An elderly Florida man shot and killed his son on Christmas Day after their argument turned deadly. It wasn’t the first time he had shot him either.
Deputies from the Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office responded to a call around 9.30pm Tuesday at 2727 Forbes Road in Plant City after an eyewitness called 911 about a male shot inside the residence.
Guy Richard Vickery, 82, allegedly shot his son, Benjamin Vickery, 50, in his upper body during an argument.Benjamin was rushed to South Florida Baptist Hospital, where he later died from his injuries.
While its unclear what sparked the Christmas slaying, it was the second time Guy shot his son.
Just before 9:30 p.m., Benjamin Vickery began arguing with his father and a witness. Guy Vickery went upstairs to his bedroom and grabbed a gun while the witness, who is not named in the affidavit, watched Benjamin Vickery flee into a back room. He said his father had a gun.
The witness heard a gunshot then saw Benjamin Vickery laying face down on the floor.
He was arrested on a charge of manslaughter with a weapon — a first-degree felony punishable by up to 30 years in prison.
Guy Vickery was being held at the Hillsborough County Jail with no bail set.
The father and son had a stormy relationship marred by an earlier shooting 18 years ago, Tampa Bay reports.
In February 2000, the father shot his son in the shoulder during a fight, the Sheriff’s Office reported at the time.
Guy Vickery, then 63, was getting into his car to leave his son’s home when Benjamin Vickery, then 31, opened the car door and began to kick and punch his father, the Sheriff’s Office said.
Guy Vickery, who was living in St. Petersburg at the time, took out a .45-caliber pistol and shot his son in the left shoulder, the Sheriff’s Office said.
Benjamin Vickery, whose address at the time was the home on 2727 South Forbes Rd.. was treated at South Florida Baptist Hospital and released. He was charged with one count of false imprisonment, one count of battery and domestic violence, and one count of burglary of a vehicle.
Guy Vickery acted in self-defense and was not charged, the Sheriff’s Office said then.
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