The Powells lived at 14145 Howard Lane. That’s east of St. Robert. The house has a Dixon address but is just north of Interstate 44 and Devils Elbow.

Investigators believe Stacy Powell bought a gun last week in El Paso, Texas, where she was assigned to an Army recruiting station, and returned to Pulaski County only a couple of days before she shot her husband.

Law officers found Brian Powell, 42, lying on the shoulder of the road in front of a neighbor's home when they arrived about 7:45 a.m. He had a gunshot wound in his upper left chest and was not conscious.

Officers found Stacy Powell, 40, lying next to her husband. She "was bleeding from the left wrist and was visibly agitated," according to a detective's probable cause statement filed with the charges. Deputy Brandon Robertson said Stacy said she "should have shot myself, not my husband." Robertson said it looked like the wife had knife wounds.

An ambulance took both of them to the hospital at nearby Fort Leonard Wood but doctors were not able to save Brian. Stacy was being treated for her wounds at the hospital on Thursday, and could be there several days, according to Sheriff J.B. King.

A nurse who came upon the scene before the deputy arrived said Brian Powell was conscious and she started to treat him. The nurse said the husband told her "she shot me." She said Brian told her that Stacy had been at their home for the last two days. The nurse said she also heard Stacy Powell, who was lying on the ground, say "just let me die, I want to die."

A neighbor of the Powells said he saw "Brian running up the street . . . and tackle Stacy Powell in the street. . . he observed Brian Powell grab the weapon away from Stacy Powell and throw the weapon into the yard." A deputy found a .40-caliber semiautomatic pistol in the neighbor's yard. It had been fired and and had 11 live bullets.

A detective said Stacy Powell told him at the scene that "me and my husband were fussing."

Investigators found two trails of blood in and outside the Powells' home. One led from the kitchen to the front door and then to the shoulder of the road. The other led from the back door and met up with the first blood trail. They also found a bloody kitchen paring knife, an expended shell casing and bullet holes in an interior wall and an exterior wall, and blood in the living room and on a glass door.

Detectives said they believe two shots were fired. One missed Brian and the other struck him in the chest. In Stacy Powell's car, they found a receipt for the purchase of the gun in El Paso on March 17.

A medical examiner who did an autopsy said it appears Brian was shot at close range. The bullet damaged his left lung, spleen, diaphram and stomach.

In an interview, King declined to discuss whether investigators think Stacy's knife wounds were inflicted by Brian or were self-inflicted. The sheriff said that could be an issue at trial. Still, the first-degree murder charge indicates investigators believe the shooting was planned and didn't just occur in the passion of a fight or in self-defense.

King said Stacy Powell was under the control of the U.S. Army at the hospital at Fort Wood. King said in a news release that his investigators received “outstanding support from the United States Army and the various departments on Ft. Wood that have a role in this case. We anticipate that the service of the warrant will be routine in nature when the appropriate time for the execution of the warrant arrives.”

Online court records show Stacy filed for divorce on Feb. 5 and Brian filed for divorce on Feb. 14. A detective said court records show the couple had a dispute about children last Dec. 30, the same day that Stacy was cited for driving 106 mph on Interstate 44. A teenage son who lived with Brian is now with his grandparents. King said two other children involved in the marriage are in El Paso.

Associate Circuit Judge Colin Long set Powell’s bond at $1 million.