Sequoyah County Sheriff Ron Lockhart said he doesn't plan to arrest the 95-year old Sequoyah County man who shot and killed a Van Buren man. The case has been turned over to the District Attorney's Office, which will decide whether to file any charges.
The man killed in a shooting in Sequoyah County, Okla., on Dec. 28 has been identified as Clinton McCormick, 29, of Van Buren, authorities said.
The suspected shooter is a 95-year-old resident of the Central High area near Sallisaw, said Lockhart. McCormick's mother, Teresa McCormick, identified the shooter as her employer Douglas Vaden, whom she's worked as a live-in caretaker for the past three years.
Teresa said Vaden is a skilled shooter.
"My son didn't have any weapons. He wasn't making a fist, nothing. And Mr. Vaden shot him in the face," she said.
Lockhart said McCormick went to the man's residence on Saturday evening, making threats. The suspected shooter felt he was in danger when McCormick attempted to attack him, the sheriff said. The suspected shooter fired one shot, striking McCormick, officials said.
According to Teresa, McCormick visited her at Vaden's home often.
"There's no trespassing sign, and he never told my son, 'Do not come on this property,'" she said.
McCormick's pregnant girlfriend, Erica Holder, witnessed the shooting after she drove McCormick to Vaden's home so he could borrow Teresa's car.
Holder said she's dated McCormick on and off for the past 15 years, and he was a good father to their one-and-a-half-year-old daughter.
McCormick's body was sent to the state medical examiner's office for an autopsy.
Sequoyah County Deputy Attorney Stacey Slaughter said her office is waiting to get the paperwork from the sheriff's office to review the case before making a determination on if they will press charges.
