By Daily Mail (U.S.) | Created at 2024-12-20 16:43:37 | Updated at 2024-12-29 07:30:17
1 week ago
Shocking footage captured the moments after a woman fatally shot her estranged husband on the steps of a Mississippi courthouse after their divorce hearing.
Tanya Saucier, 49, was arrested Tuesday for gunning down James Ray Saucier, 62, outside the entryway of Pearl River County Chancery Courthouse in Poplarville after finalizing their divorce paperwork.
Video footage captured the chaos that ensued minutes after the shooting that left witnesses scrambling to try to save the victim and officers taking Tanya into custody on charges of first-degree murder.
'The life-saving efforts that our citizens attempted for Mr. Saucier was phenomenal,' Maj. Scott Allee, the Pearl River County Sheriff's Office Lead Investigator, told WLOX.
Staff from the courthouse were seen surrounding James Ray, who was lying just feet away from the building's front doors.
Jansen Owen, who represented Tanya during the divorce process, was captured shirtless while he knelt near the victim - his clothing ripped off in an attempt to stop the bleeding.
Other employees of chancery clerk's office also jumped into action.
'They were out there, he was in their lap,' Owen told the outlet.
'They helped me to apply pressure to his wounds. They took my tie and applied a tourniquet to his wounds.
Video footage captured the moments after Tanya Saucier, 49, shot her estranged husband in front of a Mississippi court house following a court proceeding finalizing their divorce
The shocking footage showed courthouse employees as well as a shirtless Jansen Owen, Tanya's defense attorney, surrounding James Ray Saucier, 62, after he was gunned down
Tanya had initially filed for divorce on December 27, 2023, after James Saucier (pictured) allegedly shot her in the eye, head and chest on September 1, 2023
'Those girls in the chancery clerk office are real heroes.'
Pearl River County Chancery Court Clerk Melinda Bowman emotionally relived the experience while recalling her staff's actions.
'They were all ministering to him. They're all deeply committed Christians, as I am,' she told the outlet.
'And they knew he was about to close his eyes to this life and they began talking to him about what was going to happen and they said, "All you have to do is run to Jesus."'
Bowman then recalled how James Ray squeezed the hand of one of the women twice before he closed his eyes for the last time.
'Yesterday was the greatest example of them going above and beyond,' she added. 'And I've never been prouder.'
Gunfire broke out at the courthouse around 12.15pm on Tuesday afternoon, according to the Pearl River County Sheriff's Office.
Tanya allegedly shot her estranged husband several times after a proceeding where their attorneys negotiated the terms of their divorce officially wrapped up.
According to Donald Rafferty, James Ray's attorney, she became upset with the litigation process during the hearing, WDAM reported.
It was also revealed that Tanya wasn't even supposed to be at the courthouse in the first place, WLOX reported.
Due to the Sauciers' volatile relationship, the court wanted to keep the couple separated during the ordeal.
The court ordered Tanya to appear in front of the judge at around 10am and leave immediately after.
James Ray showed up around an hour later to complete his part in finalizing the paperwork, at which point Tanya was supposed to be gone.
But she never left the premises and instead waited in her truck until James Ray exited the building, witnesses told investigators.
'I was leaving the building, Mr. James Ray was leaving right behind me, at which point I heard gunfire,' Owen recalled to the outlet.
'And ultimately determined that Miss Tanya had opened fire,' he added. 'I saw her continue to shoot at Mr. James Ray. She approached me, at which point I grabbed her and held her against the vehicle.'
Video footage also captured the gun, which was determined to be a 9mm handgun, lying on the ground just feet away from where several people were seen attempting to preform life-saving measures on James Ray
Due to the couple's history of violence, the court scheduled Tanya to appear in front of a judge at 10am and immediately leave afterwards so James Ray could arrive to finalize his part in the paperwork
Witnesses told investigators that instead of leaving, Tanya waited in her truck for her estranged husband to exit the building
Owen also kicked the gun - which was confirmed to be a 9mm handgun - away from a frenzied Tanya, WLOX reported.
A court officer who was at the building right across the street ran over to the scene and apprehended Tanya seconds before Poplarville Police officers arrived and took her into custody.
Tanya originally filed for divorce in December of 2023 after James Ray allegedly shot her in the eye three months prior, according to court documents obtained by WDAM.
Additionally, James Ray allegedly shot her once in the head and four times in the chest during the same incident after he became upset with her while drinking, Fox 8 reported.
A family friend told Fox 8 News that the couple had a long history of domestic violence.
'Once they were married, things fell through,' a loved one of Tanya, who chose to remain anonymous, told the outlet. 'It got bad. Very violent.'
Court documents revealed that James called 911 to report that he had shot his wife in the head - an act that his attorney and family members claim was in self-defense.
'She lost her eye. She's got brain issues. She has seizures,' Tanya's loved one told Fox 8. 'She's on medication. She's in constant pain.'
One of Tanya's Facebook posts show the aftermath following the incident where James Ray allegedly shot her in the eye, once in the head and four times in the chest after he became upset with her while drinking
A family friend of Tanya told an outlet that the pair had a long history of domestic violence and that the 49-year-old woman was living in 'constant fear'
Donald Rafferty, James Ray's attorney, said that Tanya became upset with the litigation process during the hearing
The same family member also noted how her original prosthetic eye, along with most of her belongings and her two black Labrador retrievers, were destroyed in a fire.
'She was harassed,' they added. 'She's been tormented over and over and over again to where she lived in fear. Constant fear.'
James Ray was indicted in August of this year on charges of aggravated assault and domestic violence with a deadly weapon. His trial was scheduled for March 2025.
Court records also show that Tanya filed for a protective order on April 2 that was approved on November 26.
Her divorce lawyer, Owen, noted that there's no excuse for her actions.
'There is no justification, there is no excuse for anybody to open fire on somebody in a public setting like that,' he told WLOX.
'We do not do vigilante justice in America,' he added. 'What Miss Saucier did yesterday is unjustifiable and I witnessed her murder him.'
Due to the documented history of violence between the two, Jose Raspanti, a Fox 8 legal analyst, said that her attorney may use lack of mental capacity as her defense - but it would have to meet the criteria.
'I don't think there's going to be a good self-defense argument,' he told the outlet. 'She chose to take the law into her own hands and kill this man.
'No matter what he did to her before, she can't choose to end his life in her own specific time and place.'
Tanya made her first court appearance on Wednesday, where she was denied bond by the justice court judge.
