has come out,” Danto said.

Ronald Ridenour and Barry said the couple left no hint of any motives other than the desire to die before growing old.

Barry said that police were called to the couple’s home after a dispatcher received a frantic call from Ronald Ridenour. Barry said Douglas appeared to have shot his wife once in the head as she lay on a family room couch. He then shot the dogs. Finally, he lay down on a separate family room couch and turned the gun on himself, Barry said.

Douglas Ridenour had changed careers last year, going into real estate after working for years as a graphic illustrator, according to his brother. Dana Ridenour also took up real estate, and the couple most recently worked as a team for Lincoln Realty Inc. in Orange.

Judy Dillabou, co-owner of Lincoln Realty, described the Ridenours as an energetic couple on the rise. She said they joined the firm in November, 1989, but left abruptly in April--about the same time that they taped the video message.

They told Dillabou that they had come into money and wanted to travel for several months. Plans called for the Ridenours to return to work next Monday, Dillabou said.

“I called the home 10 days ago and Doug answered and he was extremely upbeat,” Dillabou said. “He sounded like he was real glad to hear from us, said everything was fine.”

Ronald Ridenour said he was unaware of any travel plans and neighbors said the couple was seen frequently at the house.

Before their sudden departure from Lincoln Realty, the Ridenours had earned a reputation as a couple on the move. Co-workers and neighbors described them as impeccably dressed, articulate and bright. She drove a late-model yellow Cadillac. He drove a white Corvette.

Dillabou said the Ridenours had sold several high-priced homes in the upscale Anaheim Hills area and had four or five other listings when they left. They had also developed several investment deals involving apartment units priced at nearly $1 million, Dillabou said.

“They were on their way to becoming two of our top producers,” she said.

Dillabou said the couple were friendly with co-workers, but chose not to socialize outside the office, telling colleagues they preferred to be alone together.

“They said their dogs were their kids and all they needed was each other,” Dillabou said.