SOMERSET, Ky. — Two grieving parents were supposed to lay their son to rest Wednesday, just a few days after he was killed in a car accident.
The couple, however, never made it to their son’s funeral.
Instead, Billy Eugene Baugh, 54, and Shirley Baugh, 53, of Somerset, were found dead -- the result of an apparent murder-suicide.
“I never dreamed something like this would happen,” said a neighbor of the Baughs, who asked not to be identified. “I just talked to her (Shirley) on Sunday or Monday about what happened to Clarence (Baugh).”
Pulaski County Sheriff Todd Wood said the couple died from gunshot wounds, and he said it appears Billy turned a handgun on Shirley first before killing himself.
“This is just an absolute tragedy,” said Wood, about the circumstances surrounding the deaths. “They were preparing to bury their son (Clarence).”
The neighbor said the Baughs were distraught over Clarence’s death. The 27-year-old died just after midnight Sunday after his car dropped off the road and overturned before going into a creek.
“You see a lot of things in this profession, and this is one of the rare things you see,” Wood said. “Our thoughts and prayers are with everyone dealing with this.”
Details for this story were provided by the The Commonwealth Journal in Somerset, Ky.
