A Gwinnett County man and woman died early Friday in what police are calling a murder-suicide, but three children inside the home survived the gunfire.
Gwinnett police Cpl. Deon Washington said officers responding to a 12:40 a.m. report of shots fired at a home in the 400 block of Laurelton Circle near Lawrenceville found the man and woman dead inside the house.
Officers spoke with three children, ages 8, 14 and 16, who were also inside the house, “and they identified the deceased as their parents, Lucio Jimenez, 51, and Paula Gonzalez, 43,” Washington said.
During the shooting, “one of the children sustained a superficial gunshot wound and was transported to the hospital,” he said.
Washington said the children told detectives their parents had been involved in a physical altercation before the shooting, and during the dispute, Gonzalez “retrieved a handgun” and fired several shots at Jimenez, killing him and grazing their daughter.
“Afterwards, Paula Gonzalez committed suicide,” he said.
Police do not know what led to the altercation between Jimenez and Gonzalez, who had been married for nearly 20 years.
Their children are with family members and DFCS is involved in the investigation, Washington said.
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