Interviews detail longstanding neighbor feud before Portage deputy fatally shot woman

There came a point while a Portage County sheriff's deputy was interviewed about the day he fatally shot an armed Windham Township woman that something prompted the investigator to ask, "You doing OK?"

"Talking through it, it's a lot. Reliving it," replied the deputy. "I'm doing OK, but something I've learned to live with now and I'm doing OK."

An audio recording of the approximately 20-minute interview was part of a number of recently released documents, photos, and audio and video recordings that the Ohio Bureau of Criminal Investigation gathered during its investigation into the May 14 fatal shooting of 66-year-old Cora Baughman in her next-door neighbor's garage.

Portage County prosecutor:Deputy's actions justified in Windham fatal shooting

Those materials provide details not only of what happened, but also possible clues about what may have prompted Baughman to go to her neighbor's home with a loaded revolver that morning.

The full truth, however, may never be known.

Prior to its public release, BCI sent the information to the Portage County Prosecutor's Office in early October.

In a subsequent letter, Prosecutor Victor Vigluicci informed Sheriff Bruce Zuchowski that after reviewing the materials, the prosecutor's office had determined the shooting of Baughman was "reasonable, justified" and in compliance with sheriff's office use of deadly force policy and guidelines set by the U.S. Supreme Court.

The Record-Courier is not naming the deputy because he is not being charged.

What the Portage County sheriff's deputy says happened

On May 14, the deputy responded to a neighbor dispute complaint after a Werger Road homeowner reported at around 9:15 a.m. that Baughman was on the property with a gun, which she had pointed at him.

During the June 7 interview, the deputy described to a BCI special agent what he says happened:

While en route, he received reports that the situation was escalating and that the uninvited individual had tried to enter the home and had a gun. Other sheriff's personnel and mutual aid were requested, with a Garrettsville police officer arriving at the home about the same time as the deputy.

"As soon as I exit my patrol car, I see the subject come out of the darkness of the garage holding a black object that I was able to identify as a gun in her right hand," the deputy said.

The deputy began shouting orders to Baughman as he approached and took cover behind a vehicle parked outside.

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"Drop the gun, drop the gun!" he recalled shouting. "Drop the gun or you will be shot!"

"She put her hands, both hands up into the air, still holding the gun in her right hand," the deputy said. "I tell her to drop the gun again. She yells, 'No, I'm going to go inside and I'm going to kill them!'"

Baughman then turned around and went back into the garage. The deputy entered the garage and again ordered Baughman to drop the gun. Baughman yelled "No!" again, turned and pointed the gun at him.

"That's when I fired upon her," he said, "in fear of my life, the officer with me and, potentially, the folks inside the residence that called for help."

He stopped shooting when he saw the gun was no longer in Baughman's hand, ending the threat it posed.

The deputy then notified dispatch that shots had been fired, the "subject was down" and he and the Garrettsville officer both called for EMS and began "life-saving measures" on Baughman.

Body-worn camera footage captures Cora Baughman yelling 'No!' when ordered to drop gun

The deputy did not have a body-worn camera, but the Garrettsville officer did. On that footage, the deputy can be heard issuing repeated commands to Baughman to drop the gun, with the officer shouting a warning at one point.

Baughman is too far from the camera for the gun to clearly be seen in her hand and much of what she says is muffled until the officer is just outside the garage. She can then be heard shouting, "No!" The deputy yells "Drop it!" and 14 shots are heard in rapid succession.

The investigation determined that nine of those shots hit Baughman.

Baughman's neighbors describe confrontation

In a separate interview, the husband and wife who live in the home described what they say happened before the fatal shooting:

The husband said he initially saw Baughman on the front porch before she went into the attached garage. Doorbell camera video footage shows Baughman on the porch holding a gun in her right hand and apparently trying to open the door.

After Baughman went into the garage, the husband confronted her and called 911. He then opened the door again to the garage and saw Baughman pointing the gun at him. He demanded she leave the property and she replied, "We need to talk."

He then took a photo of her pointing the gun at him with his cell phone, closed and locked the door and called 911 again.

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The couple heard Baughman trying to open the door so they took refuge in a bedroom. They could not see much of what was happening outside, but heard the shouted commands from the deputy and officer and then the shots.

"At this point, we went to the back just because she had a gun and we were scared for our lives," said the wife, adding, "It's a horrible experience. I mean, I never thought I would ever, ever go through this in my life."

The wife said she and her husband did not know why Baughman came to their home with a gun.

"I don't think we've spoken to the lady in probably eight years," she said.

Long-time neighbor feud reported

The wife said she and her husband's only involvement with Baughman was when Baughman complained in the past about fireworks being shot off from their property.

"We go back and forth all the time in our yard," said her husband, "the house to the barn. [Baughman] has a dog, she walks the dog out there, lets her dog out or whatever. She has not stopped us out there or yelled over to us, 'Hey, I'd like to talk to you guys. Hey guys, can I talk to you for a minute?' Never."

Not mentioned during the interview was a recent complaint the couple filed with the Portage County Public Health District concerning possible sewage leaking from Baughman's septic system into the couple's yard.

Health district staff told BCI investigators that in the weeks leading up to the shooting, they found no evidence of a "public health nuisance." A dye was injected into the septic system and was not seen in the suspected sewage on the ground.

However, inspectors were never able to conduct a similar test at a building, described as looking like a cottage, behind the home because they never got permission to enter the building. Baughman had told an inspector that the building had been disconnected from the septic system.

Explanations for what the building was used for varied. Baughman told one inspector that it was used for storage, while later saying it was used for canning. She said her adult grandson lived with her in her home but would hang out in the rear building. The grandson's father, who lives on the other side of the neighbor's home, said his son lived in the building.

The possibility that the septic system might be failing and needed to be replaced was raised. Health district inspectors said Baughman was distressed by this, even worrying that she would be forced to leave the home. They said they assured her that financial assistance was available to help homeowners in these situations.

During a May 14 interview with BCI investigators at UH Portage Medical Center, where Baughman was taken and pronounced dead, her grandson said the septic system issue was the latest incident in a 20-year feud that Baughman had with her next door neighbors.

He said the neighbors had made other complaints about her to the heath district and the township over the years, but their disputes never became violent.

"They have made our lives miserable," he said.

However, he said what caused his grandmother to go over to the neighbor's home with a gun that morning was unclear.

Baughman's grandson said after she learned she was eligible for financial assistance if the septic system needed to be replaced, 'the stress from that, it kind of dissipated."

He also said that Baughman did not get easily upset and had even calmed him down when he became angry about the neighbors. He said his grandmother had no history of mental illness.

"She's not the type of person to just fly off the handle and just go over there with a gun," he said.

Baughman's former son-in-law, the grandson's father, told investigators he was estranged from Baughman and her family, but he had an issue with the neighbors as well.

"They ain't the easiest people to live next to sometimes," he said.

Two other neighbors, a husband and wife, said they were at home at the time of the shooting, but did not hear the yelling or shots.

"I just couldn't believe it," said the husband. "I don't know. [Baughman] was our best friend."

"She's a very good person," added his wife.

They told investigators that they had known about disputes between Baughman and her next-door neighbors since they moved into their home 15 years ago.

"It was a mess when we moved here," said the wife. "And that's what the Realtor told us, 'You guys are moving into a hornet's nest.' "

The husband said the neighbors would complain about things like Baughman's dog barking or a stick falling from a tree onto the neighbors' property.

Both said, however, that they did not believe Baughman would actually have hurt anyone.

"What transpired this morning to make her go down there, I don't know," said the husband. "She just finally had it."

Of course, one person investigators were unable to interview is Baughman herself.

A look through Baughman's Facebook profile uncovered no posts about the reported feud. What it did reveal about Baughman is that she supported gun rights, she wanted people to get along and respect each other despite political differences and she loved dogs.

Reporter Jeff Saunders can be reached at jsaunders@recordpub.com.