On August 4, 2016, the quiet community of Owensville, Missouri, became the scene of a violent tragedy at the Owensville Motor Inn. Inez Gregory, a 30-year-old female U.S. Army veteran, was staying at the motel to handle legal matters regarding her divorce and a contentious custody battle over her son. While she was in her room, her estranged husband, Toby Gregory, arrived at the location in a rage. He forcibly entered her room and fired a weapon, striking her once in the abdomen.
As she attempted to flee the room to the safety of the parking lot, he followed her and shot her four more times, resulting in her death at the scene.
After the fatal shooting, Toby Gregory turned the weapon on himself in the motel parking lot, sustaining a severe gunshot wound to his jaw. Law enforcement and emergency responders arrived to find Inez Gregory deceased and her husband critically injured but alive. He was airlifted to a hospital in St. Louis for treatment, where he was placed under police guard. Authorities quickly identified him as the sole suspect, citing witness accounts and surveillance footage that captured the sequence of events. He was initially charged by the Gasconade County Prosecuting Attorney with first-degree murder and armed criminal action.
During the legal proceedings, the defense argued that Toby Gregory, also a veteran who had served in Afghanistan, suffered from Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder and diminished capacity, which they claimed contributed to his actions that day. Rather than facing a trial that could have resulted in a life sentence without parole, he entered a guilty plea to a reduced charge of second-degree murder. Inez Gregory's family expressed devastation over the loss, emphasizing the impact on the couple’s children. The court accepted the plea agreement, and Toby Gregory was sentenced to 24 years in the Missouri Department of Corrections.
