CORPUS CHRISTI — A couple found fatally shot Tuesday at a home off Ocean Drive were separated and in the midst of a divorce, friends and police said.
The bodies of Pamela Frances Stanley and Richard Anderson Stanley, both 71, were discovered about 5:30 p.m. by a friend at a two-story home in the 200 block of Aberdeen Avenue, Corpus Christi police said.
Both died of gunshot wounds to the head, police said. A handgun was recovered at the scene.
Richard Stanley also suffered a gunshot wound to the knee, police said.
Police and county medical examiners have ruled the deaths as a murder-suicide, the city’s first homicide of 2012.
“It appears there was a struggle and then he killed her and killed himself,” said Lt. Isaac Valencia of the Corpus Christi Police Department. “Beyond that, we’ll never really know the specific details.”
Pamela Stanley was a retired art teacher, devoting herself full-time to her watercolor paintings, and teaching teens out of her home and at summer camps at the Art Center of Corpus Christi.
“She was a person who would jump in and do things; she was a doer,” said Bob Baker, managing director of the art center. “She was very involved with the center and passionate about art.”
Pamela Stanley volunteered for several projects and committees which raised thousands for the art center, Baker said, and was always hosting exhibits of her student’s work. She was also involved with the Rockport Center for the Arts, the Austin Street Gallery in Rockport, South Texas Watercolor Society and the Art Museum of South Texas.
“She was an amazing person,” said Julie Sander, whose teenage daughter took lessons from her the past six years. “She was a very nice person who loved her students. She would paint right alongside them.”
Pamela Stanley resided at the Aberdeen Avenue home, often using the name Frances Gibson Stanley, the name on her driver’s license, county officials said. Though the pair had been married for years, Richard Stanley maintained another address at a home in the 5400 block of Cain Drive.
He worked for nearly three decades in the local real estate industry, as an agent and more recently as a home inspector, running his own business, Stanley Inspection Service.
Many realtors reeled from the news Wednesday.
“He was an awesome guy that was very detailed in his work. He did a very good job,” said Lorraine Elizondo, a local realtor.
She said Richard Stanley, or “Dick” as many in the business called him, was a low-key, mellow guy who always took time to work with prospective homebuyers and give them a thorough report of a house.
“He will be missed. He’s been in the business for years,” she said.
Realtor Gene Guernsey said Richard Stanley was a home inspector that he often chose because of his experience. The pair worked out at the same gym, and spoke last Thursday about the Stanley’s relationship issues.
“He looked like he had dropped about 30 pounds. He told me he was separated and they going through a divorce,” Guernsey said. “Dick’s a good guy and it was sad to hear about.”
Homicide investigators are searching for clues as to what led to the shooting.
“Apparently this was a domestic issue that was going on between these two,” Valencia said. “The victim was proceeding with a divorce process that set off a trigger.
“This should be a reminder to all of us in our community that when individuals are going through a crisis of this nature, we need to speak up.”
Staff writer Mike Baird contributed to this report.
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