James Baxter Baucom, a 57-year-old white male, died on May 19, 2015, in Gastonia, North Carolina. His death was the result of a tragic double-murder suicide. On that fateful day, Gaston County police were called to a mobile home on Archie Road in Chapel Grove, North Carolina, where they discovered the bodies of James Baxter Baucom and 51-year-old Lisa Cole King. Both had been fatally shot.
The shooter, identified as Benjamin Elliot King, 52, of Fort Mill, South Carolina, was Lisa Cole King's estranged husband. After committing the murders, Benjamin King turned the weapon on himself and later died from a single gunshot wound.
The incident occurred early in the morning, and the police were alerted shortly after 5 a.m. When they arrived at the scene, they found James Baxter Baucom dead in the front yard and Lisa Cole King inside the residence. The investigation revealed that there were five children present at the time of the shooting, ranging in age from four to thirteen years old. Fortunately, the children managed to flee the scene and were unharmed, with one child found hiding inside the residence.
James Baxter Baucom was born on April 3, 1958, in Gaston County, North Carolina, to the late William Bentley and Jeanne Barras Baucom. He was preceded in death by his wife, Linda Melton Baucom, and siblings Bill, Sally, and Marie. He is survived by his daughter, Stacey Marie Gibbs of Gastonia, North Carolina, as well as his sisters Mary Anne and Helen, six grandchildren, and numerous nephews and nieces.
The double-murder suicide left the community in shock and mourning. The funeral service for James Baxter Baucom was held on May 27, 2015, at M.L. Ford and Sons Funeral Home Chapel in Clover, South Carolina, with burial in Armstrong Park Cemetery. The family received friends one hour prior to the service.
