Inset: Kimberly Charlton (Black Hawk County Jail). Background: The home where Charlton allegedly shot and killed her husband (Google Maps).
A 66-year-old woman in Iowa is accused of killing her 72-year-old husband, allegedly shooting him in the back inside of their home because the victim had threatened to hit their dog with a cane.
Kimberly Ann Charlton was taken into custody on Wednesday and charged with one count of first-degree murder in the slaying of David Alan Charlton, authorities announced. According to a news release from the Cedar Falls Department of Public Safety, police officers at about 6:32 p.m. on Wednesday responded to a residence in the 4300 block of Newland Drive after receiving a report about a domestic dispute in which one person “had possibly been shot.” The home is about 100 miles southwest of Des Moines.
Upon arriving at the scene, first responders said they located an adult male victim — later identified as David Charlton — who appeared to have suffered a fatal gunshot wound. He was pronounced dead at the scene.
Authorities also found the victim’s wife, Kimberly Charlton, still at the scene and placed her under arrest.
Police said they were assisted in the case by Black Hawk County Dispatch, MercyOne Paramedics, and the Cedar Falls Fire Division.
A copy of the criminal complaint obtained by the Waterloo-Cedar Falls Courier newspaper provided additional details about the circumstances of the shooting.
According to the report, when questioned by detectives, Kimberly Charlton said that earlier that evening, her husband had attempted to assault her while they were in their bedroom. However, she claimed the alleged attack was stopped when their dog intervened.
David Charlton then left the bedroom, returning a short while later with his walking cane and threatened to beat the dog, Kimberly Charlton reportedly said. The dog reportedly went down the hallway and David Charlton followed the animal, still wielding the cane. As her husband went after the dog,
Kimberly Charlton allegedly grabbed a firearm from a dresser in the bedroom, went into the hallway, and told her husband, “I’m going to shoot you if you don’t stop.” When he did not stop, Kimberly Charlton allegedly admitted to firing a single shot that struck her husband in the center of his back.
Kimberly Charlton is currently being held in the Black Hawk County Jail in lieu of $1 million bond, records show.
