Gun fired accidentally, says accused assailant

HOT SPRINGS — A woman accused of shooting her fiance in the leg Wednesday told Garland County sheriff’s investigators the gun fired accidentally as she was removing it from a vehicle, according to an affidavit obtained Thursday.

Tera Renee Hanley, 42, was arrested at the scene shortly after 1:30 p.m. on a charge of second-degree domestic battery.

She was soon facing additional charges after methamphetamine, marijuana, a rifle and a shotgun were found in her residence, according to a second affidavit prepared by agents with the 18th Judicial District East Drug Task Force, also obtained Thursday.

The additional charges are simultaneous possession of drugs and a firearm, possession of meth with purpose to deliver, possession of firearms by certain persons, maintaining a drug premises, three counts of possession of drug paraphernalia, and a misdemeanor count of possession of marijuana with purpose to deliver.

According to the affidavit on the shooting, shortly after 12:30 p.m. Wednesday, the Garland County Communication Center received a call from Hanley stating “someone had been shot in the leg” at her residence.

Sheriff’s deputies went to the residence and located a man, 39, with an apparent gunshot wound in his upper right leg.

Hanley told an investigator she was removing “two to three” long guns from a vehicle when one of them “went off,” and then she heard her fiance “screaming he had been shot,” authorities said.

She said her fiance told her to hide the guns inside the residence, so she put them in the closet before returning to him and calling 911.

According to the drug task force affidavit, shortly before 2 p.m., agents were contacted by sheriff’s investigators about the shooting after deputies clearing the residence reported seeing narcotics in plain view and located some firearms. It was also noted Hanley had an active search waiver on file.