Mitt Romney’s sister-in-law Carrie, 64, found dead in LA suburb under mysterious circumstances

LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA: Carrie Elizabeth Romney, sister-in-law of former presidential nominee and ex-Utah senator Mitt Romney, was found dead on a suburban Los Angeles street Friday evening, October 10, authorities confirmed.

According to TMZ, Carrie was discovered around 8:30 pm in Valencia, California, near a shopping mall parking garage. She was 64 years old.

The Los Angeles County coroner’s office has not yet determined a cause or manner of death. Deputy Brenda Serna of the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department told the New York Post in an email that it’s “unknown at the moment” whether Carrie “jumped or fell” from the multi-story parking garage or a nearby building.

Romney family ‘heartbroken’

Mitt Romney opened up about the family’s grief in a statement shared with People. “Our family is heartbroken by the loss of Carrie, who brought warmth and love to all our lives,” the statement read. “We ask for privacy during this difficult time.”

Authorities have since confirmed that an investigation is ongoing. The Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department said the cause of death will ultimately be determined by the Los Angeles County Department of the Medical Examiner’s Office.

Earlier Monday, a representative for the Sheriff’s Department confirmed to People that a woman had either jumped or fallen from a nearby parking structure. According to NBC Los Angeles, the structure is five stories high and located next to a Hyatt Regency hotel.

The Medical Examiner’s Office confirmed that Carrie died on Friday. As of Monday, October 13, her cause of death was listed as deferred, meaning investigators are waiting on additional results. Her body, however, is “ready for release.”

The Romneys have been one of America’s most prominent political clans. Two-time presidential candidate Mitt Romney comes from a large family of achievers. He has three older siblings and is married to Ann Romney, who herself has two older brothers. Together, the couple shares five sons.

In fact, The Washington Post once profiled the family’s annual “Romney Olympics,” a tradition that turns Lake Winnipesaukee in New Hampshire into a private family tournament.

Mitt Romney's career

The former Massachusetts governor (2003–2007) and Utah senator (2018–2024) led the Republican presidential ticket in 2012, going head-to-head with then-President Barack Obama. It was a close race, but Romney ultimately fell short in the national vote.

Before that, in 2008, Romney lost the Republican primary but went on to endorse John McCain, the eventual GOP nominee and presidential runner-up.

Romney was anti-Trump from the get-go. In the Senate, he was one of the few Republicans willing to break from party lines and became the only senator in U.S. history to vote to convict a president from his own party, twice. This was during President Donald Trump’s impeachment trials in 2020 and 2021. Romney also penned a scathing 2019 op-ed where he promised to oppose Trump’s “destructive statements."

He retired from the Senate in 2024, choosing not to run for re-election and calling for generational change. “The times we’re living in redemand the next generation step up and express their point of view and to make the decisions that will shape American politics over the coming century,” Romney said in a statement.

He added that baby boomers like him are “not the right ones to be making the decisions for tomorrow.”

Romney’s most recent public appearance came just weeks before the tragedy at a Drew University forum in New Jersey in late September.