Estimated read time: 4-5 minutes
This archived news story is available only for your personal, non-commercial use. Information in the story may be outdated or superseded by additional information. Reading or replaying the story in its archived form does not constitute a republication of the story.
SALT LAKE CITY -- Friends and employees of Steven and Lisa Runolfson say La Caille was their life.
Steven had worked his way up from busboy to co-owner and in the process married Lisa, whose father was the original owner of the property when it was still known as Quail Run.
That's why friends say they were devastated when earlier this year a court awarded a former co-owner $4.7 million in a civil lawsuit against Runolfson.
"The lawsuit definitely took a toll on the choice they made, it just threw them over," said Jackie Parrish, who works in the La Caille business office. "Basically they almost couldn't take it anymore. The disappointment of everything they worked so hard for was being taken away from them so quickly in such an unrighteous manner for sure."
The bodies of Steven Runolfson, 56, and his wife, Lisa Runolfson, 57, were found Christmas night in a room in the Provo Marriott Hotel. Police believe the couple fulfilled a pact to end their lives together with Steven shooting and killing Lisa and then turning the gun on himself.
No known motive for the murder-suicide pact has been released.
Runolfson's former partner, Mark Haug, said he too was upset by the deaths.
But he said he is also "surprised by the disturbing comments," from some, suggesting his lawsuit against Runolfson was a contributing factor in their murder-suicide pact.
"The Runolfsons were successful business people, and Mr. Runolfson was always professional and gracious in his interactions with us during the lawsuit, and the same during our personal encounters with him in social situations, such as charity events," Haug's attorney, James Magleby, said in a prepared statement Monday. "We also believe the dispute was very close to a settlement that would have left all of the La Caille partners financially independent and allowed the parties to move on with their lives."
Runolfson and David Johnson have co-owned the upscale French restaurant, 9565 S. Wasatch Blvd., since 1973. Runolfson, who also lived on the 20-acre restaurant property, was also the business' president and chief executive officer.
Earlier this year, a jury awarded Haug, Runolfson's former longtime third partner, $4.7 million based on a civil lawsuit filed in 2006. The La Caille property was also for sale at the time of the shootings, listed for about $20 million.
Magleby said Haug was "surprised and deeply upset" by the murder-suicide and extended his condolences to the Runolfson family.
He noted that, "Mr. Haug and our office reject the insensitive comments that have been posted on the news websites about the Runolfsons, and we ask that everyone respect the privacy and dignity of the Runolfson family during this sad time."
It's impossible for anyone to know what else may have been going on with the Runolfsons' lives or what their reasons were for doing what they did, he said.
Marcia Mackey was in a bowling league with Lisa Runolfson and close friends with her.
"I was shocked," she said upon hearing the tragic news. "They were kind people, good people. They were kind hearted."
Several friends said Monday they were unaware of the on-going lawsuit for a long time because the Runolfsons never mentioned it and continued on with their lives as if everything was OK. After the ruling, however, they did confide to friends that they were deeply disappointed.
"They were just devastated that they lost it," she said. "They just couldn't believe it. ... They were just really upset."
At one point, Lisa told Mackey that maybe, "it's time for us to retire out of the business anyway," and another time said, "Steve and I can always get a job in a restaurant some place."
But friends also noted that La Caille "was all they knew."
Cassie Richardson, a server at La Caille, said Steven Runolfson would always make it a point to tell the staff what good jobs they were doing, ask them about what was happening in their personal lives and ask how they could make things better.
"It's kind of like a piece of our family is gone now," she said. "They were just very, very good people."
Parrish said Steven Runolfson was involved in several charities and there were fundraisers scheduled through 2011, which she said would continue.
------
Story compiled with contributions from Pat Reavy and Richard Piatt.
