Wife kills husband, ending domestic violence saga

Woman accused of killing husband slaying ended apparent fight
Relatives describe violence
Lannen, Steve. Lexington Herald-Leader, March 20, 2007, pg. B1.

The shooting death of a man Sunday night was the tragic end of a relationship rife with physical and mental abuse, said the mother of the woman accused of pulling the trigger.

On Sunday night at 3505 Greenlawn, David and Sandra Lubben argued over whether to buy her mother a carton of cigarettes. That led to yelling, threats and David Lubben throwing a chair at his wife, said Vicky Musgrove, who was in the house.The night before he had threatened to cut up his wife with a knife, she said.

A little after 10 p.m., Sandra Lubben found a handgun she had and shot her husband in the chest, according to a police report. He was taken to the University of Kentucky hospital, where he died about 10:45, according to Lexington police and Fayette County coroner's news statements.

Sandra Gwen Lubben, 38, was arrested and charged with murder. At her arraignment yesterday afternoon, Fayette District Judge T. Bruce Bell entered a not guilty plea for her and appointed a public defender. He set a full cash bond at $50,000. A preliminary hearing is scheduled for 8:30 a.m. Monday.

Two uncles attended the hearing and later visited their niece at the Fayette jail.

"She's told me several times that he was beating up on her and was abusive. She told me that a lot," David Musgrove said. "He's controlling. He's the type of guy who wanted everything his way."

Sandra Lubben was hesitant to go to court to stop the abuse, said Musgrove.

"He told her if she had him locked up, he was going to hurt her bad," she said.

The couple married in July last year in Memphis, Tenn., but had dated for about five years, she said.

They had a young daughter, Musgrove and her uncles said, but Sandra Lubben had five children from previous marriages. Her oldest son is serving in the U.S. Navy, but the other children were removed about two weeks ago and placed in foster care, she said.

"I watched the kids get into the (police) car like they were so happy to get out of the house. It was unreal. They didn't cry or anything," said Sharon Edwards, a neighbor who lives across the street.

She said she and residents sometimes heard David Lubben screaming at his wife. "I don't think I ever saw her without a black eye," she said.

Still, Sandra Lubben always defended her husband, Edwards and Musgrove said.

- Sandra Lubben was charged with murder. Bond was set at $50,000.