Washington state man shoots self outside court after mistrial

USPA News - An elderly man accused of assaulting his wife has shot himself in the head outside a Washington state court building after his trial ended in a hung jury, local officials said on Monday. The man was rushed to a local hospital in critical condition.

Cleon O Moen, 72, had been arrested earlier this year after he allegedly assaulted his wife in June, which resulted in a charge of Misdemeanor Assault Domestic Violence. The trial ended in a hung jury on Monday when the jury failed to agree upon a verdict, after which the man left the court building in Longview. The Cowlitz County Sheriff`s Office said Moen proceeded to the parking lot of the Hall of Justice and retrieved a 12-gauge shotgun from his truck, after which he shot himself in the head. "Deputies who were in the Hall at the time rushed outside and rendered first aid until an ambulance arrived," a sheriff`s office spokesperson said. Moen was initially rushed to Longview Hospital in critical condition before being transferred to Oregon Health & Science University. Detectives who investigated the domestic violence case found a note at Monday`s scene in which Moen talked about his marital problems and his intention to shoot himself. "The Sheriff`s Office wants to advise the public that this event was specific to this man`s troubles," the sheriff`s office said. No one else was injured in Monday`s shooting, which was witnessed by a number of people.