A Charleston woman remained in critical condition at a Memphis hospital late Wednesday after being shot in the head, while her boyfriend, the suspected shooter, is dead following an apparent suicide.
The incident occurred shortly before 2:30 a.m. Sunday at 1459 Marshall St., Apt. 4, just north of Charleston, according to Tallahatchie County Sheriff Jimmy Fly.
The sheriff said it is believed that Terrance Lavell Stephens, 39, of 557 Blue Cane Road, Charleston, shot Shandanesha Johnson, 28, at the Marshall Street apartment complex where she lived with her 5-year-old daughter before turning the gun on himself.
Both Stephens and Johnson sustained single gunshot wounds to the head, he noted.
Fly said a .22-caliber revolver was found on the ground within 4 feet of Stephens’ body.
“It’s still under investigation, but just based on the physical evidence there on the scene, it appears that she was shot and that he shot himself,” the sheriff added.
Tallahatchie County Coroner Ginger Meriwether, who said she pronounced Stephens dead at the scene at 3:50 a.m., likewise said physical evidence points to him dying of a self-inflicted wound.
Meriwether added late Monday that she was still “awaiting information and reports from the Mississippi Forensics Lab.”
Fly explained that Johnson apparently was shot outside her apartment’s front door, while Stephens’ body was found about 30 feet away at the edge of the parking lot.
“From what I’ve been told, they’ve been together between one and two years,” the sheriff said of the couple’s relationship.
Fly said Stephens and Johnson reportedly had been together at her apartment prior to the shooting.
Although tenants of adjacent apartments did not recall hearing a verbal altercation before the gunfire, the sheriff said other sources suggest that the couple had been quarreling “all day long.” Nothing was ever reported to law enforcement prior to the shooting, he added.
The child was in the apartment at the time her mother was shot, Fly said. After the shooting, a neighbor went in, got the child and took her to her own apartment, he explained. Family members were contacted. The child was not harmed, he added.
Fly noted that investigators recovered two cellphones from Stephens — one on the ground near his body and another in his back pocket — and will submit those for processing “to see what may be on them,” such as, he added, any clues as to what might have precipitated the shooting.
“We also found some [security] cameras in the home, and we’ve taken them and are going to do a thorough investigation,” the sheriff said, noting that one of the cameras was in a window at the front “facing out.”
“It didn’t have a hard drive or DVR it records to,” said Fly. “It’s one of those Blink cameras, kind of like a doorbell camera. A lot of times, they record to the cloud, so we’ve taken it and we’ll see if we can access that.”
Both Meriwether and Fly voiced personal concerns for everyone involved.
“My prayers are extended to family and friends of both the decedent and the hospitalized victim,” said Meriwether.
Fly said Thursday morning that Johnson's condition, although still listed as critical, was said to be showing signs of improvement Wednesday evening.
Calling the incident "a tragic situation," Fly added, "My heart goes out to both families."
