Mexican Mayor's Husband Killed in Attack

MORELIA, Mexico – Gunmen have opened fire on the mayor of a western Mexico town, wounding her and killing her husband.

Michoacan state prosecutors say in a statement that Maria Gorrostieta, mayor of the town of Tiquicheo, and her husband stopped to make a phone call at a public phone when assailants shot them Thursday.

Prosecutors say husband Jose Sanchez previously survived an attack in January by gunmen who ambushed him as he drove on a rural road.

Michoacan is the home base of the La Familia drug cartel and has been embattled by drug violence. Several local officials have received threats for opposing organized crime and others have been detained for helping them.

In May, eight mayors in Michoacan were charged for allegedly protecting La Familia.