PROVO, Utah (Court TV) — A Utah man is standing trial on charges he killed his brother-in-law in a plot involving his sister and mother.
Kevin Ellis appears in court during a pretrial hearing on Dec. 18, 2024. (Court TV)
Kevin Ellis is charged with murder, obstruction of justice, possession of a weapon by a restricted person and possession of a controlled substance in the July 12, 2024, death of Matthew Restelli.
Ellis admitted to pulling the trigger and shooting Matthew Restelli, his brother-in-law, seven times — but he maintains he was acting in self-defense. Ellis told detectives that he believed the victim had been armed with a knife.
Detectives say the victim wasn’t armed and had been lured to the property by Ellis’ sister, Kathryn Restelli, who was also the victim’s wife. Kathryn had taken the couple’s children from their California home to visit her mother; text messages made clear that Matthew thought he was driving to pick them up and bring them home.
Prosecutors say Kathryn never planned to leave with Matthew and instead plotted with Ellis and their mother, Tracy Grist, to murder him when he walked through the door. A knife that was found in Matthew’s hand at the scene was linked to a purchase made by Grist months earlier.
Among the digital evidence, prosecutors have said they plan to introduce internet searches conducted by the family related to the Donna Adelson case. Adelson was the fifth person convicted in the murder-for-hire that killed her former-son-in-law, FSU law professor Dan Markel.
Ellis and Grist’s cases were severed in 2025, with a judge deciding that Ellis’ case would move forward first. Kathryn pleaded guilty to murder and conspiracy charges in September 2025 and was sentenced to 1-15 years in prison. She is expected to testify at both her brother’s and mother’s trials.
