Kyle Ann Morrow is accused of fatally shooting longtime White Sulphur Springs business owner Gene Gudmundson at his motel in July.

WHITE SULPHUR SPRINGS, Mont. — A 73-year-old Montana novelist accused of walking into the Spa Hot Springs Motel and fatally shooting its longtime owner has pleaded not guilty to deliberate homicide, moving a case that began with a July 12 killing into a contested court proceeding. Kyle Ann Morrow entered the plea during an August appearance in Meagher County.

Morrow is accused of killing 79-year-old Gene Gudmundson, whose family had operated the hot springs property for decades. Her plea is an important change from the first reports of the case, which centered on her arrest, witness statements and evidence described in a probable cause affidavit. A not-guilty plea does not resolve any of those allegations. Prosecutors now must prove the charge in court, while Morrow has the opportunity to challenge the evidence against her. She remains in custody, and public reporting places her next court date on Sept. 14.

The prosecution’s account begins shortly before 2 p.m. July 12. According to court documents and law enforcement accounts, Morrow entered the motel and asked whether Gudmundson and his wife were there. She was told Gudmundson was in his office. Authorities allege she went beyond the front-counter area and into the office, where employees soon heard a single gunshot. Investigators say she then came back out and told a front-desk worker that she had shot Gudmundson. Deputies arriving at the motel found Gudmundson dead from a single gunshot wound. The allegations in the affidavit have not been tested at trial.

Investigators said witness interviews and surveillance video helped them identify Morrow and a white Nissan Frontier that left the motel after the shooting. Meagher County Undersheriff Jerami West later went to Morrow’s home and found a vehicle matching the one seen in the footage parked outside, according to the charging account. Authorities said repeated efforts to contact Morrow were unsuccessful. Officers were establishing a perimeter when, according to the affidavit, Morrow came outside, got into the pickup and began to leave. Montana Highway Patrol officers and sheriff’s deputies blocked the vehicle and took her into custody.

The case also includes evidence police say they recovered after the arrest. Court reporting says officers found a handgun case and a partially full bottle of whiskey in Morrow’s vehicle, along with cigarettes and a lighter. Investigators searching her residence reported finding handwritten material described in court documents as “suicide/final arrangement notes.” Authorities allege those notes contained statements admitting responsibility for Gudmundson’s death. Prosecutors also allege the shooting involved a Smith & Wesson Model 36 revolver. How each piece of evidence was obtained, authenticated and ultimately used can become an issue as the case advances through court.

Morrow’s connection to the motel predates the shooting. Sheriff Jon Lopp has said she had once worked at the Spa Hot Springs Motel, and earlier photographs from the business showed her taking part in activities there. Her books also had been offered for sale at the property, according to local reporting. Gudmundson’s wife, Andreluz, had supported Morrow’s writing, and an older review attributed to her praised one of the author’s novels. Authorities have not publicly established a motive for the killing, and the existence of an employment or social connection does not by itself explain what happened July 12.

Gudmundson had a much longer connection to the hot springs. The motel’s own history says he bought the property in 1988 after returning to Montana and learning that it was for sale. A chiropractor, he practiced for decades before retiring in 2016. The family expanded the property over the years, adding rooms and another pool and later buying nearby cabins. The motel describes Gene and Andreluz Gudmundson as stewards of a business that drew both travelers and residents. In local reporting after his death, artist Gary Larson, a friend who worked on murals at the property, described Gudmundson as peaceful, generous and deeply associated with the community.

The killing had an unusually personal impact in White Sulphur Springs because both the victim and the accused were familiar figures. Local reports described Morrow as a regular library patron and senior-center volunteer who often helped serve meals. Sheriff Lopp said his prior interactions with her had been largely ordinary. That picture of daily small-town familiarity sits beside the far more serious allegations now before the court. It also explains why residents interviewed after the shooting described shock rather than a simple story of a stranger entering a business and committing an unexplained act of violence.

Morrow’s career as a self-published novelist brought national attention to the case after reporters noted that her books contain fictional plots involving violence, revenge and homicide. She published several Montana-set works and promoted them as romance with rodeo themes. Sheriff Lopp acknowledged that investigators were aware of the subjects in her books while cautioning that investigators had to examine the whole picture. The fiction may be notable background because of the public interest surrounding Morrow, but fictional scenes are not evidence that she committed the charged crime and do not establish a real-world motive.

That distinction has become more important now that the case is in the formal adversarial stage. Prosecutors are pursuing deliberate homicide, a charge that can carry a sentence of up to life in prison under the circumstances reported in court coverage. The state is also seeking an additional punishment tied to the alleged use of a dangerous weapon. Court reporting says prosecutors are not seeking the death penalty. Morrow’s not-guilty plea means the state will have to prove the required elements of the offense beyond a reasonable doubt if the case reaches trial. It also leaves the defense free to dispute identity, intent, statements, searches, physical evidence or any other issue permitted by the court.

Morrow remains detained at the Broadwater County Detention Center, where the sheriff’s roster has listed a $1 million bond and a Meagher County hold. No verdict has been reached, and the allegations in charging documents remain allegations unless proved in court. With her plea entered, the next phase is expected to focus less on the initial shock surrounding the novelist and her books and more on the evidence prosecutors say links her to Gudmundson’s death, along with any challenges raised by the defense. Her next reported court date is Sept. 14.

Author note: Last updated August 27, 2026.