A man died from a self-inflicted gunshot wound after getting into a verbal altercation with his girlfriend whom he shot at a beef plant in Texas, according to authorities.
The San Angelo Police Department said a 57-year-old man and a 49-year-old woman were in a dating relationship and working at the Lone Star Beef plant. While at work, the two got into a verbal altercation and the man pulled out a gun and shot her before turning the gun on himself, the department said in a statement.
Every month, an average of 70 women are shot and killed by their partners, according to Everytown Research, which also added that nearly 1 million women have reported being shot or shot at by an intimate partner, and more than 4.5 million woman have reported being threatened with a gun. The National Coalition Against Domestic Violence says one in four women will experience some form of domestic abuse by an intimate partner in their lifetime.
Police received a call regarding the shooting at the beef processing plant located in San Angelo, Texas, at around 8:30 a.m. on Friday. Upon arrival, officers located the pair, who both had gunshot wounds. Police learned the man had shot the female near her left shoulder and then proceeded to shoot himself, but authorities did not specify where.
The pair were taken to Shannon Medical Center, and the woman is reported to be in stable condition. The man died from his injuries. Police say the investigation is ongoing. It's unknown what led to the argument or what it was about.
Newsweek reached out to the police department for comment.
Friday's shooting is one of the most recent incidents of domestic violence that have gained national attention in recent months. In February, a Michigan man was sentenced to a minimum of 38 years in prison for murdering his wife, Susan Louise Klepsch. She died in 2020 from blunt force trauma to the head and neck. Her husband proceeded to sleep with her dead body for nearly a week afterwards.
Also in Michigan in the same month, a man allegedly assaulted his wife and threw their dog in the bathtub because he was angry their pizza was cold. The man also threatened to shoot the dog with a rifle during the argument. He was charged with possession of a firearm while intoxicated, domestic violence and assault with a dangerous weapon in addition to other charges.
Research published in 2019 in the American Journal of Preventive Medicine found that gun owners had experienced higher numbers of partners and family members killing each other in the home, with women in particular danger of being victims of violence. By studying annual data on U.S. homicide rates between 1990 and 2016, researchers found that around one in four homicide victims were women, but they accounted for about three in four victims of intimate partner homicide.
For anonymous, confidential help 24/7, people can contact the National Domestic Violence Hotline at 1-800-799-7233 (SAFE) or 1-800-787-3224, or by visiting the website.
Update 4/1/22, 4:20 p.m. ET: This article was updated with additional information.
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