Kimberly Sue Heath, the scene
A 45-year-old woman in Florida is behind bars after she allegedly shot and killed her estranged husband at her Jacksonville home last week.
Kimberly Sue Heath was taken into custody on Friday evening and charged in the death of 40-year-old Nathaniel Heath, authorities announced. She faces one count of second-degree murder — perpetrating a dangerous act evincing a depraved mind without premeditation, jail records show.
According to a press release from the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office, deputies at approximately noon on Oct. 7 responded to an emergency call at a home located in the 10600 block of Ft. Caroline Road regarding a possible shooting.
Upon arriving at the scene, first responders entered the home and discovered an adult male suffering from what appeared to be at least one gunshot wound. Medical personnel with the Jacksonville Fire and Rescue Department were dispatched to the address and pronounced the male victim dead on the scene, police said.
“JSO’s Homicide Team #2, along with members of the Crime Scene Unit, responded and began their respective investigations,” the press release said. “At the start, an individual had been detained and she was transported to the Police Memorial Building to be interviewed about the incident. Following the initial collection of, and vetting of the available evidence, the determination was made that the death of the victim would be ruled a murder.”
Police had not officially released the name of the victim as of Monday afternoon, but Nathaniel Heath’s family reportedly identified him as the man who was gunned down Friday in an interview with Jacksonville independent television station WJXT.
Nathaniel’s mother, Audrey Longley, reportedly told the station that the suspect and her son moved back to Florida from the Midwest so they could get Kimberly Heath help for mental health issues she was dealing with. Since they returned to the Sunshine State, however, they had become estranged and her son had moved out of the Ft. Caroline Road home, she reportedly said.
“He had not been staying here because she was afraid that she was going to kill him,” Longley reportedly told Jacksonville CBS affiliate WJAX-TV.
Longley added that she believes Kimberly Heath was armed and waiting for the victim when he arrived.
“When he came to the house, he went in. From the time he got here 8 minutes later she had shot him,” Longley reportedly told WJAX. “I want to see her get the full extent of what could be done to her and I hate to say that because at one point I liked her and was trying to be there for her and my son.”
Speaking about her son, Longley reportedly described him as a “happy-go-lucky” person who “wouldn’t hurt a fly.”
Kimberly Heath’s roommate, Jeoff Perreault, reportedly said that Nathaniel and Kimberly got into an argument Friday evening before the fatal shooting.
“He said that Heath returned to the house Friday night after he got multiple Ring doorbell notifications and assumed his wife was locked out of the house,” the report said. “The next time his roommate checked the camera, the whole house was covered in caution tape and police lights.”
Kimberly Heath is currently being held without bond at Duval County Jail and is scheduled to appear in court on Oct. 31.
A GoFundMe page to help pay for Nathaniel’s funeral expenses can be found here.
[Images via Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office, First Coast News screengrab]