Vermilion man pleads guilty to involuntary manslaughter in wife's 2024 suicide

A Vermilion man accused of handing his wife a gun that she used to shoot and kill herself while intoxicated and suicidal last year has pleaded guilty to a felony that will send him to prison for nine years. Michael Krupienski, 72, pleaded guilty to involuntary manslaughter, a felony with a firearm specification, on Wednesday in Erie County Common Pleas Court, for the death of his wife Marie Krupienski, 81, in September 2024. Judge Beverly McGookey accepted the plea, found Michael Krupienski guilty, ordered a presentencing investigation by probation officers and scheduled a sentencing hearing for Oct. 21, according to court records. The Erie County Prosecutor's Office and Michael Krupienski's attorneys jointly recommended to the court that he serve nine years in prison — six for involuntary manslaughter plus an additional, mandatory three-year term at the start of his prison sentence on the firearms specification — according to Erie County court records. Six other felony charges were dismissed as part of a plea agreement, according to court records. Michael Krupienski called 911 just before 1 a.m. Sept. 29, 2024 and told an emergency dispatcher Marie Krupienski had shot herself. Vermilion Police Chief Chris Hartung previously said officers responded to the Krupienski home at 915 Nautical Drive, on the west bank of the Vermilion River on the Erie County side of the city and found Marie Krupienski dead of a gunshot wound to the forehead. Michael Krupienski said the couple had been drinking earlier at the Avon Veterans of Foreign Wars. He told police Marie Krupienski was suicidal because of the upcoming anniversary of their daughter's death. Michael Krupienski told police he got a .357-caliber revolver from upstairs, handed it to Marie Krupienski and she shot herself, he told police. The Ohio Bureau of Criminal Investigation assisted Vermilion police by collecting evidence at the scene. Vermilion police initially charged Michael Krupienski with reckless homicide, a felony. About a month later, an Erie County grand jury indicted Michael Krupienski on a total of seven charges including murder, involuntary manslaughter, reckless homicide, assisting suicide, tampering with evidence, having weapons under disability and complicity to having weapons under disability, all with firearms specifications and/or firearms forfeiture specifications. All but the involuntary manslaughter and a three-year firearm specification were dismissed at the time of Michael Krupienski's guilty plea. Marie Krupienski was a Cleveland native who attended Holy Trinity School in Avon and Avon High School, a life member of the Avon VFW and an animal lover, according to her published obituary.