A 46-year-old Palmetto woman has been arrested and charged with second-degree murder after allegedly running over her 90-year-old husband with their pickup truck.
Being held without bond in the St. Landry Parish Jail is Diana Bihm, 139 Charles St., Palmetto.
She was arrested Sunday evening by St. Landry Parish Sheriff's Office deputies, who were called to Stelly's Grocery in the 8600 block of U.S. Route 71 in Lebeau at 6:43 p.m.
Her husband of three years, Claude M. Bihm, was taken to Opelousas General Health System, where he died from his injuries later that evening.
According to witnesses, the couple had arrived at the store in a small, red pickup a few minutes earlier.
"The couple argued and the male subject exited the vehicle and entered the grocery store with his wife," said Jimmy Darbonne, the sheriff's office's public information officer.
He said the couple continued to argue while in the store and then both left the store, with the female heading back to the truck.
"Witnesses stated they witnessed physical contact between the subjects in the parking lot at one point during the argument," Darbonne said. "Witnesses also stated the female got behind the wheel of the truck while the male subject walked away toward the car wash located in the same parking lot."
He said the female then drove the vehicle to the edge of the concrete parking lot and stopped there briefly.
"The witnesses stated at that point the female subject proceeded at a high rate of speed, hitting the male subject with the vehicle, knocking down a car wash concrete-based vacuum cleaner and partially running over the subject with the front of the vehicle," Darbonne said.