Shortly after 2:30 a.m. on July 24, 2023, deputies in Cherokee County and officers from Holly Springs responded to a home on Raven Drive where 63-year-old Deborah Collins was found on the floor with a gunshot wound to her neck and was pronounced dead at the scene. Her 70-year-old husband, Charles Terry Collins (also reported as Charles “Terry” Collins), met officers at the door holding a Smith & Wesson .38 special revolver. He initially retreated into the house and later surrendered without incident and was taken into custody.

Charles Collins told officers he had shot his wife in self-defense, alleging she had threatened him with a knife. Investigators noted a knife in Deborah Collins’s hand that was not covered in blood, while other nearby objects were bloodied, and the Georgia Bureau of Investigation reported no discernible fingerprints on the knife. Prosecutors say the scene was staged and point out Charles did not call 911 or render aid but called his son to tell him he had shot Deborah.

A grand jury indicted Charles Collins in October 2023 on malice murder, felony murder, aggravated assault, and possession of a firearm during the commission of a crime. His trial began in January 2024; the jury convicted him of all charges and he was later sentenced to life plus five years. Does anyone have information about Deborah’s life in Cherokee County or who might help fill gaps in the timeline that night?