Authorities have identified the family found dead in a Santa Rosa home, the motive still unknown

Authorities have identified four family members found dead with gunshot wounds last week at the Santa Rosa homemarking the city’s first homicides of the year.

The Sonoma County Coroner’s Office identified the deceased as Clive Guth, 67; Donna Guth, 67; Raena Guth, 33; and Cameron Guth, 28, Santa Rosa Police Sgt. Patricia Seffens said Tuesday. Clive and Donna Guth, who were once married, were the parents of Raena and Cameron.

Santa Rosa police officers discovered the bodies Wednesday during a welfare check at a home in the 200 block of Monarch Court. The request for verification came from a man who, since the evening of January 5, could not contact his partner, one of the residents.

All four suffered “significant” gunshot wounds, according to law enforcement, and were found inside a three-bedroom home in the Valle Vista Senior Subdivision.

An unregistered semi-automatic pistol found near one of the victims has not yet been identified, authorities said.

The family lived in the house for at least ten years, initially moving in to care for Donna Guth’s mother. Valle Vista Management Association President Karen Squaglia said Donna Guth received a special permit for her two grown children, both invalid, live there.

Several neighbors told The Press Democrat that they had seen the mother and her two grown children at the home regularly in recent days.

Although police said three people appeared to have lived in the home, the circumstances surrounding their deaths remain unclear.

The Santa Rosa Police Violent Crime Squad is actively seeking leads to determine a motive. The cause and manner of death are under investigation by the coroner’s office, spokesman for Deputy Rob Dillion said Tuesday.

Authorities encourage anyone with information to call the Violent Crimes Investigation Line at 707-543-3590.

Staff writer Madison Smalstig can be reached at [email protected]. On X (Twitter) @madi.smals.