Quadriplegic Kills Wife by Using String in Mouth to Fire Gun
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HOUSTON — A jealous quadriplegic husband fatally shot his bride by using a string held in his mouth to pull the trigger of a hidden gun mounted on his wheelchair, police said today.
Bertha Mae Burns, 37, was shot to death Monday night at a lounge during a domestic dispute. Police said James B. Burns, 40, shot her.
“He pulled back, and a pistol that was underneath the box attached to the wheelchair fired, striking her one time,” said Sgt. H. L. Mayer. “She told him . . . ‘You shot me.’
“He leaned back two more times, fired two more times and shot her two more times, at which point she simply told him, ‘You’ve killed me.’ ”
Burns’ spine was severed in 1979 by a bullet fired by a former wife.
Police said Burns could not have mounted the complex mechanism on his wheelchair without help, and they are looking for the person who aided him.
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