BALTIMORE COUNTY — An arrest was made after a domestic dispute led to a deadly shooting in Baltimore County.
Police charged 42-year-old Michele McCray with first-degree murder.
According to charging documents, officers were dispatched to the 3600 block of Tulsa Road after a 911 caller said that his mother shot his stepfather at their home.
Police arrived at the scene and found the victim, 46-year-old Antoine Johnson, laying in the grass in the front yard suffering from a gunshot wound to the head.
He was pronounced dead at the scene.
A short time later, officers found McCray and her son and took them to Baltimore County Police Headquarters to be interviewed.
A witness told police they recalled hearing both McCray and Johnson arguing in the front yard. Following the argument, they both went back inside where after five minutes, a gunshot was heard.
The witness said he saw Johnson laying on the ground and McCray standing on the top porch looking down at him, with no one else in the area.
At police headquarters, McCray's son told investigators that he lives at the home with his mother and her boyfriend, stating that the argument began after Johnson came home from work.
While he was in his bedroom he could hear McCray saying, "What are you going to do put your hands on me?"
After Johnson said that he wasn't going to put his hands on her, the son told him to go outside so everyone could cool off. He then heard McCray go upstairs and grab a handgun from her room.
He heard his mother go downstairs and moments later, he heard a gunshot.
After seeing Johnson lying in the grass, he took the handgun from McCray and secured it inside of their home on Tulsa Road. Police later recovered the weapon after obtaining a search and seizure warrant.
He told police that his mother had been drinking earlier in the day and that she had been struggling with mental health issues lately.
While talking with police, McCray said that she was upset with Johnson earlier in the day while he was at work and when he came home an argument began that would later turn physical.
She said that Johnson had took her to the ground and began choking her in the living room. She added that Johnson also choked her against the front door.
Following the choking, she went upstairs to get her gun while Johnson walked out of the home, came downstairs with the gun and pointed it directly at Johnson in an attempt to scare him.
She said she mistakenly pulled the trigger and shot Johnson.
McCray told investigators that she did not have any physical injuries from the choking. Officers also noted that they saw no marks or injuries on her neck or throat area, but photos were still taken of both.
Police spoke with the son again, who said he did not hear or see a physical fight between Johnson and McCray before the shooting, adding that McCray was generally the aggressor during the confrontation.
McCray is currently being held without bail at the Baltimore County Detention Center.
