According to police, a Mississippi woman is behind bars for shooting and killing her husband in broad daylight outside a busy county courthouse minutes after he finalized their divorce.
Tanya Saucier, 49, was sitting in her car waiting for her ex-husband, James Ray Saucier, to leave the Lenoir Rowell Criminal Justice Center in Poplarville on Tuesday morning — after they had finalized their divorce in court — when she shot him, according to the Pearl River County Sheriff’s Office.
Tanya Saucier’s divorce attorney, Jansen Owen, told Biloxi ABC and CBS affiliate WLOX that the former couple had to go into the justice center separately to finalize their divorce proceedings due to their “volatile” relationship.
“The meeting for the Sauciers and their attorneys with the judge to finalize the divorce proceedings was an impromptu, unscheduled meeting,” said Pearl River County Sheriff’s Office Lead Investigator Maj. Scott Allee, in an interview with WLOX.
He claims Tanya Saucier, who is charged with murder, used a 9 mm handgun with a 15-round magazine to kill James Saucier while courtgoers and lawyers, including her own, were present at the justice center.
“What Miss Saucier did yesterday was unjustifiable,” Owen told WLOX. “I witnessed her murder him.”
Owen stated that there is “no justification” or “no excuse” for anyone to open fire on someone in a public setting, as his client did.
He and Tanya Saucier arrived at the courthouse around 10 a.m., while James Saucier arrived with his lawyer an hour later.
According to officials, James Saucier exited the justice center shortly before 1 p.m., before being shot.
“I was handling some paperwork when things went crossways,” James Saucier’s attorney, Don Rafferty, told WLOX.
Tayna Saucier was apprehended at the scene and charged with one count of murder. Owen, who is also a state representative, blamed her actions on the Magnolia State’s lax courthouse security, which he claims is a common issue.
“That’s the way it is in Mississippi — throughout the state,” he joked. “We have a really big problem throughout Mississippi with lacking courthouse security.”
According to Maj. Allee, police have some funding “procured through federal appropriations” set aside to improve courthouse security, though the amount is unknown.
“There is a recognized need for enhanced security measures there,” Allee informed the crowd.
Loved ones of James Saucier and Tanya Saucier have expressed their sadness over what happened. While family and friends were aware of the couple’s issues, WLOX reports that no one expected things to deteriorate so quickly.
“I wish they could have solved their problems peacefully,” said Wordie Carroll, a relative of James Saucier, in an interview with Jackson Fox affiliate WDBD.
Johanna Peterson, James Saucier’s sister-in-law, stated that the family is shocked, frustrated, and enraged. She was right there with her attorney, and she shot him 9-10 times.
She has taken seven grandchildren’s grandfather away from them. He has both a daughter and a son.
Court records obtained by WDBD and WLOX show that James Saucier was indicted in August on charges of aggravated assault and domestic violence with a deadly weapon, but his divorce attorney claims Tanya Saucier was the alleged instigator and attacker.
“My client said he was defending himself,” Rafferty explained. “And you saw what happened today.”
Regardless of whether James Saucier was innocent or not, Owen believes Tanya Saucier demonstrated that committing murder is not the way to handle things.
“We do not do vigilante justice in America,” he was saying.
