If someone is murdered while traveling, how would the wife be told?

[8letters]

An American is traveling for business and is shot in his hotel room. How would the police tell the wife that he's dead assuming they have her phone number and address? Would they call her? If so, who would call her? Would they send a policeman or a constable to her house to tell her?

 

[jaF0]

Generally the distant agency would contact the local agency who would go to the residence to make the notification.

 

[MelissaBaby]

Yeah, they would contact the local police and have them send someone to tell her.

 

[Hypoxia]

Where do they live and where is he traveling? Is hubby killed while in their home state/province or nation, or distantly? Are wife, hubby/victim, and/or killer notorious or depraved enough that news breaks on social media first?

The spousal notification can be played many ways. Is it serious, absurd, compassionate, heartless? How do we want readers to react? If serious, and avoiding IRL social prejudices, the local jurisdiction most likely sends an officer to notify the spouse at home.

I recall a cynical old Rodrigues cartoon. A sleazeball-ish guy looks down into a cadaver drawer at the morgue and happily exclaims, "Yessiree, that's my wife!" Gender-flip that, hey?

 

[Voboy]

Overseas?

The consul handles it in the foreign country. I’m sure they call the local cops through channels.

 

[Polyacrylate]

With the killer telling her she's next?

 

[8letters]

Thanks for all those who provided information. The man was murdered in St. Louis and lived a plane flight away. He was murdered by a jealous husband as the murder's wife wife was leaving the his hotel room. The murder then killed himself. And they all lived happily every after.

 

[Zeb_Carter]

Every police force in the US has a chaplain or a local minister that will with a watch commander will go notify the spouse of a loved one killed in a different jurisdiction. They will stay with them until other loved ones can be called to come stay with the spouse.

 

[Handley_Page]

An American is traveling for business and is shot in his hotel room. How would the police tell the wife that he's dead assuming they have her phone number and address? Would they call her? If so, who would call her? Would they send a policeman or a constable to her house to tell her?

A message would be passed to the nearest Police Station to the address of the relative/s (the widow?), and a constable sent round to issue the bad news.
These days, a female would accompany the [usually] male constable.

To be greeted by the doom pair is really NOT funny.

 

[TarnishedPenny]

Done it several times (serious injury, not actual death). Double-plus ungood experience.

 

[jaF0]

To be greeted by the doom pair is really NOT funny.

I remember a few older movies set in the war years that weren't really war movies. Quiet suburban neighborhood type flicks, everybody out mowing or tending to yards or kids playing. Army staff car drives up to one of the houses, two uniformed members step out and walk towards the door.

The whole street pauses and looks towards that house.

 

[Handley_Page]

I remember a few older movies set in the war years that weren't really war movies. Quiet suburban neighborhood type flicks, everybody out mowing or tending to yards or kids playing. Army staff car drives up to one of the houses, two uniformed members step out and walk towards the door.

The whole street pauses and looks towards that house.

And the Good Lord gets his ear bent in no uncertain manner.