A woman is recovering in hospital after she was shot outside a home by her husband, who then took his own life, police say
WOODSTOCK – A woman is recovering in hospital after she was shot outside a home by her husband, who then took his own life, police say.
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Officers responded at about 7:30 p.m. Thursday to Champlain Avenue after several 911 calls about gunshots, Woodstock police said. When officers arrived at the street in the city’s south end, they found an injured woman with a gunshot wound in the driveway, and the body of a man down the street, police said.
There was a firearm on the ground next to the man, who appeared to have a self-inflicted gunshot wound, Deputy Chief Nick Novacich said Friday. Police initially stated that the two people involved in the shooting knew each other, but he confirmed they were husband and wife.
“The investigation so far has determined that the male arrived, shot the female in the laneway, then appears to have (a) self-inflicted (gunshot wound),” he said.
Due to the circumstances, the investigation is not being treated as a homicide but as a case of intimate partner violence, Novacich said.
Police have not identified the pair.
Police are holding the scene while they wait for a warrant to collect more evidence, and a post mortem is taking place on the deceased man, he said.
Novacich said there is no threat to public safety, but encouraged neighbours and witnesses to reach out to the police’s victim services.
“It’s disturbing that this happened in a busy neighborhood when everyone was out and about,” he said. “We haven’t had anything like this happen in quite some time.”
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Martin Plante, who lives across the street, said he was getting into the shower when he heard a pop outside that he thought was a blown tire.
He said he stepped outside to hear screaming, and saw the woman in the driveway and two men running down the street. As neighbours came, he tended to the woman and put pressure on her wound until first responders arrived.
“I never would have expected that here,” he said. “It was a shock.”
Several residents of the dense suburban street, lined with new homes, did not wish to be identified but described being shocked and saddened by the violence.
Joanne Anderson, another neighbour across the street, said she was at work when the shooting happened and had to be escorted to her home by police when she arrived.
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“I hope the family is OK,” she said.
Novacich said police have canvassed the neighbourhood for witnesses and video. Police ask anyone with information to contact Woodstock police at 519-537-2323 or Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-8477.
Diane Harris, executive director of Domestic Abuse Services Oxford and Ingamo Homes, a transitional housing agency for women and children fleeing domestic abuse, said she was “deeply saddened” to hear of the incident.
The two agencies have been working with the Domestic Abuse Resource Team to bring a femicide prevention strategy to Oxford County, she said.
“In 2023, Oxford County and the city of Woodstock declared that gender-based violence is an epidemic in our community,” Harris said. “We can absolutely see that in today’s news reports.”
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The most recent incident “reinforces why this work is so important,” she said.
“Intimate partner violence is a real epidemic that we as a community cannot ignore, we must come together as a community to fight for prevention strategies currently,” Harris said. “We are asking community leaders to have a commitment to train their staff on gender-based violence across the county so we can recognize, respond and refer.
“We can no longer sit back and say it’s not happening here.”
The Woodstock shooting caps a deadly week for authorities in the wider London area.
A 13-year-old boy is charged with first-degree murder in the death of another youth in the Holmesville area of Huron County earlier this week, and police in St. Thomas are running a homicide investigation after a woman found with life-threatening injuries, unrelated to a suspected arson also being investigated, died in hospital.
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