Michigan Wife Ends Argument by Shooting Husband in the Chest With .357 Revolver, Prosecutors Say
AUSABLE TOWNSHIP, MICHIGAN — A 32-year-old Michigan woman has been charged with open murder and felony firearm after police say she shot her husband in the chest with a .357 revolver during a late-night argument inside their home earlier this week.
According to the Iosco County Prosecutor’s Office, Melissa Christine Ragen fatally shot her husband, 31-year-old James Thomas Ragen IV, at their residence in AuSable Township, a small community near the Lake Huron shoreline.
Argument Turns Deadly
Investigators say the shooting happened just before 11 p.m. on Monday, when police received reports of a gunshot at the couple’s home on Second Street.
Officers with the Oscoda Township Police Department arrived within minutes and found James Ragen suffering from a single gunshot wound to the chest. Emergency responders attempted lifesaving measures, but he was pronounced dead at 11:13 p.m.
“According to statements by the defendant, she was in an argument with her husband when she retrieved a .357 caliber revolver and shot him in the chest,” prosecutors said in a press release.
No one else was injured during the shooting, police confirmed.
History Between the Couple
Court records reviewed by investigators show a complicated relationship between the husband and wife.
In December 2019, Melissa Ragen — then using her maiden name — filed a paternity lawsuit against James Ragen. By June 2020, the court issued an order of filiation, legally recognizing him as the biological father of their child.
Social media posts suggest that in the years following the case, the couple had multiple children together and appeared to live as a family before the fatal confrontation.
Arraignment and Court Schedule
Melissa Ragen was arrested shortly after the shooting and arraigned in the 81st District Court for Iosco County, where she pleaded not guilty to all charges.
She remains held in the Iosco County Jail pending a probable cause conference scheduled for October 14, followed by a preliminary examination on October 28.
If convicted of open murder, Ragen faces up to life in prison.
Authorities have not disclosed the exact cause of the argument, but prosecutors say the case highlights how quickly domestic disputes can escalate into deadly violence.
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