A jury Thursday began deliberating whether an Arlington-area woman intended to shoot and severely wound her husband after they argued over her drinking.
Her husband was shot, but the defense maintains that her pistol accidentally discharged.
Cynthia Katherine See, 43, is accused of first-degree assault and attempted second-degree murder in the Feb. 28, 2006, shooting in the garage of their rural home.
Jurors began mulling the case about noon and went home before 5 p.m. without reaching a verdict. The jury will resume deliberations this morning.
Both Cynthia See and her husband, Rodger See, carry pistols – she in her purse and he in a holster on his hip – wherever they go, according to testimony.
He was shot in the stomach after Cynthia See spilled the contents of her purse during the argument. She went down on one knee to pick up the items, including her 9 mm pistol.
She testified that her husband approached and startled her and the gun went off.
Deputy prosecutor Paul Stern told the jury Thursday that the defendant has undergone extensive gun training and is familiar with how to handle the pistol.
“You don’t put your finger on that trigger unless you intend to pull that trigger,” Stern said. “She aimed that gun right where she wanted to shoot at that moment in time.”
Defense lawyer Thomas Cox of Mill Creek told jurors her training came in the early 1990s and that Cynthia See has not fired the gun much in recent years.
“She had no intention whatsoever of shooting the gun,” Cox argued.
To be convicted, the jury must find that Cynthia See wanted to pull the trigger.
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