ATLANTA —
An elderly man accused of gunning down a Georgia woman after his motorized wheelchair and her car bumped is a military veteran and church deacon who has suffered strokes in recent years, his attorney said Thursday.
Frank Louis Reeves, 73, is accused of killing 65-year-old Linda Hunnicutt at a Macon gas station on Tuesday. His attorney, Veronica Brinson, told The Associated Press that Reeves is in shock about what happened and didn’t mean for anyone to get hurt.
“He’s never been in any trouble so this is new to him,” she said.
Reeves faces a murder charge.
Police say Reeves’ wheelchair came into contact with Hunnicutt’s Buick — it’s not clear who hit whom. Authorities say Reeves shot the woman when she got out of her car. She later died at a hospital despite the efforts of bystanders who tried to revive her on the pavement next to the gas pump.
Hunnicutt was a stay-at-home mom who was hoping to adopt a less-fortunate family for the holidays this year to give them gifts, her daughter Kim Butler told The Telegraph newspaper of Macon. The Jones County woman had hosted an Easter egg hunt for area children for several years, Butler said.
Reeves served in the military around the time of the Korean War and used a wheelchair because he had suffered two strokes in the past few years, Brinson told the AP. The Macon man serves as a deacon at his church, she said. Reeves and his family said in a news release that they hope the Hunnicutt family can grieve in peace.
Reeves family said he has no criminal history, though Vinson is still awaiting a report that would confirm that, she said.
“He’s a really good man, really good man,” she said.
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