Carol Cross, a 38-year-old White female, found her life tragically cut short on a summer afternoon in Lewiston, Maine. The date was August 10, 1999, a Tuesday that would end in a devastating act of domestic violence. For 19 years, Carol had been in a volatile relationship with her live-in boyfriend, Kenneth Emrick. Seeking to end the turmoil, she had taken the step of securing a protection-from-abuse order.
On that fateful day, she returned to their shared home with the intention of gathering her belongings and ensuring the safety of her three children, who were 16, 8, and 2 years old at the time.
To provide moral support and help ensure a peaceful transition, Carol was accompanied by two friends. A Lewiston police officer was also present to keep the peace. Despite these precautions, the situation escalated dramatically. While the officer was inside the second-floor apartment, Emrick, who was also 38, retreated to a bedroom and barricaded the door. Armed with a. 30-06 caliber rifle, he pointed it out of a window and fired at Carol as she sat waiting in the front passenger seat of her van.
The single gunshot struck Carol in the throat, and she died at the scene. The bullet passed through her and also hit one of her friends, 46-year-old Robert Pelchat, who survived his injuries. In the immediate aftermath of the shooting, Kenneth Emrick took his own life with a self-inflicted gunshot wound to the head. The incident was officially classified as a murder-suicide, leaving their three children orphaned. In the wake of this tragedy, the Lewiston Police Department underwent extensive domestic violence training, and a granite bench was placed at the junction of Leeds, Webster, and Pine streets in Lewiston as a memorial to Carol and all other victims of domestic violence.
