SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. – A construction worker saved a child from a domestic dispute that ended Tuesday when a man shot and killed his wife and turned the gun on himself, police said.
At least two construction workers heard the screams of a child coming from a house under renovation in a neighborhood near downtown Scottsdale, police Sgt. Ben Hoster said.
One of the workers ran into the home and found a husband and wife fighting over a gun, he said. The worker wrestled the gun from the husband and took the wife and child outside, Hoster said.
The husband later emerged from the home with a handgun and told the worker to take the child away from the scene, he said. The worker complied, and the husband shot and killed his wife then himself, Hoster said.
"He is a hero for saving that kid's life," Hoster said of the worker.
Police had recently dealt with domestic issues at the couple's home.
They served an order of protection on the husband Friday, took away several guns and ordered him to stay away from the wife and the home, Hoster said.
Police would not release names until the families are notified but said the child and another child belonging to the couple were in the custody of the police crisis intervention team.
Hoster said the construction worker would be protected under the state's good Samaritan laws despite entering the house without permission and fighting with the husband.
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