Two domestic violence cases in just two days in Orleans County
Posted at: 03/05/2013 4:31 PM
| Updated at: 03/05/2013 5:42 PM
By: Ray Levato | WHEC.com
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The Orleans County Sheriff says a Kendall man shot his wife, set their house on fire, and then turned the shotgun on himself. This was the second apparent case of domestic violence in Orleans county in two days.
The body of a woman was found by a mail carrier Monday in Carlton. The sheriff arrested her boyfriend in that case.
In Kendall, deputies got the call late Monday night from 58-year-old Linda Buehler who said her husband shot her with a .20 gauge shotgun. When they arrived, they found 64-year-old Dennis Buehler wounded on the ground and their house on fire.
Buehler is still hospitalized and is under 24-hour guard. His wife is also being treated for her wounds. The sheriff says he shot himself in the face with the same shotgun. The Orleans County Undersheriff Scott Smith says both are lucky to be alive.
Firefighters were still pouring water on the charred embers of the house on Peter Smith Road, not far from the Lake Ontario State Parkway. Smith recounted what apparently happened based upon what investigators know.
Steve Smith, Orleans County Undersheriff, said, “Linda Buehler came home, she was at an exercise class, and shortly thereafter, she was confronted by her husband, and he had a gun. And he shot her in the shoulder. Her testimony is that they struggled, and then was able at some point to break free. And she ran out of the house, got into the family car and drove to a nearby home. More often than not when these types of incidents occur, they occur in homes where there has been no domestic violence history, at least not with law enforcement.”
61-year-old Frederick Miller is the Orleans County man charged with killing his girlfriend. Investigators say a school bus driver saw the victim, 53-year-old Rachel Miller, along Oak Orchard River Road in the town of Carlton Monday morning. According to the sheriffs office, the couple apparently got into a fight inside their home. The fight then moved outside and down the road to where the body was found.
News10NBC's Ray Levato said, “So, this incident and the one in Carlton recently, what do they say about domestic violence in Orleans County?”
Smith said, “On average, we handle about 300 domestic violence calls a year. Of course, those are just the ones that get reported. Statistically, there's a tremendous percentage of domestic violence incidents that do not get reported to law enforcement.”
And he says that 300 number has held pretty steady in Orleans County over the last ten years.
The undersheriff says when Buehler is released from the hospital he'll be brought back to Orleans County and formally charged. They also plan to talk with his wife to get more information as soon as she is able.
If people are in abusive relationship and need to get help, in Orleans County, the sheriff's department and the county court system have victim's assistance programs. Also, Pathstone offers emergency support services in Albion. Below are links where you can find more information about these services.
AskNY-EmergencySupport@PathStone.org
http://www.orleansny.com/Departments/PublicSafety/Sheriff.aspx
http://www.courts.state.ny.us/courthelp/OrleansFamCt1.htm
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