Woman faces murder charge in boyfriend’s shooting death
Authorities say she found him cheating on her the night before
A woman who is accused of shooting and killing her boyfriend in Sunnyside was charged with murder Wednesday afternoon.
The woman — Debra Davis, 58 — is accused of killing 49-year-old Houston resident Rodney Johnson.
Davis surrendered Wednesday morning to police, arriving about 7:20 a.m. at the Houston Police Department’s southeast patrol station, said HPD spokeswoman Jodi Silva.
Davis had apparently been enraged the previous night after finding Johnson cheating on her, said Fil Waters with HPD’s homicide division.
“There’s two sides to a story,” Waters said. “So we want to give her the opportunity to explain what happened out here.”
Filed for divorce
Davis was in a relationship with Johnson, but she is married to another man, according to court records.
Davis filed for divorce in September 2016 from her husband of over 30 years, Rogers Davis Jr, according to court records.
The divorce is not yet finalized, Rogers Davis Jr.’s divorce lawyer, Allette B. Williams, said Wednesday.
Rogers Davis Jr. suspected his wife was having an affair with Johnson, Williams added. However, Debra Davis had not said she was having an affair in court, Williams said.
Rogers Davis Jr. and Debra Davis married in March 1985. They stopped living together in July 2016, according to court records. The couple has adult children, Williams said.
Argued in street
The gunfire started about 11:40 p.m., as Davis and Johnson argued in the middle of the street, in the 9400 block of Cathedral, Waters said.
At some point, police said they believe Davis fired her gun at Johnson. She then got into her car and drove away. Johnson was taken to Ben Taub Hospital where he died.
Cathedral, the street where the deadly shooting happened, was quiet almost 12 hours after the incident.
Jamal Lewis, who lives on the block, said, though he didn’t know the couple personally, he often crossed paths with the pair in the neighborhood. They greeted each other with small talk.