Ruth Ann Whitaker, a 70-year-old resident and local artist, was found dead from a gunshot wound in her Woodbine Road home in the Houndslake neighborhood of Aiken, South Carolina, on the evening of March 7, 2023. The Aiken Department of Public Safety responded to a shooting call at about 5:30 p.m. and discovered her body at the scene.

The investigation led to the arrest of her husband, 70-year-old Richard Whitaker. Authorities classified the incident as a domestic violence-related homicide. Richard Whitaker was charged with murder and possession of a weapon during the commission of a violent crime and was booked into the Aiken County Detention Center held without bond. An autopsy was scheduled in Newberry to officially determine the cause of death.

Does anyone in the Houndslake area have information about the Whitakers or the events that evening?