Man pleads guilty to shooting wife at Federal Way church
Published 11:04 am Tuesday, April 16, 2013
Mirror staff reports:
A Lakewood man pleaded guilty last week to first-degree murder after shooting his ex-wife at a Federal Way church in 2010.
Charles L. Parsons, 44, faces up to 28 and a half years in prison — the maximum sentenced recommended by King County prosecutors. A sentencing date has not been scheduled.
On March 17, 2010, Parsons shot his ex-wife, Carol Parsons, 38, during a counseling session at Calvary Lutheran Church.
The couple had been married 12 years and had three children. They had divorced the previous year, but Charles Parsons wanted to reconcile the relationship.
According to charging documents, during a counseling session, Parsons asked his ex-wife if she would stop seeing her new boyfriend. When she refused to stop seeing the man, Parsons rose to his feet, retrieved a gun from his coat and shot six rounds at his ex-wife.
He then went outside and called 911, allegedly telling the dispatcher he had “shot his wife in a counseling session in a fit of rage,” according to charging documents. Parsons set his weapon aside and waited for police to arrive on scene.
The shooting took place during a time when there were children upstairs at the daycare’s church. Parsons also allegedly threatened the counselor with the gun.
Medics attempted to aid Carol Parsons and transported her to Harborview Medical Center, where she later died of five gunshot wounds.
