A man and a woman died in what the Jefferson County Sheriff's Office is calling a domestic-related murder-suicide.
In a Facebook post, the sheriff's office said the shooting happened at around 10:45 a.m. in a home on Fenton Ridge Drive in Fenton. The post said the department received two 911 calls about the shooting, one from neighbors and one from the female victim's cell phone.
The post said during the call from the victim's phone, dispatchers who answered the call heard comments from inside the home followed by gunshots. The other call came in at around the same time, and neighbors said two teenagers who lived in the home had run away after hearing gunshots.
“I hope that they didn’t see anything worse than an argument," said a neighbor who only identified herself as Bridget.
When deputies arrived on the scene of the shooting, they entered the home to find a man and a woman dead from gunshot wounds. Police said they found a gun in the man's hand.
Deputies have not identified the man or the woman but said they had the same last name. The man was 47 and the woman was 42.
The sheriff's office said a preliminary investigation found no previous history of domestic violence between the victim and the suspect.
“Far too often, unfortunately, we see that it’s too late," said Jefferson Co. Sheriff's Office Public Information Officer Grant Bissell. "Somebody is in a dire situation before they reach out for help.”
“You just really never know what is going on in people's homes until something tragic like this happens," said Bridget.
“Domestic situations can go bad very quickly, even if it’s the first one, and they can end tragically," said Bissell. "Anybody who is in one of those situations I would highly encourage to reach out.”
A chaplain for the department responded to the scene to help the family and the responding officers.
"Our thoughts and prayers are with the family," the sheriff's office said in the post.
The Jefferson County Sheriff's Office has two full-time victim services coordinators who can act as an intermediary between a victim and resources in the county. For help, call the main office number at 636-797-5000.
