PIERCE COUNTY, Wash. — A man is dead in Pierce County after his girlfriend shot him with a pellet rifle following an argument about infidelity, court documents show.
Nicole Johnson is accused of murder after deputies were called to a home in Graham on May 1 following reports of "an accidental shooting with a pellet gun." First responders found her performing CPR on her boyfriend, who appeared to have blood in his mouth.
The Pierce County Medical Examiner identified the victim as Rickey Albers, 51.
Johnson told deputies at the scene that earlier that day, she had discovered that Albers had been "romantically involved with others." She went to confront him at work, which was captured on surveillance video but returned home.
Later that evening, her boyfriend returned to the home. Johnson said she was holding the rifle when he arrived, but "the report indicates that due to the defendant's emotional state, it was unclear where or how the rifle was discharged, but soon after the victim returned home, he was shot by the defendant with the pellet gun."
Detectives attended Albers' autopsy, court documents say. A pellet was removed from Albers' left lung, and it was determined that the pellet had entered through his back and penetrated his lung. This caused his lungs to fill with blood, and the cause of death was identified as exsanguination.
A neighbor told deputies they saw Albers emerge from the home saying, "Call 911. She shot me." Johnson came out behind him saying, "Knock it off. It was just a BB gun, and it wasn't even loaded," according to the neighbor. However, the neighbor said they saw blood coming from Albers' mouth, at which point Johnson called 911.
Johnson told deputies that she "couldn't believe" the gun had been loaded. Court documents say that once she learned Albers had not survived, she asked a deputy to shoot her. She was then secured in a patrol car and read her Miranda rights.
Deputies later got a warrant to search the home and retrieved a Crossman .177 caliber air pellet rifle from near the front door on the floor. The rifle had a large scope, court documents say, and ammunition for the rifle was found inside.
How often do people die from pellet gun injuries?
According to the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission, it gets reports of about four deaths per year by BB guns or pellet rifles.
