An elderly South Carolina woman allegedly shot and killed her longtime husband moments after arriving at a care facility to visit him. A neighbor drove Harriet Kay Recker, 82, to visit her husband, Dennis Recker, 81, at a skilled-care facility. The visit came on the day after he was admitted to the facility for a medical issue requiring additional support.
The neighbor left the room to get an extra chair, and that’s when she heard a loud noise. When she returned, she found Harriet holding a revolver and Dennis with a gunshot wound to his chest. Despite staff performing life-saving measures, Dennis died at the scene. Moments before, a witness allegedly heard him say, “She shot me.”
Authorities now believe the shooting was premeditated. But family members told WTOC they had never seen Harriet with a gun before.
Inside her purse and at her home, among financial papers, investigators found two identical distressing notes that read:
“To you all this has just been too much for me, I so wish I could do it with the wonderful family we have, so many good friends. We can’t have a life without someone and that someone can’t be me as I am not strong enough or smart enough to do all this.”
After the note was read in court, the judge sent the case to a grand jury to determine probable cause.
Recker has been charged with murder and possession of a weapon. She is being held on bond at the Beaufort County Jail.
The news shocked both family and community members, according to The Independent.
The Reckers’ pest control serviceman, Ted Dwemoh, told the outlet he was stunned when he heard the news.
“When I saw her picture, I was dumbfounded, like there is no way that this woman did what they are saying she did,” Dwemoh said. “She would try and help you out with anything. When you went to her house to do pest control, she would walk and talk with you, give you snacks and water. She’s the nicest person in Sun City.”
The financial and emotional pressure of taking care of a sick loved one, especially when that responsibility falls on fellow elderly Americans, is a truly unfair burden. These folks are often surviving off of Medicare or Medicaid, and the services they provide are often inadequate, underfunded, and do not fully support individuals navigating life-altering health issues. It’s my speculation, but it sounds like this is a real reflection of the pressures of the US medical system, based on the contents of her note.
I’ve watched it happen to several family members, and everyone helped as much as they could and it was still extremely burdensome. While it doesn’t excuse a heinous crime, I can empathize and see where and why such a desperate move might occur.
