GRAPE CREEK, Texas — A 39-year-old woman is dead and a 32-year-old man has been charged with manslaughter in connection to her shooting death, according to the Tom Green County Sheriff's Office.
According to the TGCSO, at approximately 11:40 p.m. Tuesday, Sept. 27, deputies responded to the 8200 block of Concho Drive West in Grape Creek in reference to a gunshot victim.
Deputies found a woman, identified as Debra Netherton, 39, dead at the scene.
The suspect, Matthew South, 32, was detained at the scene. Probable cause was developed to believe South, at a minimum, was reckless with his actions, which resulted in Netherton's death.
An arrest affidavit states the San Angelo Police Department contacted the TGCSO about a 911 call from a man who reported he shot his wife. SAPD told the sheriff's office the man told them he was in the front room of the house and his wife was in the bedroom.
The man, eventually identified as South, told them the gun was in the front room with him and that his wife had a gunshot wound to the chest.
According to the affidavit, TGCSO Sgt. Gary Hanusch said he found South walking around the yard with blood on "his person and blood on his hands." Hanusch said South told him the shooting was an accident.
When they entered the travel trailer the couple was in, they found Debra Netherton on the bed with blood covering her chest area and a short-barreled "rifle or shotgun" with tape around the handle in the trailer.
In an interview, South said he had used methamphetamine earlier in the day, according to the affidavit. He said he was holding the shotgun in his hand, tried to put it on top of a dog kennel in the trailer and when he set it down, it went off. The shot went through the wall and hit Netherton.
South was arrested and charged with manslaughter. The criminal investigation is ongoing.
