- Kevin Ellis was found guilty of murdering his brother-in-law in American Fork, and the jury found he did not believe he was justified at the time.
- Ellis was acquitted of conspiring with his mother and sister to commit the murder, as the jury agreed with his attorneys that he was unaware of the plans.
- He is scheduled to be sentenced on March 23. His mother, who is also charged in the murder, will face trial in April.
PROVO — A Utah County jury found Kevin Ellis guilty of the murder of his brother-in-law and that he did not believe he was defending himself. However, the jury found he was not guilty of conspiring with his mother and sister to kill the man as charged.
Ellis shot and killed Matthew Restelli on July 12, 2024 in just after he arrived at Ellis' mother's American Fork home with intentions to bring his wife and children back to their home in California.
The jury began deliberations Wednesday afternoon and continued deliberating until almost 7:40 p.m., when they returned with the verdict finding Ellis was not defending himself when he shot and killed Matthew Restelli on July 12, 2024, as he had argued. They found Ellis was also not acting in imperfect self-defense, meaning he did not believe that he was justified when he killed his brother-in-law.
Ellis, 35, was found guilty of murder, a first-degree felony; obstruction of justice, a second-degree felony; two counts of domestic violence in the presence of a child, and possession of a gun as a restricted person, third-degree felonies; and drug possession, a class A misdemeanor. He was found not guilty of conspiracy to commit murder, a second-degree felony.
Prosecutors claimed during the trial that Ellis, his mother Tracy Grist and his sister Kathryn Restelli lured Matthew Restelli to Grist's home and invited him to let himself in. They said his wife placed an AirTag in his truck before leaving their family home in California to track him, and her family watched the AirTag and discussed when he would be arriving in Utah.
Deputy Utah County attorney Adam Pomeroy said Ellis and Grist delayed calling 911 after Ellis shot him and placed a knife in his nondominant hand backward in order to claim self-defense.
Ellis' attorneys agreed that there was a conspiracy to murder Matthew Restelli but argued that Ellis was "duped" and convinced to be their "champion" and did not know what was going on.
The jury trial began on Jan. 20 with opening statements and testimony from Kathryn Restelli, who has already pleaded guilty to her husband's murder and conspiracy to commit his murder, both second-degree felonies, along with felony discharge of a firearm, a first-degree felony. She was sentenced to at least seven years and up to life in prison.
She said she pleaded guilty to give her children and husband justice.
Kathryn Restelli admitted to the jury that she invited her husband inside her mother's home and made statements to help him feel comfortable coming in because it was part of "the plan to murder him."
"We were getting ready for his arrival by putting toys away, putting blankets over the couch to avoid blood spatter," she said about that night.
She talked about hearing the gunshots and her mom and brother talk about placing a knife in his hands, a knife she had seen earlier. Grist was also charged with conspiring to murder Matthew Restelli. She faces a jury trial in April.
Kathryn Restelli said she did not speak directly with Ellis about the plan and that her mom took Ellis to lunch that day, but she did not know what they talked about.
Ellis is scheduled to be sentenced on March 23.
