By MARIANN MARTIN
mmartin10@jacksonsun.com
Nationwide, more women than men are killed in domestic incidents, but West Tennessee has recently seen a high number of women charged with killing family members.
Four women have been charged with killing their husbands, and in one case her father, in recent or pending West Tennessee court cases. In three of the cases, family members or lawyers have said the woman was abused.
Nov. 1, 2008
HUNTERSVILLE - Rhonda Payne, 38, of Huntersville, is charged with second-degree murder in the Nov. 1, 2008, stabbing of her husband, John Payne, 31.
Her trial is scheduled for March 8.
Authorities previously have said they believe John Payne's slaying stemmed from a domestic dispute.
At Rhonda Payne's preliminary hearing, her attorney, Joe Byrd Jr., argued that John Payne had a history of domestic violence and abuse and that Rhonda Payne acted in self-defense.
He also played a 911 tape of a call Rhonda Payne made to the Madison County Sheriff's Office about 30 minutes before the stabbing, asking for help.
March 28, 2009
DECATUR COUNTY - Misty Dawn Evans, 25, pleaded guilty to voluntary manslaughter last month and was sentenced to 10 years in prison.
Investigators have said her father, Neely Evans, was shot to death March 28 at his home in the 1700 block of Bear Creek Road.
During Evans' preliminary hearing, her mother, Jenita Evans, testified in Decatur County Circuit Court that she and her daughter were afraid of her husband. She said he had threatened to kill both of them.
April/May 2009
JACKSON - Molly Donaldson, 22, is charged with first-degree murder in the slaying of her husband, Chico Donaldson.
Donaldson's trial has been set for May 5. She is also charged with tampering with evidence and filing a false report.
Donaldson had been romantically linked to Thomas Cupples, 39, who left a note for authorities telling them he shot Chico Donaldson, police have said. Cupples died from an apparent self-inflicted gunshot May 5.
Chico Donaldson died from multiple gunshot wounds at the couple's home on Tennessee Street, according to police.
Family members reported him missing May 4 after they hadn't seen or heard from him since April 30. Authorities recovered his body May 6.
Nov. 2, 2009
SELMER - Melissa R. Cole, 41, faces charges of first-degree murder, aggravated arson and tampering with evidence in the Nov. 2 death of her husband, Gary Cole, at their Enville home.
Her case has been sent to the McNairy County grand jury.
Gary Cole's body was found in the early hours of Nov. 3 when firefighters responded to the blaze that destroyed the couple's home on Hardin Graveyard Road in northern McNairy County.
An autopsy determined Cole died from a gunshot wound, Sheriff Ricky Roten has said.
An affidavit of complaint states that Melissa Cole shot her husband in the head with a pistol before setting the fire.
Family members have said Melissa Cole was abused by her husband.
By the numbers
Though domestic violence cases have been prominent recently in West Tennessee, according to U.S. Bureau of Justice statistics from 1975 to 2005, there has been a decline in homicides involving intimate relationships, especially when those killed are men.
Intimate relationships are defined to include spouses, ex-spouses, boyfriends and girlfriends.
The number of men murdered by intimates has dropped by 75 percent since 1976, when 1,304 men were killed. In 2005, 329 men were killed.
The number of women killed by intimates was stable for nearly two decades. After 1993, the number declined, reaching the lowest level recorded in 2004. In 1976, 1,587 women were killed, and in 2005, 1,181 women were killed.
The number of white females killed by intimates rose in the mid-1980s, then declined after 1993, reaching the lowest recorded in 2002. The number fluctuated slightly after 2002.
The number of intimate homicides for all other race and gender groups declined over the period; the number of black males killed by intimates dropped by 83 percent, white males by 61 percent, black females by 52 percent, and white females by 6 percent.
About 11 percent of all murder victims were determined to have been killed by an intimate.
About one-third of female murder victims were killed by an intimate.
About 3 percent of male murder victims were killed by an intimate.
Of all female murder victims, the proportion killed by an intimate has been increasing.
Of male murder victims, the proportion killed by an intimate has dropped.
Most intimate homicides involved spouses, though in recent years the number killed by boyfriends and girlfriends was about the same.
- Mariann Martin, 425-9782
No comments:
Post a Comment