Coeur d'Alene man arrested in California in mother's killing

U.S. Marshals arrested a Coeur d'Alene man near Los Angeles on April 17 as he was preparing to board a flight to China in the killing of his mother, Susan M. Stratton, 77.

Police say Neil F. Stratton, 52, of Coeur d'Alene, was identified early in the investigation and was taken into custody after the Coeur d'Alene Police Department obtained an arrest warrant the day before. He is charged with first-degree murder, burglary and felony destruction of evidence and is awaiting extradition back to Coeur d'Alene.

The case began on Sept. 18, 2025, when officers were sent to the 1100 block of E. Skyline Drive after a report of an unconscious elderly woman with severe injuries. Susan Stratton later died, and investigators ruled her death a homicide. The home is in a quiet residential area on the south side of Coeur d'Alene, a detail that has made the case especially unsettling for neighbors and for a city still watching how the criminal case develops.

Detectives built the case with help from the Kootenai County Prosecutor’s Office, multiple forensic experts and other law enforcement partners before securing the warrant on April 16, 2026. The arrest in California came before Stratton could leave the country, a point U.S. Marshal for the District of Idaho Brent R. Bunn said underscored how quickly coordinated law enforcement work can stop a suspect from disappearing beyond reach. Bunn said that without that cooperation, Stratton may have entered a foreign country, making extradition difficult or impossible.

Coeur d'Alene Mayor Dan Gookin also praised the police department’s work as the case moved toward formal charges. The arrest now shifts the case from investigation to prosecution, with the next steps likely to center on extradition, court proceedings and the evidence gathered over months of work by local and federal authorities.