NEWS

Autopsies: Man killed wife, then himself in Haywood case

Sabian Warren
swarren@citizen-times.com

WAYNESVILLE – Preliminary autopsy results for a South Carolina couple found dead in their vacation home in Haywood County indicate the man shot and killed his wife, then himself.

Results from autopsies performed Tuesday show Richard Haynie, 54, shot his wife, Eva Haynie, 51, in the back of the head, then shot himself in the mouth, Haywood County Sheriff’s Office Sgt. Heidi Warren said. Both suffered single gunshot wounds.

A gun was recovered from the body of Richard Haynie, Warren said. The autopsies confirmed an initial conclusion by investigators that the couple died in a murder-suicide.

Haywood deputies went to the Pickens County, South Carolina, couple’s second home in the Hemphill community of northern Haywood County on Monday afternoon to check on them at the request of the Pickens County Sheriff’s Office. Pickens County authorities were contacted by the couple’s family members after the two didn’t return to South Carolina as anticipated, Warren said.

The Pickens County School District, where Eva Haynie was a teacher, issued the following statement, “Our district is stunned and saddened by the death of Eva Haynie, a fifth grade teacher at Chastain Road Elementary School. Mrs. Haynie has taught in our district for 15 years. She will be remembered as a dedicated teacher who loved and cared for all of her students, seeking to always put their needs first. We extend our deepest sympathies to her family, her friends and her co-workers at CRE.”

A cooperative investigation involving the Haywood County Sheriff’s Office and Pickens County Sheriff’s Office is continuing, Warren said.