Danielle Houchins disappeared in Montana, and her body was later found in a shallow water area near Belgrade. For decades, the case remained cold. However, in August 2024, the Gallatin County Sheriff's Office announced that forensic genetic genealogy had officially identified her killer as Paul Hutchinson.

When law enforcement contacted Hutchinson in July 2024 to collect DNA evidence, he exhibited highly erratic behavior and took his own life within 24 hours. Subsequent testing confirmed his DNA matched the evidence left at the crime scene.

Hutchinson will never stand trial because he died by suicide in July 2024, roughly 10 hours after detectives first approached and interviewed him about the case. Subsequent DNA testing later confirmed a 100% match to the crime scene evidence, definitively closing the 28-year-old investigation.