By April Amadon<br><a href="mailto:amadona@gnnewspaper.com">E-mail April</a>
BARKER — A long-standing feud between two families apparently had fatal consequences Friday after one man was reportedly shot to death inside a Hall Road home.
Theodore Tice, 54, was found dead inside 9677 Hall Road, allegedly shot to death by Jamie W. Wilson, 39, a resident of the home.
The Niagara County Sheriff’s Department received a 911 call at 1:38 p.m. from Wilson, who reportedly told the dispatcher he “needed the police.”
When the dispatcher asked why, Wilson allegedly said he’d just shot someone, and the man was dead inside his house.
Deputies arrived at the home to find Tice inside, dead of a gunshot wound to the torso.
Wilson reportedly told deputies he’s had problems with Tice for “several years.” Chief Deputy James Voutour said there was “some kind of ongoing feud” between the two.
Wilson told deputies he and Tice argued outside the home Friday afternoon, and Tice followed him into the house, where Wilson locked himself in his bedroom.
Wilson reportedly said Tice began banging on the bedroom door, which Wilson said caused him to “fear for his life,” Voutour said.
“He fired one shot from the shotgun through the closed door,” Voutour said.
The shot reportedly went through the door and struck Tice in the torso. As others inside the house performed first aid on Tice, Wilson reportedly called 911 and waited outside for deputies to arrive. Voutour said he surrendered without incident.
Tice, a native of the Town of Lockport, was a resident of Unicoi, Tenn.
Wilson is charged with second-degree murder. He was arraigned Friday night in Somerset Town Court and was held without bail.
Voutour said the case will go to the grand jury next week. Because Wilson said he shot Tice because he was in fear for his life, the charges could change, Voutour said.
“Technically, you have to have the imminent fear of deadly physical force being used against you,” he said. “This is a case that can go either way. ... There’s all kinds of things (to take into account). What makes one person fear for his life might be different for another person.”
Investigators are looking into the history of the alleged feud between Wilson and Tice, including possible past incidents at the house.
“There is history on the street, and there’s a possibility there’s a history at this house,” Voutour said. “We’re pulling those past calls and those past reports. It’s all part of the investigation.”
Deputies confiscated the shotgun, which was found in the house, along with two other guns on the property.
Several witnesses were being interviewed Friday, some at the scene and some at the sheriff’s department. Voutour said it is not clear if anyone directly witnessed the shooting, but there were at least four or five “people with knowledge.”
Several people on the scene had been “drinking all day,” he added.
Deputies took steps to make sure several children who live at the neighbors’ house were kept away from the scene.
“I immediately called Barker and had the kids that belonged here, had them held at the school so they didn’t get dropped off from the school bus in the middle of a homicide scene,” Voutour said. “They’ve been safely taken to a relative’s.”
Deputies received assistance at the scene from the Barker Police Department and the Orleans County Sheriff’s Department. Fire police from the Barker Volunteer Fire Department shut off Hall Road on either side of the house at Carmen and Lonnon roads.
The incident is an unusual one for the usually quiet village, Voutour said.
“We don’t get many (homicides) in the county, fortunately, especially out here in rural areas,” he said. “It is odd.”
Contact reporter April Amadon at 439-9222, ext. 6251.
