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On February 4, 2023, 62-year-old William Oscar Small and his wife, 44-year-old Heather Davenport Small, were found dead inside their home in Greenville around 1.15 pm.
Authorities in North Carolina reported that William, a former police officer, shot and murdered his wife, who was also a former cop, before turning the gun on himself in a murder-suicide incident.
A GoFundMe fundraiser campaign was organized by the Small family with the goal of raising $45,000 to help the couple's children. In the campaign post, the family thanked everyone for their love and support and asked for their continued assistance. As of yet, about $7000 has been raised.
William Oscar Small had a "lengthy history" of domestic violence arrests
According to a statement by the Pitt County Sheriff, on February 4, 2023, at 1.14 pm, officers responded to a residence at 1113 Lexington Downs Drive in Greenville, North Carolina, and found William Oscar Small and his wife, Heather Davenport Small, dead from gunshot wounds.
The statement mentioned that a weapon was also found at the scene, and there was no evidence of forced entry.
Autopsies revealed that William was the suspect and Heather was the victim. The Pitt County Sheriff stated that Heather was shot four times, and two of the shots were to the chest and from a range that indicates her not to be the shooter. William had two close-range gunshots to the chest, suggesting suicide.
The statement from the Pitt County Sheriff's Office read:
"The deaths were determined to be a murder-suicide."
Authorities also reported that William Oscar Small had been charged with domestic violence against his wife several times in the past 20 years. The statement mentions:
"Mr. Small also had a lengthy history as a suspect and as an arrestee for crimes of domestic violence stretching back over the past two decades against Mrs. Small."
According to a report by the Reflector, the sheriff's office informed that some of their children were at home and asleep during the time of the incident without being aware of it and were uninjured.
The investigation into William Oscar Small's murder-suicide was concluded
According to his obituary by Congleton Mortuary, William Oscar Small was a Marine Corps veteran and was later employed by Pitt County Memorial Hospital and Greenville Police Department. He is succeeded by his five daughters and four sons.
On February 19, 2023, a closed-casket funeral service was held for Heather Davenport Small at the Plymouth Church of Christ.
Heather's obituary by Bryan Funeral Service reads:
"No words can accurately describe Heather better other than she was truly ONE OF A KIND."
Heather Davenport Small worked for law enforcement as an officer with the Pitt County Memorial Hospital Police Department, followed by becoming a Clinical Adjunct Nursing Instructor at Pitt Community College and a lead provider at a mental health clinic.
