‘Not ashamed of it’: Richmond man accused of killing woman in gazebo
RICHMOND, Ind. (WISH) — A 67-year-old Richmond man is accused of killing a woman in a gazebo outside of an apartment building.
According to court documents obtained by News 8, just after 12:30 p.m. on Friday, Richmond Police Department officers were sent to an apartment complex in the first block of South 14th Street. That’s east of the city’s downtown.
Upon arrival, they found 59-year-old Michelle Peacock in a gazebo outside of the apartment complex with a cut across her throat where “she bled severely,” an affidavit said. She died at the scene.
Officers also found Tommy Wayne Earl, 67, with blood on his hands and clothes. He was armed with a straight razor and refused to drop the weapon.
Earl told an officer “he would kill him too,” documents say.
The officers used a Taser and took him into custody. He was then taken to a local hospital.
Earl told police he lived in the same apartment complex and said he “finally went off.” He also told police that “he’s not ashamed of it.”
Earl said he woke up on Friday and saw Peacock sitting in the gazebo and that “he had enough.” He walked downstairs, swung the razor in her face, and cut her throat.
As he walked away from the scene, people tried to stop him.
“He was hit with items the lawn crew was using to work on the yard,” the affidavit said.
Earl said he was glad he killed Peacock and would do it again.
The suspect claimed he had taken his prescribed medication the morning of the murder, but was adjusting the time to help him sleep better.
At the end of the interview, he asked to be kept separate from Black inmates, because “he does not get along with them.” The woman he is accused of murdering is a Black woman.
Police did not say if this is considered a hate crime.
Earl is charged with one count of murder, one count of felony intimidation, and one misdemeanor count of resisting law enforcement. Online records on Wednesday showed Earl is being held without bond at the Wayne County Jail.
