Police said a Vero Beach man called 911 to report that he shot and killed his wife around 5 p.m. Thursday.
Police said they are still working to determine what led the man to shoot his wife. He has been identified by the Vero Beach Police Department as 68-year-old man Earl Lee Boggess.
The shooting happened at the couple’s home on 17th Street.
Police obtained a search warrant Thursday night to back inside the home to look for evidence.
After the man called 911, police arrived within minutes and found he was still armed. His wife, 60-year-old Kathryn D. Boggess, was found deceased in the kitchen. Police say the man was in the back of the home near an enclosed pool and would not put his gun down.
Vero Beach Police Chief David Currey says that also kept officers from getting to the woman sooner. “They weren’t able to get to her as quick as we wanted,” Currey said.
SWAT team members took action once they feared he might hurt himself.
“He started to put the firearm toward his head and one of our SWAT members, using less lethal bean bag round, shot his hand where the gun was, knocked the gun out of his hand and the team was able to take him into custody instantly,” said Currey.
Police said Earl Boggess was likely intoxicated, which may have played in a role in the violence.
Neighbors say they saw the two leave together in a truck Thursday afternoon. They said the shooting happened about an hour after they returned home.
One neighbor, who didn’t want to be identified, said he watched police pull out their weapons. “We just stayed inside and stayed out of their way and had the kids go all the way to the back of the house.”
Another neighbor, Jennifer Ellis, says there were never problems at the home that they knew of. They didn’t recall ever seeing police called there.
“They always seemed very nice, always friendly, we always said hi and good morning. They were always really nice to the kids,” Ellis said.
It’s a devastating reminder to neighbors that there may have been unknown problems next door.
“You never know what happens behind closed doors.”
“I don’t think anything should come to that, but you never know what someone is going through,” Ellis said.
The sheriff's office said Boggess faces second-degree murder charges. He is currently hospitalized.
